Dear [Recepient],

People ask me what it’s like to be a constitutional lawyer working for the CCF. The truth is it’s fun and rewarding, but the work never stops! The last few days have been hectic.

I got back to Toronto from Calgary late Saturday night, after assisting local counsel in defending against former mayor Jyoti Gondek’s Safe and Inclusive Access Bylaw, which is anything but inclusive. The bylaw makes it illegal to express “objections to” or “disapproval of” any idea related to fifteen human rights grounds like race or gender within 100 metres of libraries and recreation centres. Calgarians are still allowed to protest pipelines, but saying “down with radical Islam” or “no men in women’s sports” can now lead to a huge fine. I can’t tell how the judge will rule, but I can say that he asked Calgary’s lawyers two very good questions right at the end that showed he had heard the CCF’s free speech arguments and is taking them seriously. Fingers crossed.

Sunday was great. No work. Just tobogganing with my nieces and nephews.

Monday morning started out with a big cup of coffee and a stack of materials for a motion coming up on December 29 in our challenge to Nova Scotia’s ban on hiking, walking, and merely existing in the woods. Remember that? A motion is a hearing within a bigger piece of litigation, usually a fight over something procedural. Here, we’re going to court to argue that the Nova Scotia government can’t include certain documents in the record for next year’s judicial review that the minister didn’t actually read before he made his decision – an important detail considering our argument is that he didn’t actually consider people’s rights before deciding to impose that suffocating restriction.

After that, litigation director Christine Van Geyn and I met with outside counsel to discuss the arguments we plan to make in the appeal of Cowichan Tribes, that earth-shattering decision that found the Cowichan hold title to lands in Richmond, B.C., and that this title supersedes the fee simple of homeowners and business. While we can’t yet say who we’ve retained, I can say they’re literally the best in Canada. IYKYK.

Tuesday started out with a case conference over Zoom for my intervention into that decision by the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal that found that the mayor and council in Emo, Ont., discriminated against LGBT people because of a good faith comment the mayor made when they were discussing whether to raise the pride flag or make a pride month declaration. I’m eager to make my arguments, but, sadly, we didn’t even set a date for the hearing. I got all dressed up in my barrister robes for nothing!

Later on Tuesday, I worked on our factum (that is our written legal argument for the judge to read before the hearing) in our intervention in the case where Alberta is asking the Alberta Court of Appeal to decide whether the tweaks that the federal government made to the Impact Assessment Act in 2024 were enough to render it constitutional. The Supreme Court said back in 2023 that the IAA – which has blocked developments like mines and roads – is unconstitutional because it invades provincial jurisdiction. Carney has refused to fix it, so we’re back in court again to defend provincial rights.

After a quick team meeting, Joanna and I discussed which headlines to present on this week’s Not Reserving Judgment podcast. Christine was in another meeting so we gave her the hard one.

Tuesday afternoon, I drafted a news release about section 12 of Bill C-15, which would give federal ministers the power to exempt any individual or business from almost any law for up to six years, seriously threatening the rule of law. I got so worked up about this that I skipped lunch to draft an op-ed to warn the public, and sent it to National Post.

At the end of the day, I had a call with my co-counsel Kristopher Kinsinger in the CCF’s challenge to the Region of Waterloo’s bylaw against “offensive” speech, to discuss whether it’s worth cross-examining the Region’s witness. We get the feeling there’s more to the story that could come out in a cross.

The main thing on the agenda Wednesday was recording, editing and publishing the podcast, and meeting with the government to discuss the CCF’s concerns about Bill C-2, which would allow warrantless searches by police and CSIS. I’m proud that our advocacy helped convince the government to put the bill on ice until it can be fixed.

Which brings me to today – a chance to breathe, and to write to you. Like I said, it’s fun, interesting work, but it never stops! All of this is to say that, if you’re able to contribute to the CCF’s work, I would really appreciate it. Now is the best time of the year to give. Until December 31, all new donations will be matched up to $125,000. That means your contribution could help give us a $250,000 head start on building up our litigation war chest for 2026.

Please donate here: theccf.ca/donate/

Thanks for your support,

Josh Dehaas | Counsel
Canadian Constitution Foundation
theCCF.ca