Supreme Court of Canada and Library and Archives Canada Sign Agreement on Transfer of Case Files

Under an agreement signed last Friday, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) will transfer ownership of case files older than 50 years to Library and Archives Canada (LAC):

"Among the cases covered by the agreement are:

•  Roncarelli v. Duplessis, a landmark 1959 ruling on the rule of law involving the Premier of Quebec;
• the Margarine Reference which outlined the proper exercise of the criminal law power under the Canadian Constitution; and
•  several matters decided in the aftermath of the enactment of the Canadian Bill of Rights in August 1960. "

"The LAC-SCC agreement also means that certain categories of the Court’s judicial information, such as the Collegial files of the judges of the Supreme Court of Canada, will become accessible to the public 50 years after a case file has been closed, thereby providing insights into the inner deliberations of the Court."