Women Who Woke up the Law: Inside the Cases that Changed Women's Rights in Canada

by Karin Wells

Behind every “landmark case” is a woman with a story.

“Who was the woman trying to convince a jury in a tiny courthouse in Nova Scotia that it was self-defense when she killed her partner; and who was the young woman walking into the palais de justice in small-town Quebec arguing that it was her choice, not his, to have an abortion? What was it that pushed these women on, even when the lawyers said it was hopeless?”

From the award-winning author of The Abortion Caravan and More Than a Footnote, Karin Wells once again pulls us into the lives—and this time, the legal trials—of a group of women integral to the advancement of women’s rights in Canada. Eliza Campbell, Chantale Daigle, Jeannette Corbiere Lavell—these Women Who Woke Up the Law often had no idea what they were facing in the courts, or the price they would have to pay. Some never saw justice themselves, but they left a legal legacy. Their bold determination is something we need now more than ever to guard the hard-won gains in women’s rights.

Genres: Nonfiction, Feminism, Canada

250 pages, Paperback

Published March 4, 2025

Reviews

[Katie E 🇨🇦]

Five Stars!

This book was an excellent introduction to important legal cases within women’s history. Wells provides a detailed overview of specific moments in history from abortion, sexual assault, domestic violence, divorce rights and more. One thing I really enjoyed about this book is that these stories come from all over Canada, and are not isolated to white women only,specifically those that would be considered a “perfect victim”. Women of all races and walks of life shape this book. Each story is unique and great detail is given by wells as to how these changed Canada, while also providing updates as to what happened those mentioned afterwards.

What’s unfortunate it how very few of these people I had actually heard of, in fact much to my disappointment I only knew who two of the women mentioned in here were. Even as a Canadian, most of my knowledge on women’s rights comes from the United States, and I am sure I am not alone in this sentiment. This makes Women Who Woke Up the Law an even more important book, as it shines a much needed light onto Canadian women and their impact on Canadian legislation.

Overall, highly recommend giving this a read!

Thank you again to Second Story Press for providing me a copy of this book.

[Alexandra Dodd]

5/5 Stars

- A collection of real life records of women in Canada whose legal cases laid the groundwork for massive changes in terms of women’s legal rights.

- One of those books that is equally inspiring and rage inducing.

- Women didn’t have property claims to ranches they worked on with their husbands? Women had to fight for the right to maternity leave benefits and judges tried to claim ‘discrimination against pregnancy wasn’t sex based discrimination’’? The bullshit behind the idea of ‘implied consent’ in sexual assault cases? All relatively recent history that shows how recently it really was that women achieved a legal sense of personhood outside of the men they’re shackled to. My grandma and mom were alive for a lot of this shit. Crazy.

[Vanessa Ruby]

3.5 ⭐️

[Lucy Black]

Women Who Woke Up the Law by Karin Wells provides an important historical overview of ten legal cases that advanced women’s rights in Canada. Wells demonstrates that, for women, incremental change only took place after incredible sacrifice, advocacy and perseverance. The narratives included outline the prejudicial treatment of women with regard to voting, divorce, domestic violence, sexual abuse, custody of children, ownership of property, maternity benefits, abortion, racialized and sexual discrimination, and intersectionality. Above all, it is the courage and determination of many which is highlighted in this incredible history, amplifying the voices of those brave individuals whose advocacy reshaped women’s rights in Canada. This is a significant case history that belongs in every library.

[Enid Wray]

Another fascinating look behind the curtain at women’s rights in Canada.

This is a perfect title for an introductory course on Women and the Law… or for anyone who wants to know more about how we got to where we are.

Always look forward to new titles from Karin Wells.

[Cassandra]

I am not normally a fan of non-fiction books but I did enjoy this one! It was eye opening to see how so many basic rights we have now as women were formed. But on the flip side, it's very upsetting to see how recent some of them are!

[Lino Matteo]

