‘Largely Unconstitutional’: Supreme Court Rules Against Feds’ Environmental Impact Legislation

A man walks past the Supreme Court of Canada in Ottawa on June 16, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld) Adrian Wyld

In a 5–2 majority decision, Canada’s Supreme Court has ruled that the Liberal government’s environmental assessment scheme is “largely unconstitutional.”

Chief Justice Richard Wagner wrote that environmental protection “remains one of today’s most pressing challenges” and that Parliament “has the power to enact a scheme of environmental assessment.” But he added that Parliament also has the duty to “act within the enduring division of powers framework laid out in the Constitution.”