Notwithstanding Clause
by C. Kwon ~ February 28th, 2011. Filed under: News.What does the notwithstanding clause do?
The notwithstanding clause allows the federal government or a provincial legislature to enact legislation to override several sections of the Charter that deal with fundamental freedoms, legal rights and equality rights.
These include freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, and freedom from unreasonable search and seizure, to name a few. But a number of other Charter rights cannot be overridden. These include democratic rights, mobility rights, and the equality of men and women.
Simply put, this override power allows governments to create laws that will operate in spite of (or “notwithstanding”) some Charter rights that the laws appear to violate.
This override power is temporary. Any notwithstanding clause declaration expires after five years, but can be re-enacted indefinitely.