Reference re Manitoba Language Rights [1985] 1 S.C.R. 721 was a reference question

Reference question

In Canadian law, a Reference Question is a submission by the federal or a provincial government to the courts asking for an advisory opinion on a major legal issue. Typically the question concerns the constitutionality of legislation....

 posed to the Supreme Court of Canada

Supreme Court of Canada

The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeals in the Canadian justice system. The court grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts, and its decisions...

 regarding provisions in the Manitoba Act

Manitoba Act

The Manitoba Act, originally titled An Act to amend and continue the Act 32 and 33 Victoria, chapter 3; and to establish and provide for the Government of the Province of Manitoba, is an act of the Parliament of Canada that is defined by the Constitution Act, 1982 as forming a part of the...

 stipulating the provision of French language

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

 services in the province of Manitoba. The Court heard the appeal in June 1984, and gave its ruling a year later, on June 13, 1985.

Four questions were asked:

1. Are sections 133 of the Constitution Act, 1867
   Constitution Act, 1867
   The Constitution Act, 1867 , is a major part of Canada's Constitution. The Act created a federal dominion and defines much of the operation of the Government of Canada, including its federal structure, the House of Commons, the Senate, the justice system, and the taxation system...
   
    and 23 of the Manitoba Act, 1870, requiring laws be in both French and English, mandatory in Manitoba, Quebec, and Parliament?
2. If so, are those Manitoban laws not printed in both languages invalid under section 23 of the Manitoba Act?
3. If so, do the laws have any force and effect, and if so to what extent?
4. Are any of the provisions of An Act Respecting the Operation of Section 23 of the Manitoba Act in Regard to Statutes inconsistent with section 23 of the Manitoba Act, 1870, and if so are the provisions invalid and of no legal force and effect?

The Court found that the Constitution Act, 1867

Constitution Act, 1867

The Constitution Act, 1867 , is a major part of Canada's Constitution. The Act created a federal dominion and defines much of the operation of the Government of Canada, including its federal structure, the House of Commons, the Senate, the justice system, and the taxation system...

 and the Manitoba Act, 1870 did require both languages and that those laws that were not in both languages were of no force and effect; however, they were be deemed temporarily valid for a time until translations can be re-enacted in order to avoid a legal vacuum in Manitoba and to ensure the continuity of the rule of law.

This reference was the first time that the courts in Canada had used the remedy of a delayed declaration of invalidity. Despite its exceptional origins, this remedy has grown to become a preferred one in Canadian public law

Public law

Public law is a theory of law governing the relationship between individuals and the state. Under this theory, constitutional law, administrative law and criminal law are sub-divisions of public law...

.