Navigating complex constitutional law issues in courts and arbitrations
Sujit Choudhry practices constitutional law and administrative law in the Canadian courts, encompassing related questions of public international law and international human rights law, including in judicial reviews, appeals, and arbitrations. He has appeared in the Supreme Court of Canada.
Choudhry is frequently retained by other lawyers across Canada to work with them on complex constitutional cases, including to serve as co-counsel.
Choudhry frequently appears as counsel for, or co-counsel with, legal clinics and public interest organizations (British Columbia Civil Liberties Association, Canadian Constitution Foundation, Colour of Poverty-Colour of Change Network, Hamilton Community Legal Clinic, Human Rights Watch, South Asian Legal Clinic of Ontario).
Choudhry’s cases include:
- Canadian Constitution Foundation v. AG Canada (challenge to legality and constitutionality of public order emergency declared under the Emergencies Act)
- Public Order Emergency Commission (public inquiry into public order emergency declared under the Emergencies Act)
- Bjorkquist et al. v. AG Canada (Charter challenge to derivative citizenship provisions of the Citizenship Act, on the basis of section 15 discrimination based on national origin and sex , section 6 mobility rights, and section 7)
- Haseeb v. Imperial Oil (Ontario Human Rights Code challenge to citizenship discrimination in employment)
- Heegsma v. City of Hamilton (Charter challenge to homeless encampment evictions on the basis of sections 7 and 15 discrimination on the basis of race, indigeneity, sex, marital status and disability, and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights)
- Zoghbi v. Air Canada (Charter challenge to decision of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, in a case of racial profiling, that international aviation exempt from remedy of damages under Canadian Human Rights Act, on the basis of section 15 of the Charter and the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination)
- Hutlet v. AG Manitoba & AG Canada (Charter challenge to clawback of the CPP disability pension from provincial disability benefits, on the basis of sections 7 and 15 of the Charter)
- Cool World v. Twitter (whether Twitter subject to good faith, public policy and unconscionability doctrines in contract law that incorporate the right to freedom of expression and render void some of its policies on promoted tweets and advertisements)
- Bakan v. AG Canada (Charter challenge to Canada’s failure to regulate social media platforms to protect freedom of expression under section 2(b) of the Charter)
- Jacob v. AG Canada (Charter challenge to Canada Emergency Response Benefit, Canada Recovery Benefit and Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit for discriminating against disabled workers in breach of section 15 of the Charter)
- Turner v. Death Investigation Oversight Council (first judicial review of Ontario’s oversight body for forensic pathology established in response to the Goudge Inquiry)
- Annamie Paul v. Green Party of Canada (arbitration of internal party proceedings)
- Charkaoui v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration) (Charter challenge to security certificates under section 7)
- Khadr v. Canada (Justice) & Canada (Prime Minister) v. Khadr (Charter rights of Canadian Guantanamo Bay detainee under section 7)
- NM v. Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board (contempt powers of the Human Rights Tribunal under the Ontario Human Rights Code)
Constitutional opinions and advice
Choudhry also has an extensive counsel practice, providing advice on complex constitutional issues to individuals, large and small corporations, Canadian governments, foreign governments, government commissions and committees, public sector agencies, industry trade associations, international organizations, legal clinics, and NGOs.
Representative advisory work by sector:
- public health: Charter issues arising out of COVID-19 vaccine passports
- telecommunications: a constitutional challenge to proceedings brought by the Commissioner of Competition seeking an administrative penalty of hundreds of millions of dollars
- labour relations: a Charter remedies dispute involving billions of dollars arising out of a constitutional challenge to public sector collective bargaining legislation
- agriculture: a constitutional opinion on federal and provincial jurisdiction over agriculture, in the context of a potential challenge to provincial legislation
- education: a constitutional challenge to the failure of a provincial government to fully fund therapy for autistic children
- social services: a constitutional challenge to the decision of a provincially-funded social service provider on an issue involving child welfare
- gaming: a claim for compensation by members of an industry trade association in response to the cancellation of licenses by a provincial regulatory authority
- democratic reform: a high stakes federal-provincial dispute over proposed federal legislation to allow for an elected Senate