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Vanessa MacDonnell

@vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social
1.3K followers 1.3K following 129 posts

Constitutional law professor @uottawa.bsky.social | Co-Director @uodroitpublaw.bsky.social | Canadian team lead @ucnpproject.bsky.social. Executive branch constitutionalism, rights, interpretation, the unwritten constitution macdonnell.substack.com

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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 09/05/2025
Looking forward to participating in the 2025 Courts & Politics Research Group annual spring workshop today with colleagues from political science. Kate Puddister and Emmett Macfarlane have done a terrific job putting the program together.
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 07/05/2025
In 2022, the @uodroitpublaw.bsky.social and the CIAJ held a conference to mark the retirement of Justice Rosalie Abella from the Supreme Court of Canada. I am delighted that an open-access collection flowing from the conference has now been published! utppublishing.com/doi/book/10.3138/9781552216712
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
On June 2, we will be holding a symposium at the UK Parliament on the unwritten rules, norms and principles that make constitutional government work. To join us, please contact @paolosandro.bsky.social at the email address below. Looking forward to seeing many colleagues there!
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 05/05/2025
Excited to be in Taipei this week for Academia Sinica’s 2025 Comparative Constitutional Law Roundtable, hosted by Professor Oran Doyle. Interesting papers on comparative method, judicial agenda setting and constitutional amendment, among others.
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Mark Carney @mark-carney.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
I spoke with UN Secretary-General António Guterres today. In this time of rising conflict, Canada is ready to lead. We will build coalitions, defend democracy, and stand up for our values on the world stage. As others step back from global leadership, Canada is stepping up.
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 30/04/2025
Congratulations to @yybrandonc.bsky.social for this work in the SCC in the Kanyinda case!
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 30/04/2025
Bravo to our brilliant students for putting together this podcast on the prorogation decision, and to Mallory Dunlop, the student team member who worked with us on our intervention in MacKinnon, for her stellar commentary on the case in this podcast.
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Ben Yong @bymyong.bsky.social · 04/04/2025
Terence Daintith and Alan Page's book Executive Self-Government and the Constitution is out!! academic.oup.com/book/59801?l...
academic.oup.com
Executive Self-Government and the Constitution
Abstract. Over the last 25 years, UK governments have faced a series of challenges and changes of an intensity almost unprecedented in peacetime: some thru
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 27/03/2025
INSCRIPTION MAINTENANT OUVERTE! Le @uodroitpublaw.bsky.social, @umontreal.ca et @schulichlaw.bsky.social tiendra une conférence académique pour marquer le 150e anniversaire de la Cour suprême du Canada. Informations sur la conférence et les modalités d'inscription ici: lnkd.in/esKJMbqR
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 27/03/2025
REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! On June 10-12, 2025, the @uodroitpublaw.bsky.social, the @umontreal.ca and @schulichlaw.bsky.social will hold an academic conference to mark the 150th anniversary of the Supreme Court of Canada. Conference and registration details here: lnkd.in/esKJMbqR. Join us!
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mark d jarvis @markdjarvis.bsky.social · 23/03/2025
As we kick off an election in Canada this morning, for those concerned w/ the potential for undue electoral interference in this election — and we all shld be — it is worth taking a minute and familiarizing yourself w/ the Critical Election Incident Public Protocol. www.canada.ca/en/democrati...
canada.ca
Critical Election Incident Public Protocol - Canada.ca
The Critical Election Incident Public Protocol (the Protocol) lays out a simple, clear and impartial process by which Canadians should be notified of a threat to the integrity of the 2019 General Elec...
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 23/03/2025
Election time!
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mark d jarvis @markdjarvis.bsky.social · 23/03/2025
It’s no small thing that Canadian democracy stands strong (even if there is still room for improvement) at a time when democracy is under threat and in decline worldwide.
An infographic depicting the results of EIU’s 2024 Democracy Index, with the annual index registering a decline in its total score from 5.23 in 2023 to 5.17 (on a 0-10 scale).

The overall global Democracy Index score has fallen from 5.52 in 2006 to an historic low of 5.17 in 2024, when 130 countries of the total 167 covered by the index either registered a decline in their score or made no improvement.
More than one-third (39.2%) of the world population live under authoritarian rule. Sixty countries are now classified as “authoritarian regimes”, an increase of one compared with the 2023 index, and an increase of eight from a decade ago in 2014.
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Roojin Habibi روژین (she/elle) @roojinhabibi.org · 22/03/2025
So richly deserved - way to go @jcyliew.bsky.social !!
