''Ramsden v Peterborough (City of)'',

993 Year 993 ( CMXCIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Spring – The 12-year-old King Otto III gives the Sword of Saints Cosmas and Damian ...

2 SCR 1084 is a leading

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 ...

decision where the Court struck down a bylaw prohibiting all postering on public property on the grounds that it violated

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 ...

under section 2(b) of the ''

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms The ''Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms'' (french: Charte canadienne des droits et libertés), often simply referred to as the ''Charter'' in Canada, is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada, forming the first part o ...

''.

Background

Kenneth Ramsden was charged on two separate occasions placing posters on hydro poles advertising his band. He claimed that the bylaw was unconstitutional. A justice of the peace found that the bylaw was constitutional and he was fined. The decision was upheld on appeal to the Provincial Court. However, on appeal to the

Court of Appeal for Ontario The Court of Appeal for Ontario (frequently referred to as the Ontario Court of Appeal or ONCA) is the appellate court for the province of Ontario, Canada. The seat of the court is Osgoode Hall in downtown Toronto, also the seat of the Law Societ ...

the decision was overturned and it was held that the bylaw was in violation of the right to freedom of expression and could not be saved under section 1 of the ''Charter''.

Opinion of the Court

Justice Iacobucci, writing for a unanimous Court, upheld the decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal. Iacobucci examined the test for freedom of expression. He stated that section 2(b) is violated where a law, in either purpose or effect, limits expression. He found that the purpose of the bylaw was to do just that. Postering was a form of expression as it conveyed some meaning. Iacobucci found that even though the purpose of the bylaw was meritious, the absolute ban was not justifiable.

External links

*
case summary from mapleleafweb.com
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms case law Canadian freedom of expression case law Supreme Court of Canada cases 1993 in Canadian case law {{canada-law-stub