The “living tree” concept  been used several times by the Supreme Court of Canada. Further, it has been argued by Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  scholars, such as John Borrows, that Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  legal orders and laws are equally part of the constitutional bedrock of Canada.

Many Canadians felt there was unfinished business after 1982 because Québec had not signed the final deal, Indigenous Peoples had not achieved many of the rights they claimed as inherent, the provinces had not successfully renegotiated the division of powers between the federal and provincial governments, and there had not been meaningful reform of government institutions such as the Senate The “upper house” of the Canadian Parliament, which reviews and approves all federal legislation initiated in either House. (It does not usually initiate legislation, although it has that power.) The Senate is comprised of 105 senators, who are appointed until the age of 75 by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minister. Senate seats are proportioned by region, in an attempt to balance the population-based membership of the House of Commons and improve regional equality in government.  and the Supreme Court of Canada. 

There were unsuccessful attempts to address many of these issues in the 80s and 90s, notably through the Meech Lake and Charlottetown Accords An attempt, in 1992, to revise the Constitution to gain the endorsement of Québec, after the death of the Meech Lake Accord in 1990. Along with several of the provisions of Meech, it had a “Canada Clause” setting out a general view of the nation (including Québec as a “distinct society”), as well as a Social Charter, meant to articulate collective principles and goals not included in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (on health care, education, labour rights and other matters), and a recognition of the Indigenous right to self-government. It was brought to public referendum — one in Québec and another in the rest of Canada — on October 26, 1992, and was defeated.  and the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Aboriginal is the collective term used in the Constitution to describe the original peoples of North America and their descendants and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. See also: Indigenous. Peoples.  

Québec not signing the Constitution dominated Canadian politics for more than a decade, but legally, Québec is included in the constitutional order. Québecers continue to use the Constitution to assert their rights.

Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples sought and continue to seek recognition of their status and identity as distinct nations of peoples within Canada. Section 35, the section on Aboriginal and Treaty Rights, was amended and expanded in 1983 following negotiations between Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples and the federal and provincial governments.  Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples have used the section through the courts to give life to many of their existing rights and laws, but they are a long way from acquiring the full recognition they seek. Today the fractured relationship with Indigenous Peoples is perhaps Canada’s largest political challenge.

Louise Mandell, Counsel for Union of British Columbia Indian Indian is a term historically used by governments to describe the original peoples of North America - Indigenous and Aboriginal - but it is not considered respectful or accurate. It remains in section 91(24) of the Constitution and the “Indian Act”.  Chiefs and World Council of Indigenous Indigenous is the collective term for the original peoples of North America and their descendants, and includes First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. See also: Aboriginal, which is found in the Constitution. The Government of Canada has officially changed “Aboriginal” to “Indigenous” in its ministries, legislation and documents. Canada has made it clear that the term “Indigenous” covers the legal definitions of “Aboriginal” and “Indian” for most constitutional purposes.  Peoples

Western provinces did not feel fully represented in the House of Commons The “lower” legislative assembly of Parliament (relative to the Senate’s “upper” house) in the Canadian Parliament. The House is composed of the popularly elected representatives of ridings (electoral districts) across Canada.  , the cabinet, nor in national institutions. Many Westerners wanted the composition of the Senate The “upper house” of the Canadian Parliament, which reviews and approves all federal legislation initiated in either House. (It does not usually initiate legislation, although it has that power.) The Senate is comprised of 105 senators, who are appointed until the age of 75 by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minister. Senate seats are proportioned by region, in an attempt to balance the population-based membership of the House of Commons and improve regional equality in government.  changed to reflect the principle of equality of the provinces. B.C. wanted to be considered its own separate region, distinct from the prairie provinces within the Constitution. These issues were not addressed, and they continue to be points of negotiation between the federal and provincial governments.

Thanks to the patriation of the Constitution, it can now be amended in Canada. Though some see the prospect of amendment as an impossibility because of the failed Meech Lake A set of proposed changes to the Constitution agreed upon by the first ministers at a meeting called by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and held at Meech Lake in Gatineau, Québec, in April, 1987. It was an effort to gain the endorsement of Québec to the Constitution that was lacking earlier in the decade. Measures included naming Québec a “distinct society” in the Constitution, and altering the amending formula to give Québec more power with respect to any proposed changes. Pierre Trudeau came out in opposition, as did Indigenous groups and others who were angry about a lack of consultation. Ultimately, it was not approved by all provinces in time to meet the agreed deadline - it expired on June 23, 1990, which was perceived as another betrayal by many in Québec.  and Charlottetown Accords An attempt, in 1992, to revise the Constitution to gain the endorsement of Québec, after the death of the Meech Lake Accord in 1990. Along with several of the provisions of Meech, it had a “Canada Clause” setting out a general view of the nation (including Québec as a “distinct society”), as well as a Social Charter, meant to articulate collective principles and goals not included in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (on health care, education, labour rights and other matters), and a recognition of the Indigenous right to self-government. It was brought to public referendum — one in Québec and another in the rest of Canada — on October 26, 1992, and was defeated.  , it was in fact amended 11 times between 1982 and 2017. An important amendment to the Constitution that affected the Inuit Peoples of Canada was the creation of Nunavut in 1999 as Canada’s third and only Indigenous majority territory.