R v Smith and Mathers, 2019 ONSC 4816
[3] At the preliminary hearing before Justice Rahman, held on May 16, 2018, the accused requested and obtained an order pursuant to section 530(1) of the Criminal Code directing that they be tried before a judge and jury who speak English, one of Canada’s official languages.
[4] The accused submitted that having obtained the mandatory section 530(1) order to have their trial in English, the accused are entitled by operation of section 638(f) to conduct a challenge for cause inquiry to verify that the prospective jurors can speak and read English. Counsel argued that the request did not have to rest on any specific concern but that it rested on Canadians’ fundamental right to be served in one of Canada’s official languages as recognized in the Constitution Act, 1867, in the Constitution Act, 1982 and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the Official Languages Act, R.S.C. 1985 c.31.
