HIV Legal Network

10/02/2026

On September 29, 2026, the BC Supreme Court ruled that the criminal law used to arrest and convict DULF co-founders Jeremy Kalicum and Eris Nyx is unconstitutional: section 5(2) of the CDSA violates the Section 7 and Section 15 Charter rights of DULF co-founders and people who use drugs. The Court declared section 5(2) of the CDSA invalid (of no force or effect), effective in six months. This delay is to give the legislature the opportunity to craft a response.

What does this decision mean, and what could happen next?

Join us on Monday, October 5th from 12-1pm PT | 3-4pm ET to learn more!

Registration here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/9217907275148/WN_g4KZbMPbR6-rOU-ini8_rQ

09/30/2026

The HIV Legal Network offices will be closed today, and our team will be in their communities to attend events, participate in ceremony, and dedicate time to the necessary learning and unlearning that is required to effectively dismantle Canada’s legacy of colonial harm. Together, we know we can reimagine a society that respects Indigenous people and Indigenous ways of knowing and being.

Today we encourage you to listen to some of our recent podcast episodes. We had the opportunity this spring to speak with both Anton McCloskey and Margaret Kisikaw Piyesis about issues related to HIV criminalization, and both conversations examined the ongoing impacts of colonialism on the health of Indigenous people. Both of our podcast guests pointed to traditional Indigenous practices as critical to both the health of Indigenous people and to the country as a whole.

The conversation with Anton is here: https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/indigenous-perspectives-on-hiv-criminalization-anton-mccloskey/?lang=en

Listen to our talk with Margaret here: https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/not-a-crime-indigenous-perspectives-on-hiv-criminalization-margaret-kisikaw-piyesis/?lang=en

09/30/2026

Les bureaux du Réseau juridique VIH seront fermés aujourd’hui et notre équipe se rendra dans des communautés pour assister à des événements, participer à des cérémonies et consacrer du temps à l’apprentissage et au désapprentissage nécessaires pour démanteler l’héritage des préjudices du colonialisme au Canada. Nous savons qu’ensemble nous pouvons réimaginer une société qui respecte les peuples autochtones ainsi que leurs modes de connaissance et d’existence.

Nous vous invitons aujourd’hui à écouter certaines de nos récentes baladodiffusions. Nous nous sommes entretenu-es au printemps avec Anton McCloskey et Margaret Kisikaw Piyesis sur des enjeux liés à la criminalisation du VIH; et ces deux entretiens ont porté sur les répercussions persistantes du colonialisme sur la santé autochtone. Nos deux invité-es ont souligné que les pratiques traditionnelles autochtones revêtent une importance cruciale, tant pour la santé des peuples autochtones que pour le pays dans son ensemble.

Anton : https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/indigenous-perspectives-on-hiv-criminalization-anton-mccloskey/?lang=fr

Margaret : https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/not-a-crime-indigenous-perspectives-on-hiv-criminalization-margaret-kisikaw-piyesis/?lang=fr

09/29/2026

The HIV Legal Network is heartened by a British Columbia Supreme Court decision today that found section 5(2) of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (which prohibits possession for the purpose of trafficking) to be unconstitutional because it violates section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Section 7 guarantees the right to life, liberty, and security of the person — and this includes all people in Canada, including people who use drugs.

In making her decision, which also dismissed the trafficking charges against Drug User Liberation Front (DULF) founders Jeremy Kalicum and Eris Nyx, Justice Catherine Murray noted that Kalicum and Nyx had performed a public service at a “considerable personal cost” by operating a compassion club and overdose prevention site to save lives and supplying safety-tested substances to people who use drugs in the Vancouver area.

This decision is an important legal step forward and an important affirmation of the human rights of all people who use drugs in Canada at a time when this country’s toxic drug supply is killing thousands of people every year. We applaud today’s decision and will continue working to end the failed war on drugs and its many ongoing harms in Canada and around the world.