Women Who Woke Up the Law: Thoughts

Usually, Wednesday’s is about Restorative Justice. Today’s post is a little different. Karin Wells has written an interesting and compelling book about the law in Canada. While the title is “Women Who Woke up the Law: Inside the Cases that Changed Women's Rights in Canada”. The reality is that the book is about more than just the 50.3% of Canadians that are female.
How would you feel if your mother, daughter, sister, or spouse did not have the same rights that you did? How would you feel if men did not have the same rights as women? It is hard to believe that we are still having these conversations in the 21st century – but we are, and we reason.
“The law can be and often seems to be an ass.”
The range of topics are diverse – but center around the incremental and frustrating struggle for women to have rights and respect under the law. That, in its very nature, is Restorative Justice in reality. The cases and themes are the contents revolve around:
1. Divorce Rights – and the simple need to not be accused of adultery, while men could drink, carouse, and beat their women – as long as it was not too much. What exactly is too much?
2. Personhood and Recognition Under the Law – if women were not people, what exactly were they? Property, it seems. What a terrible thought – yet, much of the world is still having this struggle. Canada must do better. And it is not even a hundred years. And much less than that for most of these other rights to be recognized by the slow moving and conservative legal system
3. Property Rights / Matrimonial Property - whose assets, were they? It seems the man – the women could work and work but not to their benefit – during or after the marriage. Discriminatory and unfair does not begin to describe it.
4. Maternity Benefits / Unemployment Insurance – the catch-22 of maternity benefits – you could only get them if you worked, but you could not work if you were pregnant, and it was your responsibility if you were pregnant. Yea, that does not make much sense. Women had to protest – but the courts are not friendly to rights, until the public gets the politicos to move.
5. Abortion Rights – the twists and turns for women to get the right to govern their own bodies. Phew.
And there is more
• Intimate Partner Violence and Self-Defense such as legal considerations for battered women syndrome.
• Sexual Assault and Consent Laws - "No Means No" and not maybe!
• Indigenous Women's Rights (Indian Act Discrimination and Status) – not only the system but their own people
• Racial Discrimination and Intersectionality
• Contemporary Issues – the power dynamics and potential abuse of NDAs, (Non-disclosure Agreements)

Yes, as Karin Wells writes, “The law can be and often seems to be an ass.” Women are a must for a fairer and kinder society. But how could men live in the old society, where women were less than second class citizens? A society populated by mothers, daughters, sisters, friends, wives, and lovers?
We need more, much more, recognition of rights for women and by women. The discussions around the cases become much more legal, less humane.
“Change in the laws comes slowly and incrementally; that is its nature. It responds to change in society; it seldom initiates them.” ~ Bertha Wilson, first woman on SCC (Supreme Court of Canada)
Judges must show wisdom, and that sadly seems to be lacking. Who judges the judges? And when progress is made too often it is for those that have power. Racist, discriminatory attitudes still prevailed. White Anglo Protestant women had and have an advantage. Is that justice? “Seldom is there a happily-ever-after for the person who cuts the path through the forest. It’s those who come next who benefit,” the author explains.
Rights are not a zero-sum game. Providing them for all, lifts everyone. Rights are like that. Restorative Justice recognizes that. Society must as well!
Lino Matteo ©™
Twitter @Lino_Matteo
https://linomatteo.wordpress.com/2026...
https://linomatteo.wordpress.com/2026...

#RestorativeJustice #Montreal #LinoMatteo #BusinessEnglish #UP #Justice #WomenRights

[Teena in Toronto]

This book is an exploration of 10 groundbreaking legal battles led by Canadian women that changed life for women and often, the law itself. It brings us behind the scenes of ten big legal battles led by everyday women who stood up to unfair systems and pushed for justice, even when the odds were totally against them:

* Eliza Campbell (divorce law) - wrongly accused of adultery in the 1880s, she fought for her reputation and alimony and her struggles prompted early reforms in divorce rights
* The Famous Five - in 1929, challenged the idea that only men were “persons” under the law and won
* Florence Murdoch (property rights) - an Alberta ranch wife whose decades of labor went unrecognized until her fight brought attention to women's entitlement to shared property
* Jane Doe (sexual assault ["No Means No"]) - in 1999, a consent ruling that defined clear boundaries around marital and extramarital sexual violence
* Stella Bliss (maternity benefits) - her pursuit of unemployment insurance during maternity leave helped define equal treatment
* Jeannette Corbiere Lavell and Indian Status Laws - she challenged the discrimination that stripped Indigenous women of their status when marrying non‑status men
* Chantale Daigle (abortion rights) - in Quebec in the 1980s, she fought in court for her right to choose abortion
* Jane Hurshman (domestic violence and homicide in self‑defense) - her killing of her abusive partner brought about legal protections for battered women
* Viola Desmond and Rachael Baylis (racial justice) - these Black women’s legal battles brought attention to discrimination
* NDAs and power - examines legal conflicts over non‑disclosure agreements and the right to one’s own narrative as it pertains to Jan Wong, Kaarina Pakka, Peter Nygård and others

I thought this topic would be interesting and it was. Some of these cases I'd heard of (like Jane Hurshman and Viola Desmond, for example) while others were new to me. I was expecting it to be dry and dull but it wasn't. There was just enough information and when/if I wanted more, I Googled. It's obvious the author did a great deal of research. It's an excellent book for women to read and thank those who came before us for all they did. As a head's up, there is swearing and descriptions of violence.

Blog review post: http://www.teenaintoronto.com/2025/06...

[R]

“Change in the law comes slowly and incrementally; that is its nature. It responds to changes in society; it seldom initiates them.” - Bertha Wilson

Excellent content; Wells introduced me to important court cases and the 'why and why-not' of how they worked out in a digestible manner for non-lawyers. The dates, quotations and actions of these cases are frightening, and are frighteningly recent!

The writing/editing could have used some work. The flow between paragraphs was often jarring and Wells seemed to force certain names and short stories at the sacrifice of continuity. The quotations were often repeated. Ex. Page 50 uses the same "the three women... emerged triumphant" quote two times, back to back. Perhaps this book was rushed to publish.

