The four-part test
The Supreme Court uses a totality-of-the-circumstances test:
- Subject matter: what was actually being searched or seized.
- Relationship: what connection did the claimant have to the subject matter.
- Subjective expectation: did the claimant actually expect privacy.
- Objective reasonableness: is that expectation something society is prepared to recognize.
Why REP matters
Without a reasonable expectation of privacy in the thing searched, section 8 does not apply. This means police can obtain or use the information without a warrant.
Shifting with technology
The REP doctrine adapts as technology changes. Early cases dealt with searches of physical spaces; more recent cases have extended protection to digital spaces, metadata, and inferences about behaviour.