Ottawa spent nearly $2 million challenging Quebec’s Bill 21

The Canadian flag flies on the roof of the West Block on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)

The federal government has spent nearly $2 million in legal fees to date in its challenge of Quebec’s secularism law before the Supreme Court.

The Department of Justice reports the total costs associated with the Attorney General of Canada’s intervention in the appeal brought by the English Montreal School Board against Bill 21 amounted to $1.92 million as of Sept. 17.

The Bloc Québécois, which opposes the challenge, revealed the numbers after questions from its MP Martin Champoux.

“While the Supreme Court hearings have not even begun, we understand that the nearly $2 million invested in challenging Bill 21 was essentially used to draft the brief filed by Ottawa, in which the Liberals directly attack Quebec and the use of the notwithstanding clause,” Champoux said in a press release.

Last September, the federal government filed an intervener’s brief in which it chose to avoid ruling on the merits of Bill 21 and instead attacked the use of the notwithstanding clause, or section 33 of the Charter.

The federal government wants to limit the use of this clause. If used repeatedly, it amounts to “indirectly amending the Constitution,” argued Canada’s Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Sean Fraser.

In his opinion, the court should be able to rule on whether repeated use of what is commonly referred to as the “notwithstanding clause” can result in “irreparable harm” to the rights of Canadians.

Champoux is calling on the Liberal government to “stop challenging Quebec’s choices with Quebecers’ money.”

The Bloc Québécois points out that the amount spent by Ottawa on this case has nearly doubled in a few months. As of June 17, legal fees were nearly $998,000, compared to $1.92 million three months later.

The Department of Justice explains that this amount includes legal services provided by its lawyers, notaries, and paralegals working on the case.

It is calculated by multiplying the total number of hours recorded by the hourly rates for the department’s legal services.

It is so far unclear when the Supreme Court will hold its hearings on the challenge to Bill 21.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French Nov. 7, 2025.

Frédéric Lacroix-Couture, The Canadian Press

— With files from Émilie Bergeron