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This article examines Canadian appellate decisions at the intersection of the Charter and administrative discretion, underscoring and critiquing judicial resistance to the Dore; test. This study involved reviewing all reported decisions between 2016-2018 from the provincial, territorial, and federal courts of appeal. The results show that the fault lines on the Supreme Court of Canada bench similarly divide appellate courts across the country. Yet there were sound reasons for adopting the Dore; test. This article therefore concludes with suggestions to improve the Dore; test, in response to common criticisms and problems observed in the cases under study.
Dans cet article, l'auteure analyse les decisions des cours d'appel canadiennes rendues sur des matieres mettant en jeu a la fois des questions relevant de la Charte et l'exercice du pouvoir discretionnaire administratif, en soulignant et en critiquant la resistance manifestee par les tribunaux a l'egard du critere de l'arret Dore;. Elle examine toutes les decisions des cours d'appel provinciales, territoriales, et federales publiees entre 2016 et 2018. Les resultats montrent que les lignes de fracture sur le banc de la Cour supreme du Canada divisent de fapon similaire les cours d'appel dans tout le pays. Pourtant, il y avait de bonnes raisons d'adopter le critere de l'arret Dore;. L'auteure termine donc par des suggestions visant ¿i ameliorer le critere de l'arret Dore, en reponse aux critiques et aux problemes courants observes dans les affaires a l'etude.
1.INTRODUCTION
The intersection of administrative discretion and the Charter poses particular challenges for reviewing courts.1 As Audrey Macklin states, "[t]he rules of the road keep changing, pointing us in one direction (follow the Oakes test! says Multani) then another (go toward administrative law! says Dore)".2
In this article, I argue that there were sound reasons for adopting the current Dore framework for reviewing administrative discretionary decisions that engage the Charter, despite judicial resistance by appellate courts.3 Firstly, I provide a snapshot of key developments in the Supreme Court of Canada's jurisprudence. Secondly, I analyze representative cases from my study of appellate decisions across Canada between 2016-2018 to show trends in the recent jurisprudence. Finally, I offer suggestions to continue charting the path towards a robust conception of administrative justice.
2.KEY JURISPRUDENTIAL MOMENTS
Ever since the Supreme Court of Canada clarified...