| The purpose of this study was to investigate the nature of the legal relationships between Canadian postsecondary institutions and their students by means of a comprehensive analysis of primary and secondary legal sources on this topic. Traditional historical-legal research methodology was used. All reported and unreported judicial decisions involving disputes between postsecondary institutions and students from the common-law provinces of Canada from January 1, 1982 to December 31, 1994 were located, briefed, analyzed, and categorized into five major areas of law: constitutional law (the Charter of Rights and Freedoms), administrative law, statutory law, contract law, and tort law. The case law in each of these major areas was reviewed and synthesized with the secondary literature. Finally, the total body of cases was analyzed for patterns and trends.; The study found that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms does not generally apply to universities, but does apply to at least some community colleges. The student-institution legal relationship is largely defined by the principles of administrative law. Postsecondary students are entitled to natural justice, the elements of which are reviewed in detail in the study. Few statutes are targeted specifically at postsecondary institutions, but the student-institution relationship is affected by various "generic" statutes, particularly provincial human rights statutes. Judicial decisions have affirmed that a contractual relationship exists between institutions and students, the terms of which are contained in various official institutional documents. Very few tort-based cases were located, but developments in tort law generally suggested that the potential tort liability of colleges and universities may be greater than the small number of cases in this area would indicate.; The total number of judicial decisions located for the study was relatively small (65 decisions, 34 of these reported). The number of reported decisions had more than doubled since the 1968-1981 period, and students also initiated a greater proportion of the cases during the 1982-1994 period. However, students were successful in only about 29% of such cases, a rate that was only slightly higher than their success rate in 1968-1981 (25%). The university sector was proportionally overrepresented in the case law.; The study concluded that Canadian courts continued to show considerable deference toward colleges and universities, particularly with respect to academic matters, but did intervene when institutions failed to comply with statutes or institutional contracts, policies or procedures, when the issues before the courts were interim, preliminary or jurisdictional in nature, when there were serious violations of natural justice, when a duty was breached, and when the institution was the plaintiff. The study also concluded that although the courts continue to show deference towards postsecondary institutions, students have challenged institutions in substantially greater numbers since 1981. Suggestions with respect to possible future trends in the law in this area were offered, and recommendations for practice and research were made. |
