Supreme Court of Canada decision in R. v. NS (2012)
Title
Supreme Court of Canada decision in R. v. NS (2012)
Subject
court decision, Supreme Court of Canada, niqab, freedom of religion, witness
Description
Supreme Court of Canada decision in a criminal law case. NS was the complainant in a sexual assault. During the preliminary inquiry, NS sought to testify wearing a niqab. Defence counsel challenged her request on the argument that the right to a fair trial includes the right to see the complainant's/witness's face while that person testifies. NS asserted her freedom of religion. The case involved Charter rights that appeared to be in conflict (freedom of religion versus the right to a fair trial). The Court set out how such conflicts must be addressed, in particular in a case where the witness/complainant asserted the right to wear the niqab. In this particular case, a majority of the Court held that NS must remove her niqab, as the balancing of rights in this case favoured the right to a fair trial and the right to see a complainant's face.
Creator
Supreme Court of Canada
Source
Judgments of the Supreme Court of Canada via Lexum: https://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/12779/index.do
Neutral citation for decision: R. v. NS, 2012 SCC 72
Neutral citation for decision: R. v. NS, 2012 SCC 72
Publisher
Supreme Court of Canada via Lexum
Date
2012
Rights
Supreme Court of Canada
Format
Website containing judgment
Language
English
Text
Text
Files
Collection
Tags
Citation
Supreme Court of Canada, “Supreme Court of Canada decision in R. v. NS (2012),” Exhibits, accessed December 5, 2024, https://exhibits.library.utoronto.ca/items/show/2063.