"[5] For example, when, in the late 1750s, the Governor of Virginia approved three Acts in contravention of regulations incorporated into his royal instructions, the Privy Council struck down the Acts and admonished the Governor, reminding him that his instructions in this regard were "coeval with the Constitution of the British Colonies" and formed "an Essential part of that Constitution and cannot be sett aside a without subverting Fundimental Principle of it.
"[6] As at 1945 there were eight legislative councils which had been constituted by royal instructions: the Falkland Islands, the Gambia, Hong Kong, Kenya, Nyasaland, Seychelles, the Straits Settlements and Uganda; while others had been constituted by order in council, letters patent, local ordinance or by act of the imperial parliament at Westminster.
[9] At the time of Confederation and still to this day, certain subjects matters remain within the scope of the Crown's prerogative powers, such as international treaty making and the creation of Indian reserves.
[11][12] Numerous contemporary decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada refer to Royal Instructions given to colonial governors, without necessarily analysing their legal status.
[13][14][15][16] Initially the form of royal instructions remained essentially unchanged after the development of responsible government.