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Research Note: All But One: Solo Dissents On The Modern Supreme Court Of Canada, Christine M. Joseph

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

It can be argued that the exercise of solo dissent on the Supreme Court of Canada is judicial disagreement at its apex-a single judge sitting on the highest court in the nation breaking away from his or her colleagues who have purportedly "gotten it wrong." By examining the practice of solo dissent in the Supreme Court of Canada over the last three decades, this research note provides insight into this unique form of judicial disagreement. Through construction of a typology of solo dissents, and by providing answers to important questions, such as how often judges render solo dissents and whether …