Section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects our right to “life, liberty, and security of the person.”
It guarantees our legal rights, which protect our personal autonomy and bodily integrity from laws or actions by the government that violate those rights. However, government action that harms these rights is not enough to violate the Charter. Section 7 is violated only when the government infringes these rights in a way that goes against the principles of fundamental justice.
Therefore, in determining whether there has been a section 7 violation, there are two components to consider:
1) whether government action infringes life, liberty or security of the person, and
2) whether this infringement goes against the principles of fundamental justice
Right to Life:
There is no concrete definition of the right to life.[1] This means the definition could expand when new issues emerge. Traditionally, state action that increases the risk of death involves the right to life.[2] This includes indirect action, such as barriers to health care for life-threatening conditions. [3]
Right to Liberty:
The Supreme Court is divided on what the right to liberty means, but identifies two components:
1) freedom from physical restraint, and
2) freedom to make fundamental personal choices. [4]
The first includes laws that involve possible imprisonment and physical actions that are forced by the state.[5] Two examples are mandatory fingerprinting laws and regulations that prohibit loitering.[6] The second protects the right to “enjoy individual dignity and independence.”[7] This includes decisions about how a person wants to live his or her life, such as whether to marry or have children.[8]
Right to Security of the Person:
Security of the person “has a physical aspect and a psychological aspect.”[9] The physical aspect includes state action that prevents someone from making choices that affect his or her own body. It can also involve indirect state action, such as laws that cause a risk to health.[10] The psychological aspect is affected when a person experiences “serious state-imposed stress.”[11] This occurs when the state causes stress that is beyond day-to-day stress, such as by threatening to remove children from their parents.[12]
Principles of Fundamental Justice:
If government action infringes life, liberty or security of the person, it must conform to the basic principles of fundamental justice to comply with the Charter.
ConstitutionalStudies.ca – 2019-07-04.
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