Richard Tardif

The appeal concerned a constitutional challenge to Quebec consumer protection legislation prohibiting commercial advertising directed at children under thirteen.

The Court held that the provisions were intra vires provincial jurisdiction, infringed freedom of expression under both the Canadian and Quebec Charters, but were justified as reasonable limits under s. 1 and s. 9.1.

The Court also held that the override provision had expired and that a corporation could not invoke s. 7 of the Canadian Charter.

The decision established a foundational framework for identifying protected expression and determining whether government purpose or effect limits expression.

The appellant challenged provisions of Quebec's Charter of the French Language that required the exclusive or joint use of French in commercial signage and business.

The Supreme Court of Canada held that the provisions were intra vires the province as they related to commerce within the province.

However, the Court found that freedom of expression under s. 2(b) of the Canadian Charter and s. 3 of the Quebec Charter includes the freedom to choose one's language of expression.

The requirement for the exclusive use of French was not justified under s. 1 of the Canadian Charter or s. 9.1 of the Quebec Charter, and those provisions were struck down.

The provisions requiring the joint use of French were upheld as reasonable limits.

Constitutional appeal challenging Quebec legislation requiring public signs, commercial advertising, and firm names to appear exclusively in French.

The Court held that freedom of expression under both the Canadian Charter and the Quebec Charter includes expression in the language of one’s choice and extends to commercial expression.

Although Quebec’s objective of protecting the French language was pressing and substantial, the French-only requirement failed proportionality review because marked predominance of French, rather than exclusivity, would have been a less impairing measure.

The Court also held the impugned provisions infringed the Quebec Charter’s guarantee against discrimination based on language, while upholding the formal validity of the override provisions except to the extent of impermissible retrospective operation.