Anishinaabe Territory / Ottawa, April 13, 2026 – Amanda Therrien, Senior Staff Lawyer at the National Association of Women and the Law, appeared before the Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs as part of its study of Bill S-228, An ...

Anishinaabe Territory / Ottawa, March 24, 2026 – The National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL) will intervene this week before the Supreme Court of Canada to defend the constitutional right to equality between women and men, as guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of ...

Anishinaabe Territory / Ottawa, March 23, 2026 – The National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL) has submitted a brief to the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights, outlining critical recommendations to improve Bill C-16, An Act to amend certain ...

Urgent: Defining Protection Orders Broadly under the Firearms Licenses Regulations to Address Intimate Partner Gun Violence and Femicides   Dear Minister Anandasangaree,   Last week, the government concluded its second consultation on the regulatory definition of “protection order” for the purposes of firearm license revocation under former Bill C-21. One of the objectives of Bill C-21 was to protect women and children ...

The National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL) has submitted a brief in response to consultations on proposed regulations under the Firearms Act, as amended by former Bill C-21. NAWL argues that the regulations must adopt a comprehensive definition of “protection ...

The National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL) has submitted a brief to the Standing Committee on the Status of Women as part of its study on Section 810 of the Criminal Code and women’s safety.  In its submission, NAWL urges the federal government to strengthen ...

Consultations on Regulations Amending the Firearms Licences Regulations and the Protection Order Regulations   Commentary on Canada Gazette, Part I, Volume 159, Number 10   About NAWL  The National Association of Women and the Law is a not-for-profit organization that works to advance women’s rights in ...

On March 20th, 2025, Suzanne Zaccour, Director of Legal Affairs at the National Association of Women and the Law, testified before the National Assembly of Québec’s Committee on Institutions regarding Bill 91, which proposes the creation of a Unified Family Court within ...

Hate-motivated violence is one manifestation of a broader system of oppression that limits the ability of 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals to live in dignity and safety. In considering the full context of hate-motivated violence, the committee should pay attention to the ways in which ...

NAWL submitted a brief to the Quebec’s National Assembly Committee on Institutions on Bill 73, An Act to counter the non-consensual sharing of intimate images and to improve civil protection and support for victims of violence. The bill includes various measures to ...

The Senate is currently considering Bill C-50, a bill that aims to facilitate the shift towards a carbon-neutral economy and to support workers in this transition. NAWL calls on decision-makers to apply a strong intersectional feminist analysis as they consider this bill.   ...

The National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL) has submitted a brief to the Standing Committee on the Status of Women for its study on Coercive Behaviour. In its brief, NAWL calls on the government to legislate to ban parental alienation ...

On January 31st, 2024, NAWL submitted a brief to the Committee on Labour and the Economy of the National Assembly of Quebec concerning Bill 42, an Act to prevent and fight psychological harassment and sexual violence in the workplace.   A Statistics Canada ...

The National Association of Women and the Law submitted a brief on Bill C-21: An Act to amend certain Acts and to make certain consequential amendments (firearms) to the Standing Senate Committee on National Security, Defence and Veterans Affairs.  NAWL’s overall position ...

A publication ban is a court order which, in the context of a criminal trial, prohibits anyone from revealing the identity of a victim, witness or justice system participant. One of the aims of this order is to enable victims of sexual ...