Submissions and Statements
2022 Submissions
2022 Statements
Written Brief to Status of Women Committee on Intimate Partner Violence and Domestic Violence in Canada
December 12, 2022
Joint statement urging the federal government to take immediate action on reforms to Canada’s EI social insurance system.
December 6, 2022
Joint Statement in solidarity with Indigenous families mourning the murder of four Indigenous women.
2020 Submissions
United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women’s Call for submissions: COVID-19 and the increase of domestic violence against women (June 2020)
This submission has been prepared through the collaboration of leaders, experts, and researchers from a number of frontline and advocacy organizations, including Deepa Mattoo and Alina Butt from the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic, Lise Martin and Krys Maki from Women’s Shelters Canada, Raji Mangat from West Coast LEAF, Anjum Sultana from YWCA Canada, Suki Beavers from the National Association of Women and the Law, the Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants, and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
Government’s Response to COVID-19 Pandemic (June 2020)
We are pleased to provide the following recommendations to the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disability, in relation to the Government’s Response to COVID-19 Pandemic. We would like to thank Parliament for their quick, emergency response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the efforts that have been made through the COVID-19 Economic Response Plan to support the Canadians left most vulnerable by this global health crisis.
Submissions to the UN SRVAW thematic report on rape as a violation and gender-based violence against women grave and systematic human rights (May 2020)
Family Law Reform in Ontario: increasing safety for women and children and bringing more consistency between the Children’s Law Reform Act and the Divorce Act (January 2020)
The Clinic is pleased to provide the following recommendations for amending the Children’s Law Reform Act to assist women who are accessing Ontario’s family law legal system for safe and fair resolutions following family breakdown. We believe the following recommendations will increase safety for women and children. In addition, we believe these recommendations will bring more clarity and consistency to the family law system overall for all women, regardless of whether they are married or seeking a divorce.
2019
Submission to the UN Commission on the Status of Women
The Clinic’s submission pertains to Section 108(1) (a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act in which a “claim for refugee protection shall be rejected, and a person is not a Convention refugee or a person in need of protection,” if, “the person has voluntarily reavailed themself of the protection of their country of nationality.” The Act, in our experience, discriminates against women who are victims of domestic violence in failing to consider the lived realities of these individuals and by not reflecting a gender-sensitive based approach.
Submissions to the UN SRVAW thematic report on rape as a violation and gender-based violence against women grave and systematic human rights
Submission to the UN Commission on the Status of Women regarding the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.
The Clinic’s submission pertains to Section 108(1) (a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act in which a “claim for refugee protection shall be rejected, and a person is not a Convention refugee or a person in need of protection,” if, “the person has voluntarily reavailed themself of the protection of their country of nationality.” The Act, in our experience, discriminates against women who are victims of domestic violence in failing to consider the lived realities of these individuals and by not reflecting a gender-sensitive based approach.
Feedback to Continuing Committee of Officials on Human Rights (CCOHR) Protocol
2018
- Migration Challenges and Opportunities for Canada in the 21st Century, Submission to the Federal Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, October 31
- Submissions for the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights, Bill C-78, October 26
- BILL C-75: An Act to Amend the Criminal Code, The Youth Criminal Justice Act and other Acts, Submission to the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights Studies, September 1
- Recommendations to Canada under its Third Universal Periodic Review, August 2018
- Submissions to the Special Rapporteur on Migrant Rights , April 2018
- Submissions to the Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, April 2018
- Universal Periodic Review – United Nations Submissions, March 22, 2018
2017
- Intervened at the Supreme Court of Canada in the case of the Office of the Children’s Lawyer and C-R.B. and J.P.B. to present our perspective on the relevance of The Hague Convention for women who experience domestic violence, November 2017
- The Clinic joined as a public interest plaintiff in a claim against London Police Services: Statement of Claim, November 2017
- The Clinic made submissions in support of Mandi Gray’s restitution award in the case of R vs. Ururyar: Schlifer Clinic Application Record – R. v. Ururyar, Schlifer Factum, Ururyar Factum, Leave to Intervene Granted, March 2017
- The Barbra Schlifer Clinic is responding to the Ontario government’s request for input on a proposed gender-based violence (GBV) strategy, September 2017
2016
- Submissions to the Law Society of Upper Canada on the Experiences of Racialized Licensees, November 2016
- Submissions on Regulations Amending Canada’s Conditional Permanent Residence Provisions, October 2016
- Submissions to the UN Working Group on Peoples of African Descent, October 2016
- Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Policies: Recommendations, October 2016
- Status of Women Canada: Submission of the Barbra Schlifer Clinic, and Supplement to the Submission of the Barbra Schlifer Clinic, September 2016
- Submissions on the Draft Update of CEDAW’s General Recommendation No. 19 (1992) on Gender Based Violence against Women, September 2016
- Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, September 2016
- United Nations Working Group on Discrimination Against Women (UNWGDAW) Best Practices and Recommendations, September 2016
- Submission of Women Against Violence Women Rape Crisis Centre and the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic: Regarding the Honourable Justice Robin Camp, and Affidavit of Amanda Dale in Support of the Motion for Leave to Intervene, June 2016
- Joint Submission of the Ad Hoc NGO Coalition to the United Nations Human Rights Council for the May 2013 Universal Periodic Review of Canada
- Submission to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Immigration regarding the Committee’s review of Bill C-31, April 2012
- Submission to the United Nations: “The Intersection of Race and Gender in the Matter of the Canadian State’s Ban on Facial Coverings During the Course of Citizenship Oaths,” February 2012
- Paroles creuses et deux poids deux mesures : le manquement du Canada au respect et au renforcement des droits humains
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