Reading In

Written by Canadi-anna
Today Andrew Coyne gives us a history lesson. His purpose seems to be to defend the Charter against critics who see it as not rooted in Canadian history. Most of what he says I wouldn't challenge because I'm not a historian or a scholar. But when he comes to the end of his piece, he says:

Has that expanded the powers of the courts?(. . . ) A happier example was the "persons case," an important advance for women's rights achieved by the simple expedient of redefining who was included in the category of "persons" eligible for Senate appointments under section 24 of the BNA Act. Today we would call that "reading in."

Coyne is arguing that a decision to recognize women as persons for the purpose of Section 24 of the BNA Act, is analogous to the Supreme Court's decision add a new category of subgroup in need of protections listed in Section 15 of the Charter. But I don't think the argument holds up.
....(Continued on Canadianna's Place)