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 19/03/2025
New Substack on the recent John Howard decision macdonnell.substack.com/p/securing-t...
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Alex Robinson @alexmrobinson.bsky.social · 15/03/2025
Bill Blair says DND is reconsidering buying F-35s from the U.S. amid tensions with the Trump administration.
cbc.ca
Canada reconsidering F-35 purchase amid tensions with Washington, says minister | CBC News
Canada is looking at cancelling a major portion of its purchase of U.S.-built F-35 stealth fighters and plans on opening talks with rival aircraft makers, Defence Minister Bill Blair said.
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Canadian Bar Association @cba-news.bsky.social · 14/03/2025
The Canadian Bar Association welcomes the appointment of The Honourable Gary Anandasangaree as Minister of Justice and Attorney General. We look forward to working with him and his cabinet colleagues: bit.ly/4iMa8Zd
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 14/03/2025
Full Ministry listing here: www.pm.gc.ca/en/cabinet
pm.gc.ca
Cabinet
Right Honourable Mark Carney - Le très honorable Mark Carney
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 14/03/2025
Gary Anandasangaree is Canada’s New Minister of Justice and Attorney General. He is also Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern affairs (!)
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 14/03/2025
Website has been updated! www.pm.gc.ca/en
pm.gc.ca
Right Honourable Mark Carney
Home Page of the Right Honourable Mark Carney
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 14/03/2025
By the looks of it Carney has resiled from Trudeau’s practice of having a gender equal cabinet?
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 14/03/2025
SCC majority concludes that the use of the balance of probabilities standard in prison disciplinary proceedings violates Charter ss 11(d) and 7 - presumption of innocence. Important decision for prison law with some stare decisis thrown in for good measure. decisions.scc-csc.ca/scc-csc/scc-...
decisions.scc-csc.ca
John Howard Society of Saskatchewan v. Saskatchewan (Attorney General) - SCC Cases
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 13/03/2025
www.cbc.ca/news/politic...
cbc.ca
Mark Carney aims for smaller cabinet, team planning to drop over a dozen ministers: sources | CBC News
Prime minister-designate Mark Carney is aiming for a much leaner cabinet as he prepares to get sworn in on Friday at Rideau Hall.
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Emily Kidd White @emilykiddwhite.bsky.social · 11/03/2025
Please join @sonialawprof.bsky.social, Benjamin Berger, and myself on April 4 at our 28th Annual Osgoode Constitutional Cases Conference. It's an important time to be thinking about the hopes and the limits of Canadian Constitutional Law. Please share. Hybrid format: www.yorku.ca/osgoode/conc...
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 10/03/2025
New Substack: Wondering How Government Transitions Work? Read These Documents lnkd.in/eN7-tQEU
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 07/03/2025
My preliminary thoughts on the Federal Court's decision in MacKinnon: lnkd.in/ehsVzfUv. The Chief Justice has opened the door to a limited form of judicial review of prorogation, but politics and convention will largely continue to govern the Prime Minister's advice on prorogation.
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Leonid Sirota @doubleaspect.blog · 07/03/2025
New post: my thoughts on the Federal Court of Canada dismissing the challenge to the prorogation of Parliament ― the right outcome, a flawed decision, but rather better than it might have been.
doubleaspect.blog
(Pro)Rogue-ish
The Federal Court dismisses the challenge to the prorogation of Parliament
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 07/03/2025
Great post by @emmettmacfarlane.com on the prorogation case.
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 07/03/2025
My preliminary thoughts on the Federal Court's decision in MacKinnon: lnkd.in/ehsVzfUv. The Chief Justice has opened the door to a limited form of judicial review of prorogation, but politics and convention will largely continue to govern the Prime Minister's advice on prorogation.
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 07/03/2025
The Federal Court has dismissed the application in MacKinnon challenging the Jan 2025 prorogation of Parliament. Decision here: www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/m95bv.... Analysis to follow!
dropbox.com
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John Ibbitson @johnibbitson.bsky.social · 04/03/2025
“What he wants is to see a total collapse of the Canadian economy, because that'll make it easier to annex us." This is the most extraordinary statement by a Canadian prime minister in the history of this country. The Trump administration is at war with Canada.
