Jordan Peterson denied leave to appeal; Secret Canada; US administrative law
According to the National Post, on Tuesday the Ontario Court of Appeal dismissed Jordan Peterson’s motion to appeal Peterson v. College of Psychologists of Ontario, 2023 ONSC 4685 (CanLII).
This decision is symptomatic of the lack of effective Charter protection of Freedom of Expression s. 2b under Canadian administrative law. The College of Psychologists acknowledged Peterson’s Charter rights but didn’t do any analysis or balancing of those rights against the professional reeducation program they imposed on him. That was good enough for the Divisional Court that reviewed the decision. Mark Mancini analyzed this more deeply when the decision originally came out.
Unfortunately the Supreme Court has just reaffirmed Doré which underlies the Peterson decision so the Peterson decision is not an aberration.
Unfortunately our Freedom of Information Laws are also enforced through administrative law, not regular courts. The Supreme Court has acknowledged that Charter 2b Freedom of Expression can generate a Charter Right to access information of Public Interest but if Peterson is the standard of review, then this is toothless. The Globe and Mail has an entire website dedicated to the sorry state of Freedom of Access in Canada
On the brighter side, the US Supreme Court is also grappling with administrative law . In Canadian terms I think this is something like changing the standard of review from reasonableness to correctness. If this were to occur in Canada this kind of change would likely end administrative tribunals getting away with only having to acknowledge the Charter exists not follow it. Here’s to hoping the US is able to improve their administrative law for the better and help pull Canada back from administrative tyranny.
Rally at Markham and Lawrence this Saturday from 11:00am - 12 noon
Please bring a freedom related sign, flag, flyers etc. if you have them. I have a now autographed copy of Tamara Lich’s book “Hold the Line” to lend out.
If you can’t see us from the corner at Markham and Lawrence, then check the parking lot in front of Healthy Planet (or inside if it rains)
Other rallies on Saturday:
World Wide Rally for Freedom 15.0 at noon at Queen’s Park north side.