R v Morgentaler (1993)
| R v Morgentaler | |
|---|---|
| Hearing: February 4, 1993 Judgment: September 30, 1993 | |
| Full case name | Her Majesty The Queen v Henry Morgentaler |
| Citations | [1993] 3 S.C.R. 463, 125 N.S.R. (2d) 81, 107 D.L.R. (4th) 537, 85 C.C.C. (3d) 118, 25 C.R. (4th) 179 |
| Docket No. | 22578 |
| Prior history | Judgment for the defendant in the Nova Scotia Supreme Court. |
| Ruling | appeal dismissed |
| Holding | |
| Nova Scotia regulations regarding abortion were ultra vires the legislature of the province as criminal law. | |
| Court membership | |
| Chief Justice: Antonio Lamer Puisne Justices: Gérard La Forest, Claire L'Heureux-Dubé, John Sopinka, Charles Gonthier, Peter Cory, Beverley McLachlin, Frank Iacobucci, John C. Major | |
| Reasons given | |
| Unanimous reasons by | Sopinka J. |
R v Morgentaler was a decision by the Supreme Court of Canada invalidating a provincial attempt to regulate abortions in Canada. This followed the 1988 decision R. v. Morgentaler, which had struck down the federal abortion law as a breach of section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In 1993, the provincial regulations were ruled to be a criminal law, which would violate the Constitution Act, 1867. That Act assigns criminal law exclusively to the federal Parliament of Canada.