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 04/03/2025
The @uodroitpublaw.bsky.social mid-term newsletter is now live! Lots of good stuff in there, including information about a major conference on academic freedom that Co-Director Sarah Berger Richardson is leading this month: mailchi.mp/b36e6a9811de...
mailchi.mp
PLC Winter 2025 Midterm Newsletter | Infolettre du CDP de mi-session hiver 2025
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 03/03/2025
On March 19, Cintia Quiroga and the Office of Public Policy Research and Outreach @uottawa.bsky.social is holding its fourth Brown Bag Lunch Series event on research and public policy. Prof. Jenn Wallner and I will be discussing our time as scholars-in-residence in government, 1/2
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Rosel Kim @jroselkim.bsky.social · 27/02/2025
LEAF is hiring a new Executive Director. Please share this with people in your networks who may be a good fit! www.leaf.ca/news/leaf-is...
leaf.ca
LEAF is looking for a skilled, inspiring, feminist leader to serve as its next Executive Director
LEAF's Executive Director oversees the organization according to the strategic direction set by the Board of Directors. They are an ambassador of the goals and vision of LEAF, promoting the rights of ...
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 27/02/2025
It’s Election Day in Ontario 🗳️ All the polls predict a Ford blowout but in this heavy political moment, our participation in the democratic process is more important than ever. Go #vote!
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 26/02/2025
New Substack: Five Questions after Canada (AG) v Power: open.substack.com/pub/macdonne...
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Emmett Macfarlane 🇨🇦 @emmettmacfarlane.com · 24/02/2025
You can check out the awesome Table of Contents by clicking 'Contents'. This book is also in honour of my PhD Supervisor, Janet Hiebert, on the occasion of her retirement. I'm also proud that two former students of mine have chapters in the book, while I also co-wrote a one with a current student.
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Kate Puddister @katepuddister.bsky.social · 18/02/2025
We are pleased to announce this year’s workshop will feature a keynote address from @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social Join us in Guelph in May!
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Emmett Macfarlane 🇨🇦 @emmettmacfarlane.com · 14/02/2025
Very pleased to announce the Call for Papers for the 8th annual spring workshop of the Courts & Politics Research Group. Come join us in Guelph on Friday, May 9th. Details here: www.courtsandpolitics.org/Events.php
courtsandpolitics.org
Courts and Politics Research Group
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 15/02/2025
New Substack: The Competing Constitutional Imperatives of Canada (AG) v Power open.substack.com/pub/macdonne...
open.substack.com
The Conflicting Constitutional Imperatives of Canada (Attorney General) v Power
In April, I will be presenting at the always excellent Osgoode Constitutional Cases Conference about the Supreme Court’s 2024 decision in Canada (Attorney General) v Power. I will be speaking about ho...
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Lise Brun @lisebrun.bsky.social · 13/02/2025
(1/2) I am delighted to see the publication of the fantastic edited volume Judicial Bricolage. The Use of Foreign Precedents by Constitutional Judges in the 21st Century (by Groppi, Ponthoreau & Spigno) & my first paper from the empirical part of my doctoral thesis on the Supreme Court of Canada!
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 11/02/2025
The Factum of the @uodroitpublaw.bsky.social's Constitutional Law Initiative has now been filed. Read it here: www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/7l5b3.... Thank you to pro bono counsel Torys LLP for their tireless work over the past few weeks.
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 10/02/2025
My draft article on the upcoming prorogation case, to be heard this Thursday and Friday:
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 08/02/2025
New Substack: A Paper on Prorogation open.substack.com/pub/macdonne...
open.substack.com
A Paper on Prorogation
Next week, the Federal Court will hear MacKinnon, the legal challenge to the Trudeau prorogation.
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 05/02/2025
Congratulations to my colleague @adodek.bsky.social, who has not one but two books on the Hill Times' top 100 books! www.uottawa.ca/faculty-law/...
uottawa.ca
Two books by Professor Adam Dodek listed on The Hill Times’ list of best books for 2024 | Faculty of Law
In Heenan Blaikie: The Making and Unmaking of a Great Canadian Law Firm (UBC Press), Professor Dodek chronicles the failure of Heenan Blaikie LLP, one of the first truly national law firms in Canada. ...
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UOttawa, Section de common law | Common Law Section @uocommonlaw.bsky.social · 04/02/2025
Many thanks to professors @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social, @pauldalyesq.bsky.social, @adodek.bsky.social and Dean Kristen Boon for the engaging discussion on judicial review, Parliament’s suspension & the legal stakes of this historic moment.
essamacdonnell.bsky.social
Bluesky
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Vanessa MacDonnell @vanessamacdonnell.bsky.social · 04/02/2025
The MacDonnell Russomanno family will be at this year's Open House @uocommonlaw.bsky.social ! Always a pleasure to be on the bill with @lrussomanno.bsky.social, who is giving this year's keynote address. The little MacDonnell Russomannos will also be in attendance, but without speaking privileges.
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