Author Archives: J.W.J. Bowden

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About J.W.J. Bowden

My area of academic expertise lies in Canadian political institutions, especially the Crown, political executive, and conventions of Responsible Government; since 2011, I have made a valuable contribution to the scholarship by having been published and cited extensively. I’m also a contributing editor to the Dorchester Review and a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Parliamentary and Political Law.

My Column in the National Post on the New Democrats’ Unconstitutional Bill to Give Quebec Fixed Proportion of Seats

Posted on 2011/09/22 by J.W.J. Bowden

Here’s my less hasty take on the New Democrats’ anti-constitutional policies on electoral redistribution. I had forgotten to mention Section 52 of the Constitution Act, 1867! The National Post also published this as a column entitled, “Favouring Quebec in Parliament … Continue reading →

Posted in Electoral Boundaries Readjustments | 1 Comment

The New Democrats’ Anti-Constitutional Stance on Electoral Redistribution

Posted on 2011/09/20 by J.W.J. Bowden

Recent statements of Thomas Mulcair and Nycole Turmel on electoral redistribution are not only wrong, but contradict the Constitution Act, 1867. Yet so far, neither the Harper government itself nor the Parliamentary Press Gallery have called them out. In the … Continue reading →

Posted in Electoral Boundaries Readjustments, Reform | 3 Comments

Parliamentary Privilege in the United States Congress

Posted on 2011/09/16 by J.W.J. Bowden

With so many American presidential candidates proclaiming the virtues of the Constitution of the United States of America, I sometimes take to re-reading my “pocket constitution” in order to verify their interpretations of its various clauses and amendments. I originally … Continue reading →

Posted in Parliamentary Privilege | 6 Comments

Development of Responsible Government and the Principle of Restraint (Caretaker Convention)

Posted on 2011/09/12 by J.W.J. Bowden

Responsible Government The famous Persons Case (more formally, Reference re: British North America Act 1867 (UK) Section 24 IN THE MATTER OF a Reference as to the meaning of the word “Persons” in Section 24 of the British North America … Continue reading →

Posted in Caretaker Convention & Government Formation, Officialization of Convention, Responsible Government | 4 Comments

1774: Thomas Jefferson, The Rights of British Americans, and the Origins of the Commonwealth Realms

Posted on 2011/09/10 by J.W.J. Bowden

A Summary View of the Rights of British America In “George III and the Loss of the American Colonies,” I cited one of Thomas Jefferson’s earlier works from 1774, A Summary View of the Rights of British America, as evidence … Continue reading →

Posted in History of British North America, Origins, Whigs v Tories | 18 Comments