We all have our basis, and I think that Wells assumed that all readers would have the same opinions as her on all topics if they are pro-women's rights. In this way, I think that some statement could have been left out.

[Sarah]

Women Who Woke Up the Law is completely inspiring and so accessible that even those like myself who know absolutely nothing about Canadian law easily understand it. The stories shared were real, they were raw, and there was rarely fairy tale endings as most women have come accustomed to when it comes to gender equality in this world.

I would highly recommend this to any human being regardless of their gender. To understand where women have come from is the beginning of understanding how much farther we have to go. It’s so important to get that, regardless of what you identify as.

I cannot wait to read her other books. A fire has lit up inside me and after reading is, I feel so empowered to begin questioning our existing status and maybe even try to push to boundaries a little more.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and more!!!

[Sandra]

Required reading for every young woman in Canada! An eye opening reveal of how short lived women's rights are. Frightening really, to read the disparaging comments by judges, as these young women stood up to fight for rights, which now, seem so sensible.
We see women move from chattels to people under the law. Or how long term physical and verbal spousal abuse became a legal defence in a shocking case in Nova Scotia and changed the law. Or a woman fighting for her maternity benefits, and though she was not successful, the case eventually changed the law.
Over and over, ordinary women, working with young, in many cases unskilled lawyers, stood up and forged a way forward for other women and for laws to change.
We must hold fast to our rights and not allow what has happened south of Canada to erode what has been hard fought.

[Lindasp]

What an amazing book highlighting the brave women who came before us, battled in courts (some cases went on for years) and who helped give us the freedoms we have now. Some of these freedoms were 'won' many years ago (e.g. the right to vote) and some were much battled in courts and won only a short time ago ( abortion rights, sexual discrimination, rights of Indigenous women marrying and losing their status in the tribe, etc.)
It was shocking that women even had to go to court to win a decision to be declared a 'person' with rights and how long it took for women to win their rights as they battled with the male judges in courts who had prejudiced feelings about women.
These women make me feel lucky to be living now! Thank you!

[Torey S]

4.5 ⭐️

I liked the way this book was structured, with each chapter focusing on a different case which made it read like short stories.

I was familiar with most of these cases from law school but the book did a really great job of providing background about the women, their families, the social and political context, and the Court for each case that you don’t necessarily get from a written decision. A good reminder of all of the different factors and influences of everything that goes into making (and changing) laws.

[Addy VB]

This book was incredibly eye opening to how recent in world history our basic rights as women came into play and how. These are such important cases that everyone should be aware of. This book made them very easy to understand as someone who does not have a legal background. I couldn’t put it down, highly recommend.

[Katie Julseth]

An amazing take on what little information is publicly easily accessible. This is a wonderful resource and should be used in social studies classes as a resource coming from a teacher. The author illustrates things easily and it’s very well detailed as well as amazingly written. Recommended to all my teacher friends.

[Pam]

I thought this book provided a good resource on the sadly behind the times aspect of Canadian law regarding women and their rights. It was informative but not particularly well-written. I had trouble following the links within the various chapters when multiple victims, lawyers and perpetrators were all interwoven.

[Kate]

Karin Wells did very good work on this book. The research was in depth not only showing the in depth stories of how case law is built but weaving a story and grand narrative of the story of women who have changed Canadian law. The research was well done, the writing was immersive and the stories were filled with heartbreak and triumph. Very well done book.

[Sarah Boyce]

This book is wonderful and easy to read for anyone wanting an introductory into the legal history of women's rights in Canada. This book brings these cases to life with really stories and real people making, maybe otherwise tedious, topics an incredibly enjoyable read! Highly recommend!

[Schuiling]

Really really enjoyed this book. Learned so much. I did feel like each story could of been a bit shorter, seemed to drag on a bit. But a very important topic. I want to buy this book to be able to highlight.

[Chelsea]

4.5

[Paige Conrad]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I learned a lot about Canadian women who helped changed laws in Canada that we take for granted.

[Colleen Cavanaugh]

Great book. Learned lots about how women have and still continue to struggle in many situations.

[Lori Bayne]

An excellent read to remind us of the power of women's voices.

[Amy]

This was a very interesting book to read. Well researched, well written, very readable. Found out about women who were "nothing," but oh so important to the rights we have as women in Canada today.

[red_belladonna]

Had me enthralled. The case studies from each time period were writen in a way that was understandable but also taught. I learned from each account on Canadian law.

[Holly]

I felt like I was reading a textbook as opposed to a well written non-fiction. Couldn’t finish.

[Anne Walsh]

Excellent insight into some of the Canadian women who sacrificed their lives to help change our legal system and try to make it more equal for women and marginalized groups. Thank you Karin Wells.

[Amanda Borys]

Once I got past Chapter 2, with the horrible so-called Famous Four, this was a very good book. It was very interesting the various cases. Though I think the most disturbing element of this book is how recent most of these cases were.

[Andrea Robyn]

Oddly enough, I found this at a local children's bookstore.