The Alberta government, in a sitting that stretched overnight into the early hours of Dec. 10, passed legislation invoking the notwithstanding clause to shield three gender-related laws from legal challenges.
Bill 9, also known as the Protecting Alberta’s Children Statutes Amendment Act, cleared third reading just after 2 a.m. on Dec. 10. The bill, tabled last month, uses the notwithstanding clause to uphold laws that prohibit gender transition surgeries for minors, require parental consent for pronoun changes at school, and limit participation in female sports to biological females.
Section 33 of the Charter of Rights, known as the notwithstanding clause, allows governments to override certain provisions of the Charter for a five-year term when passing legislation. With the passage of Bill 9, the three gender-related laws–Bill 26, Bill 27, and Bill 29, all passed last year–are protected from judicial review for five years, unless the legislature re-enacts the clause….