Contested Constitutionalism is a critique of Canadian democracy, judicial power, and the place of Quebec and Aboriginal peoples within the federation, all of which have been altered by the Charter’s introduction in 1982.

Introduction1 Should We Cheer? Contested Constitutionalism and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms / James B. Kelly and Christopher P. ManfrediPart 1: Governance and Institutions2 Legalise This: The Chartering of Canadian Politics / Andrew Petter3 Rationalizing Judicial Power: The Mischief of Dialogue Theory / Grant Huscroft4 Courting Controversy: Strategic Judicial Decision Making / Rainer Knopff, Dennis Baker, and Sylvia LeRoy5 Legislative Activism and Parliamentary Bills of Rights: Institutional Lessons for Canada / James B. Kelly6 Compromise and the Notwithstanding Clause: Why the Dominant Narrative Distorts Our Understanding / Janet L. HiebertPart 2: Policy Making and the Courts7 Judicializing Health Policy: Unexpected Lessons and an Inconvenient Truth / Christopher P. Manfredi and Antonia Maioni8 National Security and the Charter / Kent Roach9 Canadian Language Rights: Liberties, Claims, and the National Conversation / Graham Fraser10 Explaining the Impact of Legal Mobilization and Judicial Decisions: Official Minority Language Education Rights outside Quebec / Troy Riddell11 Reference re Same-Sex Marriage: Making Sense of the Government’s Litigation Strategy / Matthew HennigarPart 3: Citizenship and Identity12 Bills of Rights as Instruments of Nation Building in Multinational States: The Canadian Charter and Quebec Nationalism / Sujit Choudhry13 The Internal Exile of Quebecers in the Canada of the Charter / Guy Laforest14 The Road Not Taken: Aboriginal Rights after the Re-Imagining of the Canadian Constitutional Order / Kiera L. Ladner and Michael McCrossanConclusion15 The Charter and Canadian Democracy / Peter H. RussellNotesIndex

"Kelly and Manfredi have assembled an "all star team" of scholars in the field. The result is a volume with thoughtful perspectives on governance and institutions, policy making and the courts, and citizenship and identity. This should be required reading for both specialists in the field and those with an interest in constitutional and Canadian politics. - Patrick James, University of Southern California"

This volume is a major contribution to the study of constitutional politics in Canada. Kelly and Manfredi have assembled an “all star team” of scholars in the field. The result is a volume with thoughtful perspectives on governance and institutions, policy making and the courts, and citizenship and identity. This should be required reading for both specialists in the field and those with an interest in constitutional and Canadian politics.