Are laws in Canada passed in both English and French in all jurisdictions? What is the value of the two language versions of a bilingual law? Canada’s legislative bilingualism is characterized by an uneven and asymmetrical application between the federal, provincial and territorial jurisdictions. In the Federal Parliament, section 133 of the Constitutional Act of 1867 and section 18 if the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms create the obligation to print and publish the Acts of the Parliament of Canada in both English and French. In the video above, expert John Mark Keyes explains how the legislative texts considered by the Federal Parliament are supposed to exist in French and English at each stage. They also discuss the principle established over the years by jurisprudence that bilingual legislation conveys a single standard that applies universally, regardless of the language version in which the legislation is consulted.

“The courts’ interpretation of section 133 of the Constitution Act, 1867 has slowly but surely transformed that section from a limited right of access to the law in one’s own language into a broadly applicable principle which both versions of a statute are equally authoritative“

Michel Bastarache et al, Bilingual Interpretation Law, 1st ed, Montreal (QC), LexisNexis, 2009 Interactive Map of Linguistic Obligations in the Canadian Legislative System

The interactive map below provides an overview of the various manifestations of legislative bilingualism across the country, as well as the sources (constitutional or legislative) of these obligations.

Click on a legislature to learn more about its language and their source.

H5P

In the next lesson, you will lean more about legislative bilingualism in the provinces and territories.