The majority of the Court first considered the Constitution of Canada, noting that the Constitution Act, 1867, which set out the rules for Canadian federalism, did not give any level of government exclusive jurisdiction to create language rights, and both levels probably could. There were language rights in the Constitution as well, and these could provide context for language rights cases.
The majority of the Court first looked at the Constitution of Canada, noting that the British North America Act, 1867, did not give any level of government sole authority to create language rights, and both levels likely had the power. The Constitution also contained language rights, which could help inform language rights cases.