The legality of the Clarity Act and Bill 99 in light of the secession reference

This Master of Laws thesis will assess the constitutional merit of the conflicting statutes that have arisen in response to the Secession Reference, and the legal doctrines that purport to sustain them. With respect to the Clarity Act, a three part analysis will be undertaken in an effort to determine if the Act is intra vires section 91 of the Constitution Act, 1867 and section 44 of the Constitution Act, 1982; contrary to the unwritten constitutional pillars; or, in violation of the international law doctrine of "total frustration".

With respect to Bill 99, a three part examination will be undertaken in an effort to determine if the provincial enactment is intra vires section 92 of the Constitution Act, 1867 and section 45 of the Constitution Act, 1982; consistent with the unwritten constitutional pillars; or, where relevant, incompatible with international law (especially boundaries and borders).

Throughout the work, sections 91 and 92 of the Constitution Act, 1867 and sections 44 and 45 of the Constitution Act, 1982 , will be examined vis a vis two potentially conflicting purposes behind the Clarity Act and Bill 99, those being the regulation of the "framework of internal secession", and the governance of "internal self determination", (with the former falling within the competence of Parliament and the latter being a provincial right). (Abstract shortened by UMI.)