CCPI

CURRENT Litigation

Toussaint v. Canada: Challenge to Refusal to Waive Fees for Poor People Applying for Humanitarian and Compassionate Review

Caron v. Alberta - Advance Costs for Access to Justice: Interveners Motion Record

RECENT Litigation

CCPI's Constitutional Challenge to NAFTA - Human Rights in Trade and Investment Regimes 

CCPI Memorandum for Leave to Appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada in NAFTA Challenge 

Chaoulli v. Quebc: the Right to Health for Poor People - CCPI-CHC Intervener Factum SCC

Gosselin v. Quebec CCPI FACTUM SCC

CCPI's Litigation

International Human Rights

Research

CCPI's Litigation

CCPI Facta (Pleadings)

Chaoulli

R. v. Wu

Gosselin
Dunmore
Lovelace 
J.G.
Baker 
Eldridge 
Symes
Kearney
 
International Human Rights

Research

CCPI
Charter Committee on Poverty Issues
c/o Social Rights Advocacy Centre
1038 Portage Flyer Lane
RR4 Huntsville
Ontario
P1H 2J6

Charter Committee on Poverty Issues

bringing together low-income activists and poverty law advocates to ensure that poor people are able to make more effective use of their rights

CCPI is a national coalition founded in 1989 to bring together low-income activists and poverty law advocates for the purpose of assisting poor people in Canada to secure and assert their rights under international human rights law, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the "Charter"), human rights legislation and other laws in Canada.

The activities of CCPI fall into three main categories:

i) Initiating litigation and intervening in cases before courts and tribunals to promote and protect the basic human rights of poor people and to ensure that poverty issues are more fully understood and considered by Canadian courts and tribunals

ii) Appearing before and making submissions to United Nations Human Rights bodies to provide information related to compliance with international human rights law and problems of poverty in Canada; and

iii) Engaging in research into how Canadian or international law can be used by poor people to address their needs and to promote compliance with international and domestic human rights guarantees.

Please note that CCPI works with its coalition partners and does not do individual casework. For legal assistance contact your local legal aid office or clinic.

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New: CCPI Intervenes for Access to Justice for Immigrants Living in Poverty

SRAC co-ordinated the intervention of the Charter Committee on Poverty Issues in intervening at the Federal Court in an important  legal challenge to the refusal of the Government of Canada to waive fees for impoverished applicants for Humanitarian and Compassionate Review under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.  CCPI sought and was granted leave to intervene at the Federal Court of Appeal in the appeal of this decision  inNell Toussaint v. Minister of Citizenship and Immigration  Federal Court of Appeal File No.  A-408-09

See the case update, memoranda of argument and other documents:

Toussaint v. Canada: Challenge to Refusal to Waive Fees for Poor People Applying for Humanitarian and Compassionate Review

Access to Justice - Advance Costs Awards

CCPI has joined in coalition with three other Equality Seeking Groups (LEAF, CCD, PHRC) to seek leave to  Intervene at the Supreme Court of Canada in the case of Alberta v. Caron SCC File No. 33092.  The case deals with eligibility for advance costs awards in public interest Charter litigation concerns the discretion of the Courts to award advance costs to claimants who would otherwise be unable to litigate their public interest claims. The decision of the Supreme Court will have significant implications for access to justice for disadvantaged and marginalized groups.  See  Interveners Motion Record

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CCPI Intervenes at the Supreme Court of Canada in Chaoulli to Argue for Right to Health for Poor People

A Right to Healthcare only if You Can Pay for it " (2005) 6 ESR Review.

CCPI -CHC Intervener Factum SCC

CCPI - CHC Memorandum on Rehearing on Remedy

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CCPI Challenges the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) For Failing to Protect Fundamental Human Rights

CCPI joined with the Council of Canadians and CUPW in an historic constitutional challenge to NAFTA.  Sadly, neither the Superior Court nor the Ontario Court of Appeal were willing to address the critical issues raised by CCPI, finding that the Charter issues were premature.  The arguments raised by CCPI, however, have become central to human rights challenges to trade and investment agreements.  See the following documents:

Bruce Porter, " Canadian Constitutional Challenge to NAFTA Raises Critical Issues of Human Rights in Trade and Investment Regimes " (2005) 2 ESC Law Quarterly.  

CCPI Memorandum for Leave to Appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada

See also the following from Superior Court Trial

Notice of application

  

CCPI Affidavit

  

Notice of appeal of November 2005

  

Factum of the Applicants (word format)

 

Factum of the applicants at Superior Court pdf format

  

Factum of the respondent at Superior Court

  

Affidavit of Andrée LaJoie

  

David Schneiderman affidavit

  

Sonarajah affidavit

  

Stephen Clarkson affidavit

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