1. Confirm Your Understanding Questions: Page 176#1-6

2. Question#1 Under the Common law, a person was free to do anything as long as the law did not prohibit it. For example, a person had freedom of speech as long as he or she did not violate the laws dealing with communication, such as defamation laws or obscenity laws.

3. Questions#2 The principle of validity requires that government action must be justified by law. Premier Duplessis was not authorized by law to cancel Roncarelli’s liquor license. It was considered an abuse of power and therefore Roncarelli was entitled to a claim for compensation.

4. Questions#4 “Equality” was given a narrow interpretation in the Lavell case, limiting it to mean the equal administration of the law. The outcome of the decision was the Indian men and Indian women were treated differently. This discrepancy was not considered a violation of the equality provisions of the Bill of Rights

5. Question#5 Entrenching rights in a constitution provides them with a constitutional safeguard against government action at any level. Canadians’ rights under the Charter cannot be amended unless the Constitution is amended using a formal amending procedure.

6. Question#6 The Bill of Rights was a federal statute having jurisdiction over federal matters. The act could be amended or revoked in the same manner as any other federal statute. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms is entrenched in the Constitution. It has a more extensive scope of rights protection and applies to all laws across the country. The Constitution has the power to override any laws that are inconsistent with the rights provisions in the Charter.

7. Questions#7 “Constitutional Supremacy” means that the Constitutions is the supreme law of the land, and any law that is inconsistent with it is of no force and effect.

8. Confirm Your Understanding Questions: Page 178

9. Question # 1 The Canadian Human Rights Act provides for protection against discrimination and harassment for individuals employed in areas falling within the scope of federal authority (i.e. Banking, communications, airlines, federal government departments, etc.). It prohibits discrimination on the grounds of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, family status, disability, and conviction for the development of affirmative-action programs and prevents retaliation against individuals who file complaints of discrimination.

10. Question # 3 Under pay equity, the value of a predominantly female job is compared with the value of a predominantly male job within the same company or organization. Jobs are compared on the basis of skill, effort, responsibility, and working conditions. If it is found that the female job is of similar value to the male job, but the pay is lower, then the employer must remedy the imbalance.