Document Information

Date: 1981-11
By: Canada
Citation: FACT SHEET, The Notwithstanding or override clause as applied to the Charter of Rights & Freedoms (November 1981).
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FACT SHEET

The Notwithstanding or Override Clause as Applied to the Charter of Rights & Freedoms

A notwithstanding clause is one which enables a legislative body (federal and provincial) to enact expressly that a particular provision of an Act will be valid, notwithstanding the fact that it conflicts with a specific provision of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The notwithstanding principle has been recognized and is contained in a number of bills of rights, including the Canadian Bill of Rights (1960), the Alberta Bill of Rights (1972), the Quebec Charter of Rights and Freedoms (1975), the Saskatchewan Human Rights Code (1979), and Ontario’s Bill 7 to Amend its Human Rights Code (1981).

How it would be applied

Any enactment overriding any specific provisions of the Charter would contain a clause expressly declaring that a specific provision of the proposed enactment shall operate, notwithstanding a specific provision of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Any notwithstanding enactment would have to be reviewed and renewed every five years by the enacting legislature if it were to remain in force.