An Argument for Policy Making

Abstract

This paper was originally written for Dr. Clare McGovern’s Political Science 151 course Law and Justice. The assignment asked students to argue for either the adjudicative or policy-making model in the Canadian judicial system, while referencing the 2024 R. v. Bykovets case. The paper uses APA citation style.

There has been much debate in recent years over how much influence the judicial system should have on Canadian policy. Those who subscribe to the philosophy of the adjudicative model believe that it should limited, as opposed to the policy-making model which states that judges should have greater influence. In this paper, I will be arguing in favour of the policy-making framework with the perspective that Canada is a malleable and evolving society. I will be reviewing the  BC’s 2011 Insite Case, R. v. Bykovets 2024, Justice Rosalie Abella’s writings on judicial influence and the Charter, and Emma Cunliffe’s reflections on expert testimony and scientific evidence. While there are indeed drawbacks, the positive aspects of policy-making far outweigh the negative.