by Tash Wolfe
Last week, the Supreme Court of Canada announced that it will hear the appeal in the Bedford case, which deals with the laws surrounding sex work.
“The court announced Thursday morning it will hear the federal government’s appeal of a landmark lower-court ruling last March that said some of the country’s anti-prostitution rules placed unconstitutional restrictions on prostitutes’ ability to protect themselves. The Attorney General of Canada’s application for leave to appeal was granted without costs. The court will also hear a cross-appeal by three former and current sex workers that allows them to argue that the rest of the prostitution laws they had challenged are also unconstitutional.”
This decision will allow the Bedford case to be heard before Canada’s highest court. According to Katrina Pacey, litigation director for Pivot Legal Society, this case involves “fundamental rights for sex workers to safety and freedom from criminalization, which we feel is one of the most important and pressing social justice issues of our time.” Pivot Legal Society will be joining together with PACE and Sex Workers United Against Violence Society to form a coalition and apply for intervenor status:
“Our purpose at the Court of Appeal was to bring a strong voice from the Downtown Eastside, making it very clear that for sex workers in this community, law reform is a matter of life and death. The laws are a major impediment to creating safety for many sex workers who face horrific violence while working on the street.” Read more
