''Quebec (AG) v Kellogg's Co of Canada'' is a leading constitutional decision of the
Supreme Court of Canada
The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; french: Cour suprême du Canada, CSC) is the Supreme court, highest court in the Court system of Canada, judicial system of Canada. It comprises List of Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada, nine justices, wh ...
on the pre-Charter right to
freedom of expression
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recogni ...
. The Quebec ''Consumer Protection Act'', which prohibited
advertising to children
Advertising to children refers to the act of advertising products or services to children as defined by national laws and advertising standards.
Scope and form
Advertising to children can take place on traditional media such as television, radio ...
through cartoons, was challenged by the
Kellogg Company
The Kellogg Company, doing business as Kellogg's, is an American multinational food manufacturing company headquartered in Battle Creek, Michigan, United States. Kellogg's produces cereal and convenience foods, including crackers and toas ...
on the basis that it affected TV stations across the country. The Court held that the regulation of advertising is a matter within the authority of the province, and that the Act was valid law under the
Property and Civil Rights Section 92(13) of the ''Constitution Act, 1867'', also known as the property and civil rights power, grants the provincial legislatures of Canada the authority to legislate on:
It is one of three key residuary powers in the ''Constitution Act, 18 ...
power allocated to the province under section 92(13) of the
Constitution Act, 1867
The ''Constitution Act, 1867'' (french: Loi constitutionnelle de 1867),''The Constitution Act, 1867'', 30 & 31 Victoria (U.K.), c. 3, http://canlii.ca/t/ldsw retrieved on 2019-03-14. originally enacted as the ''British North America Act, 186 ...
.
Reasons of the court
Justice Martland found that the
pith and substance
Pith and substance is a legal doctrine in Canadian constitutional interpretation used to determine under which head of power a given piece of legislation falls. The doctrine is primarily used when a law is challenged on the basis that one level of ...
of the legislation was the regulation of advertising which he identified as a matter allocated to the provincial government under the
property and civil rights Section 92(13) of the ''Constitution Act, 1867'', also known as the property and civil rights power, grants the provincial legislatures of Canada the authority to legislate on:
It is one of three key residuary powers in the ''Constitution Act, 18 ...
power. He noted that the regulation of advertising and was also part of a larger provincial scheme of regulating business practices, all of which fell within the purview of the provincial government. The encroachment upon the regulation of broadcasting was found to only be incidental to the primary subject of advertising, and so was valid.
Chief Justice Laskin, in dissent, disagreed with Martland and argued that the regulation must be read down to exclude the regulation of expression. He pointed out how in ''
McKay v. The Queen'' (1965) the provincial law regulating signs was read down to exclude the regulation of federal voting signs. Likewise, in ''
Johannesson v. West St. Paul ''Johannesson v West St Paul (Rural Municipality of)'' 9521 S.C.R. 297 is a leading Supreme Court of Canada decision on the federal jurisdiction over aeronautics. This was also the first Supreme Court case to analyze the peace, order, and good gov ...
'' (1952) a provincial law that regulated the zoning of aerodromes was not valid as it encroached on federal power to regulate air transportation.
See also
* ''
Irwin Toy Ltd. v. Quebec (Attorney General)
''Irwin Toy Ltd v Quebec (AG)'', 9891 S.C.R. 927 is a landmark Supreme Court of Canada decision on freedom of expression in section 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The court held that in order to determine if a breach of sec ...
''
*
List of Supreme Court of Canada cases (Laskin Court)
This is a chronological list of notable cases decided by the Supreme Court of Canada from the appointment of Bora Laskin in 1973 as Chief Justice to his death in office in 1984. Laskin was the first Chief Justice to hear cases under the Charter ...
* ''
Kellogg Co. v. National Biscuit Co.''
External links
*{{lexum-scc2, 1978, 2, 211, 185
Canadian federalism case law
Supreme Court of Canada cases
Canadian freedom of expression case law
1978 in Canadian case law
Kellogg's
Cereal advertising characters
Canadian television commercials
Advertising and marketing controversies