The "spanking" law : section 43 of the Criminal Code / Laura Barnett.: YM32-2/2016-35E-PDF

"Section 43 of the Criminal Code, which expressly offers parents and teachers a defence when they use reasonable force to discipline a child, is a controversial provision of Canada's criminal law. In recent decades, a growing number of people have called for an end to any form of physical punishment of children and youth in Canada, which would necessarily include the repeal of section 43, and as recently as late 2015, legislation to repeal section 43 was introduced in the Senate. Other advocates, while acknowledging that abuse itself is never justified, have argued that minor physical correction is acceptable in certain circumstances and that individuals should not risk criminal prosecution as a result of their parenting techniques. This paper reviews the content of section 43 and its judicial interpretation by the Supreme Court of Canada, a majority of which upheld the provision as constitutional in 2004. It then discusses past proposals to repeal the section, and the legal effects that such a repeal would have, given the definition of assault in Canada's Criminal Code and the availability of common law defences. Finally, public opinion on abolishing section 43, research regarding the effects of physical punishment and international perspectives on the issue are briefly examined"--Introduction, p.1.

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