Court of Appeal Upholds Constitutionality of Yukon’s Emergency Legislation

On May 16, 2025, the Court of Appeal of Yukon released its decision in Mercer v. Yukon, upholding the constitutionality of Yukon’s Civil Emergency Measures Act (CEMA).

During the COVID-19 pandemic, a state of emergency was declared under CEMA and public health orders were made under the statute. In a unanimous decision, the Court of Appeal confirmed that unwritten constitutional principles cannot independently invalidate legislation, and the appellant’s attempt to invalidate CEMA was “untethered from basic constitutional structure” (para. 49).

The Court held that CEMA allows for valid delegations of power from the Legislative branch to the Executive during times of emergency. The words “responsible government” in the preamble to the Yukon Act do not impose unique limits on the delegation of legislative powers in the Territory.

Catherine Boies Parker, K.C. and Emma Ronsley of Arvay Finlay LLP successfully represented the Government of Yukon in this appeal.

Read the full decision here: Mercer v. Yukon (Government of), 2025 YKCA 5 

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