Ontario court paves way for legal brothels

Ontario's Ministry of Tourism could soon be touting brothels as part of their international marketing strategy.

The CN Tower, Niagara Falls and hookers could potentially don the front pages of their brochures.

On Monday morning, the Court of Appeal for Ontario swept aside some of the country's anti-prostitution laws, saying they place unconstitutional restrictions on prostitutes' ability to protect themselves.

According to PostMedia News, the landmark decision means sex workers will be able to hire drivers, bodyguards and support staff, and work indoors in organized brothels or "bawdy houses."

"Exploitation" by pimps, and openly soliciting customers on the street remains, however, remains illegal.

The ruling upholds a lower court decision from September 2010, in which Ontario Court Justice Susan Himel proclaimed Canada's prostitution laws put sex-trade workers at risk and violated their rights under the charter.

The Feds and the Ontario government appealed Himel's ruling, leading to this decision today.

"Prostitution is a controversial topic, one that provokes heated and heartfelt debate about morality, equality, personal autonomy and public safety," the three majority justices of the five-judge panel wrote in their decision, Monday.

"It is not the court's role to engage in that debate. Our role is to decide whether or not the challenged laws accord with the Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land."

But don't expect the Harper government to let the laws be lifted without a fight.

The feds have long argued the laws are essential for police to watch over prostitution and to guard women from possible mischievous activities by the sex-traders.

After Himel's decision in 2010, Prime Minister Harper said: "We believe that the prostitution trade is bad for society. That's a strong view held by our government (and), I think, by most Canadians."

The case will inevitably be appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada and a final decision is likely to be at least a year away.