Formalism and Deference: a Striking Contrast

I have posted previously about the Irish courts' preference for a narrow approach to judicial review of administrative action. Another recent example is Walsh v. Revington, [2013] IEHC 408. This time, the judgment is useful as a means of throwing into contrast formal and deferential approaches to judicial review. A Canadian court, I suspect, would have come to a different conclusion.

Treaties, Aboriginal Rights and Judicial Review

Canadian courts have recently begun to recognize a "duty to consult" Aboriginal peoples in respect of government decisions that may affect their rights. Precisely when this duty is triggered, and against which organs of government, is an important question. In Hupacasath First Nation v. Canada (Foreign Affairs), 2013 FC 900, the claim was that the duty applied to the ratification of an international treaty -- an issue usually considered beyond the pale as far as judicial review is concerned.