Canadian Constitutional Dilemmas Revisited

Agar Adamson is the author of Letters of Agar Adamson, 1914–19 and former chair of the Department of Political Science at Acadia University in Nova Scotia.

The essays in this collection were presented at a 1993 symposium held in
honor of W.R. Lederman (1916–92), the most influential Canadian
constitutional scholar in the second half of the 20th century.

The essays are grouped under seven headings: federalism, separation of
powers, equality rights, freedom of expression, criminal law, group
rights, and judicial independence and responsibility. There is a final
chapter, “Remembering Professor Lederman,” by George Thomson. The
contributors include outstanding legal scholars such as Patrick Monahan,
Lynn Smith, Kathleen Mahoney, and Wayne MacKay; Bertha Wilson, the first
woman appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada; Justice Tom Cromwell of
Nova Scotia; and Ian Scott. Lynn Smith’s essay, “Rodriguez and
Equality Rights,” provides an interesting review of the controversial
issue of assisted suicide. Bertha Wilson’s paper, “Methods of
Appointment and Pluralism,” makes a strong case for the public’s
right to know about those appointed to the Supreme Court.

This important work, which is recommended for students of Canadian law
and politics, is a fitting tribute to the memory of W.R. Lederman.