What Laws Are Different in Canada than the Us

Once you sign up for the health care system, you can actually go to a clinic and get free care, but the systems work differently for each province, which makes things confusing. In addition, many people seem to have difficulty finding family doctors due to long wait times. Of course, the way the courts are set up will be different from these different ways of binding the country through existing laws. While the structure in the U.S. can be confusing due to fundamental jurisdictional issues between states and federal courts – which could essentially hear any type of case – in Canada, there is a more unified structure that mimics a pyramid structure. In Canada, every provincial court will hear every minor lawsuit — there are rarely site purchases — to ensure that enforcement in that province meets a standard of consistency. [v] There are courts that deal with smaller civil and criminal cases, while the supreme courts of each province deal with the most serious crimes. Each province has its courts of first instance, a court of appeal (not an appellate court) designed to correct “simple errors” that occur at lower levels. [vi] And although Canada has created a “federal” judicial system, these federal courts with limited jurisdiction remain much less important than the courts in the basic [provincial] structure described above. [vii] This simplistic structure of Canadian courts leaves it to the Supreme Court of Canada to be much more influential in the provinces, giving them the opportunity to promote federalism between the provinces; further promote consistency between applicable laws. [viii] 2 Amicus curiae means something else in Canada. If you visit Canada and go to the grocery store, you`ll notice a big difference pretty quickly: Canada sells and drinks milk in bags.

What for? It`s better for the environment than milk cartons, and it`s also more cost-effective because it`s cheaper to make. Milk doesn`t stay in bags – when Canadians take it home, they open it with scissors and then pour it into jugs. Since it is not properly sealed, it does not last as long once the bag is opened. Although both the United States and Canada have succeeded in their federal participation, Canada`s Parliamentary Confederation has structured the justice system very differently – something we will discuss shortly. But these things can be overcome and translate very well between Canada and America. It`s between the lines, the little sophistication that really surprises you. After learning the basics of 1L law, it was pretty easy to return to Canada to practice at a Toronto law firm – but those were the little things you could get stuck with. In addition to calling an appeal brief in Canada a “factum,” here are three things that differ between the U.S. legal system and the Canadian legal system. Interestingly, online shopping is not as popular in Canada as it is in America. According to Advantage 2 Retail, e-commerce accounts for only about 4.5% of total retail sales in Canada, compared to 7.7% of retail sales in the United States, according to Bustle, Amazon Canada has a much smaller selection. And an infographic shows that less than half of Canadian businesses have a website, meaning there`s not even the ability to sell things online.

Having attended law schools in the United States as a native and growing up in Canada left a huge gap in the practical knowledge of law. When you grow up in Canada, you have the Charter of Rights and Freedoms[i] that you learn, and you automatically assume and know that everything that happens in any part of the country is a reflection of what would happen on the opposite coast. This particular difference has never been more evident than it is today. Canadians welcome more refugees and immigrants than Americans. Political parties are also different. In the United States, we have two major parties: the Democrats and the Republicans. Canada has four major parties and many smaller ones, such as the Conservatives, the Liberals, the New Democratic Party and the Green Party. Have you ever wondered what a Canadian version of Law and Order would look like? When it comes to jobs, Americans work more than Canadians. Canada`s attitude towards vacations is similar to that of Europe.

According to HR Daily Advisor, Canadian employees are given 30-minute breaks every five hours. While U.S. employees also benefit from breaks, Canadians are more likely to take them. Legal institutions in Canada1 and the United States have a common ancestor: British common law. As neighbors` systems evolved over time, they each developed their own personality, practices, and vocabulary. And yet, they retain strong family similarities. Or, as we like to say, the Canadian system is just like the American system — except it is completely different. The most important difference between political influences is that Canada is a single federal penal code. [ii] Canada uses its federalism to have a universal penal code that maintains a coherent shell of laws to govern Canada. This is likely to help the Canadian legal system function, as it is realistically easier in a country with a population of about 35 million, compared to the 326 million Americans[iv].

It is also at the heart of the creation of the United States of America that states retain a kind of independence, which was compromised in the creation of Canada. First of all, learning about the U.S. Constitution was a whirlwind, the hardest part was that the first time you`re twenty-three years old, it`s impossible to see how some of the articles or amendments to the Constitution, which may consist of twenty words, established thousands of interpretations that don`t make sense at first glance – if you don`t know, how different judges interpret the constitution (originalists, B. the living constitution, etc.). Despite these similarities, there are many areas where U.S. and Canadian laws differ. For example, in Canada, juries are used almost exclusively for criminal cases, while in the United States, juries are often used for non-criminal cases. Labour law is also different. The U.S. concept of “all-you-can-eat employment”—that is, an employee can be fired without cause and without notice—appears to be non-existent in Canada.

You must either give your employee a reason why you were firing them or notify them in advance. Another notable difference is that same-sex marriage is legal across Canada. While it may seem conceptually difficult to translate what is learned at one country`s law school into another`s legal industry, the bottom line is that it`s not. Yes, you learn from different systematic government laws or different terms of what matters that the law is the law. Where there are lawyers, judges and other jurists, there will always be the opportunity to learn and adapt to any legal system in any country. The most discussed difference between Canada and the United States is their different health care systems. Canadians receive “free” health care, which is what many Americans want. However, Bustle points out that the health care system in Canada is a bit complicated. Despite Canada`s physical and cultural proximity to the United States, Canadians are quick to point out more important cultural differences such as free health care in Canada, our penchant for politeness, and our rainbow-colored currency.

But many Canadians who grew up with a regime of American movies and TELEVISION shows do not know that our legal systems are very different. Although both the American and Canadian legal systems are based on British common law, there are significant differences in practice. While we appreciate having the U.S. as our neighbour, we also can`t help but notice significant differences between Canada and the U.S. We Canadians love and are proud of our cultural differences between Canada and the United States. We have different accents, we love how polite we are, we miss Tim Hortons when we cross the border, we love to eat poutines, we love watching hockey more than baseball, and we`re proud of our maple syrup – and we`re proud of it! Paying a dinner bill with a group is much easier in Canada than in the United States. According to a Bustle author who lived in Montreal, Canadian servers bring a credit/debit card machine to operate your card to the table. The machine also calculates a tip for you if you choose to use it, which means you don`t have to do the math. Canadians and Americans do not share the same currency – Canada has its own currency, which is colorful and unique. In 2013, Canada was stripped of money because the cost of production outweighed the value of the coin. Canadians also use one-dollar coins instead of bills and even two-dollar coins (called toonies).

[iv] U.S. and World Population Clock, Population Clock, www.census.gov/popclock/ (last visited December 23, 2017). Although there are two distinct and functional federal and state judicial systems in the United States of America, often closely related to the cases they hear. .