Case Explained: INSIGHTS: Recognizing femicide in the criminal code – Legal Perspective

By Guest Opinion

Charlotte Volet is a Gender Equality Advisor at Lawyers Without Borders Canada, where she has worked since 2020. She holds a Master of Advanced Studies in Transitional Justice, Human Rights and the Rule of Law from the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights and was involved with Projet Accompagnement Québec-Guatemala from 2018 to 2025, serving on its board from 2021.

Mathilde Doucet is a Legal Advisor at Avocats sans frontières Canada, where she works primarily on gender issues and sexual and reproductive rights in situations involving human rights violations. She is also pursuing a PhD at the Faculty of Law at Université Laval, where her research focuses on the protection of LGBT+ persons in situations of armed conflict.

An upcoming Supreme Court of Canada ruling could reshape how the law understands intimate partner violence. Last year, the Court heard arguments in the family law case of Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia. The appellant wife asserted that Canadian law should allow survivors of abusive relationships to claim civil damages for intimate partner violence. 

By explicitly recognizing femicide within the Criminal Code as a form of first-degree murder, Canada’s Bill C-16 is taking a step toward naming a crime that has long been obscured or excused as a crime of passion. A specific legal framework allows for the imposition of more appropriate sentences and makes it possible to better assess victims’ needs. It also raises public awareness.

For many of us working on issues of gender-based violence, this recognition is long overdue. Our organization, Lawyers Without Borders, works internationally to strengthen access to justice for victims of gender-based violence. For years, we have accompanied organizations across Latin America, the Caribbean, and Africa in advocating for legal reforms to align national laws with international human rights standards. 

From this work, one lesson is clear: naming femicide in the law is essential, though not sufficient on its own.

Femicide is an extreme, irreversible and common form of violence against women that denies them their right to life. Around the world, 83,000 women and girls were killed in 2024; more than half by an intimate partner or family member (UNWomen, 2024). 

Canada is part of this global reality. Last year, at least 144 women were killed in Canada in acts of femicide as highlighted by a recent investigation by the Investigative Journalism Bureau. Femicide extends beyond domestic violence, shaped by unequal power relations, gender stereotypes, and social norms that tolerate violence against women. Indigenous women, trans women, migrant women, women living in poverty, and sex workers face a significantly higher risk of violence due to overlapping forms of discrimination. 

Beyond its obligations under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Canadian Human Rights Act, Canada’s move toward recognizing femicide aligns with important developments across the Americas. Many countries in the region have already adopted legislation that explicitly addresses femicide, often following sustained advocacy by feminists’ movements and civil society organizations. 

Where domestic protections remain inadequate, human-rights-based advocacy and strategic litigation can strengthen survivors’ access to justice, help establish legal precedents, and support efforts to advance accountability, including through international human rights mechanisms. This work can also contribute to broader legal reforms and stronger protections.Across the Americas, grassroots mobilization and feminist advocacy have pushed States to recognize gender-based violence as a human rights issue. 

Lawyers can support these broader movements by helping translate these demands into concrete legal outcomes. In El Salvador, local lawyer Karla Ayala, with the support of LWB Canada, led a case of attempted femicide, building on a documented pattern of domestic and sexual violence. The case was brought before a specialized court and resulted in a conviction for attempted femicide, rather than ordinary attempted homicide, leading to a 10-year sentence and compensation for the victim. 

In some cases, efforts led by local organizations have reached the regional level, resulting in landmark decisions. One such example is the ruling of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in the case of Vicky Hernández in Honduras, led by the local organization Cattrachas that partnered with LWB Canada as part of the JUSTICIA Project, which affirmed that States can be held responsible for failing to prevent and respond to lethal gender-based violence against trans women.

These efforts are laudable, but legislative recognition alone is not enough. Criminalization, while necessary, is insufficient if it is not accompanied by a comprehensive approach to prevent, investigate, and hold perpetrators accountable. Specialized courts, sustained funding for accessible victim support services, increased capacity in shelters for survivors, and continuous training for judicial and law enforcement actors round out wholesome approaches that can move the needle.

Spain offers an interesting example of what a comprehensive approach can achieve. After adopting a specific law on gender-based violence, investing significant public resources, creating specialized courts, and implementing preventive measures, Spain saw femicide rates drop by nearly 24 per cent (Direct Magazine, 2025; L’Humanité, 2022). 

Similar approaches are being tested in Canada, with specialized courts and electronic anti-approach bracelets in Quebec. In 2021, Québec adopted legislation creating a specialized court for cases of sexual and domestic violence, adapting court procedures and providing coordinated legal and psychosocial support to reduce retraumatization and improve survivors’ access to justice. Electronic bracelets, which use GPS monitoring to alert authorities if an accused approaches a survivor, are intended to reinforce these protections, though advocates caution that such tools must be implemented carefully and alongside broader support systems, particularly given concerns about their effectiveness and accessibility in more remote regions.

Experience from jurisdictions that have adopted femicide legislation demonstrates that the effectiveness Canada hopes to realize depends on a comprehensive approach combining prevention, education, protection, and enforcement, alongside a collective recognition that the killing of a persons based on gender is unacceptable.

Bill C-16 is a step in the right direction, but to be more than symbolic, Canada must implement comprehensive mechanisms to eradicate femicide. 

Insights is an ongoing series of guest opinion pieces that build on our investigative journalism, offering perspectives from scholars, researchers, community members, activists, and cultural commentators.

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