[4] Under that provision, the federal Cabinet may submit a question to the Supreme Court of Canada by means of an order-in-council.
Once the parties have been determined, the Court sets out a timetable for the filing of written submissions, and for the date of the hearing.
At a later date, the Court releases its opinion on the reference, in the form of a detailed written judgment.
Prior to 1949, there was an appeal from the Supreme Court to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, sitting in London.
Many federal reference questions were appealed to the Judicial Committee, which had the final say and could overrule the decision of the Supreme Court.
The government of the United Kingdom has the power to refer questions to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
Other Commonwealth countries, such as India, South Africa, and Papua New Guinea also have implemented a reference jurisdiction in their constitutions.
In the case of Papua New Guinea, their constitutional convention immediately prior to independence took counsel from Canadian legal academics on the use of the reference jurisdiction.