NAWL defends protections against intimate partner gun violence

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 orders”, as all protection orders should trigger the ineligibility to hold a firearms license.

The government’s proposed regulations take an unduly restrictive approach. By excluding certain criminal protection orders — including bail release orders and probation orders with no-contact or family violence conditions — the draft regulations narrow the scope of the legislation and create avoidable risk of intimate partner gun violence.

NAWL calls on Public Safety Canada to define “protection order” broadly, consistent with the statute, to include any binding order made in the interests of a person’s safety or security, whether civil or criminal in nature.

Anything less undermines a life-saving reform and weakens protections for women and children.

Read the brief : Consultations on Proposed Regulations Amending the Firearms Licences Regulations – Protection Orders (March 2026)