To learn about a more progressive, human rights–based approach to drug policy that does not rely on criminal, administrative, and medical interventions, please take a look at Decriminalization Done Right: A Rights-Based Path for Drug Policy: https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/decriminalization-done-right-a-rights-based-path-for-drug-policy/?lang=en

09/29/2026

Le Réseau juridique sur le VIH se réjouit de la décision rendue aujourd’hui par la Cour suprême de la Colombie-Britannique, qui a jugé inconstitutionnel l’article 5(2) de la Loi réglementant certaines drogues et autres substances (qui interdit la possession en vue du trafic), au motif qu’il viole l’article 7 de la Charte canadienne des droits et libertés. L’article 7 garantit le droit à la vie, à la liberté et à la sécurité de la personne — et cela s’applique à toutes les personnes au Canada, y compris celles qui consomment des drogues.

En rendant sa décision, qui a également entraîné le rejet des accusations de trafic portées contre les fondateurs du Drug User Liberation Front (DULF), Jeremy Kalicum et Eris Nyx, la juge Catherine Murray a souligné que Kalicum et Nyx avaient rendu un service public au prix d’un « sacrifice personnel considérable » en gérant un centre de prévention des surdoses compassionné pour sauver des vies, et en fournissant des substances dont la sécurité avait été vérifiée aux personnes qui consomment des drogues dans la région de Vancouver.

Cette décision constitue une avancée juridique majeure et une affirmation importante des droits de la personne de toutes les personnes qui consomment des drogues au Canada, à une époque où l’offre de drogues toxiques dans ce pays tue des milliers de personnes chaque année. Nous saluons la décision d’aujourd’hui et continuerons à œuvrer pour mettre fin à la guerre contre la drogue, qui s’est soldée par un échec, ainsi qu’à ses nombreux préjudices persistants au Canada et dans le monde entier.

Pour en savoir plus sur une approche plus progressiste et fondée sur les droits humains en matière de politique des drogues, qui ne repose pas sur des interventions pénales, administratives et médicales, veuillez consulter le document « Réussir la décriminalisation : Une voie vers des politiques sur les drogues basées sur les droits de la personne » : https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/decriminalization-done-right-a-rights-based-path-for-drug-policy/?lang=en

09/29/2026

09/24/2026

HIV Legal Network Co-Executive Directors Sandra Ka Hon Chu and Janet Butler-McPhee were at this week’s “Championing Health Justice Partnerships Conference,” hosted by the Health Justice Community of Practice. On Wednesday, Sandra joined doctors on a plenary session panel conversation (Building Evidence, Legitimacy, & Policy Impact) that looked at advocacy strategies that create policy reforms and legal change, including campaigns on the climate crisis, refugee healthcare, prison health, and HIV criminalization.

We also teamed up with HALCO for a poster presentation at the conference that looked at the development and global impact of the 2014 Canadian consensus statement on HIV and its transmission in the context of criminal law.

09/24/2026

All levels of government in Canada are fully aware of the deaths that are happening within their jurisdictions due to the toxicity of Canada’s drug supply. They are also aware of what the evidence says about the effective means to prevent deaths and other harms from drug toxicity, connect people to care, and support community building. Just two years ago, the HIV Legal Network shared with great hope a report documenting the importance of expanding supervised consumptions services in Canada with clear recommendations on removing barriers to access. We presented the many well-established reasons for expanding supervised consumption sites Canada-wide, and identified where political interference was preventing this urgent expansion from happening.

https://www.hivlegalnetwork.ca/site/scaling-up-supervised-consumption-services-what-has-changed-in-canada/?lang=en

Instead of building communities that support the health and lives of people at risk due to the toxic drug supply, governments across Canada are tearing down the few remaining services that exist and pursuing policies that will cause even more harm. All too often, harm reduction and treatment are presented as being in opposition rather than as part of a continuum of much-needed care.

09/23/2026

09/23/2026