ONLINE MEETING | Charter Rights and Coerced Care: A Social Justice Perspective on BC’s Mental Health Act Challenge
This meeting is being hosted by the Social Justice Section.
| Speakers: |
Kevin Love, Lawyer, Community Legal Assistance Society
Patrick Williams, Partner, McCarthy Tétrault |
| Time: |
Tuesday, June 2, 2026, 12:15pm - 1:30pm (PT) |
| Fee: |
CBA Member: Free!
Non-CBA Member: $70 (+ GST)
Don't have a CBA account? Create a non-member account to register! |
| CPD Hours: |
1.00 hour |
British Columbia is the only jurisdiction in Canada that deems people with involuntary status under mental health legislation to have consented to psychiatric treatment, denying them the right to refuse treatment or appoint a substitute decision maker, even when they may have capacity.
This session examines a constitutional challenge to the Mental Health Act argued in BC Supreme Court last fall, which asks whether the Act’s “deemed consent” regime violates section 7 of the Charter by authorizing involuntary psychiatric treatment without adequate procedural safeguards, and section 15 by subjecting people detained under the Act to a distinct and more intrusive consent regime than all other patients.
Through a social justice lens focused on access to justice, disability rights, and systemic inequality, Kevin Love and Patrick Williams, both of whom appeared before the court in relation to the challenge, discuss the competing legal arguments and the broader implications for mental health law and the exercise of state power over marginalized communities.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This event will be broadcast from the traditional and unceded territory of the Coast Salish peoples, including Tsleil-Waututh, Squamish and Musqueam First Nations. We encourage members to explore the rich history and knowledge of Indigenous people, and to continue learning about their experience in Canada past and present.
REGISTRATION INFORMATION
This meeting is for lawyers, judges, articling students & law students only.
If you are a non-lawyer working in a field related to this meeting, please contact sections@cbabc.org to request attendance. Attendance is granted to non-lawyers on a case by case basis.
ACCESSIBILITY
Please request any accommodations needed in the "Notes" area upon registering. Live captions and transcripts are available for attendees upon request.
We welcome suggestions for enhancing the inclusiveness of our activities. Please contact if you have any questions or recommendations.
LOG-IN INSTRUCTIONS
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