The Ontario Statutory Benefits Tribunal (“SBT “)has jurisdiction to consider the Ontario Human Rights Code in determining whether the Appellants were eligible for support pursuant to the Ontario Disability Support Program Act (“ODSPA”). Statutory tribunals empowered to decide questions of law are presumed to have the power to look beyond their enabling statutes in order to apply the whole law properly to a matter before them. The matter was remitted to the SBT so it could rule on the applicability of section 5(2) of the ODSPA.

27. June 2006 0
Administrative law – Human Rights complaints – Discrimination – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Statutory Benefits Tribunal – Statutory powers – Judicial review – Jurisdiction of tribunal to hear a complaint under the Human Rights Code – Compliance with legislation Tranchemontagne v. Ontario (Director, Disability Support Program), [2006] S.C.J. No. 14, Supreme Court of Canada, April 21, ...

The appeal by Berezoutskaia from the dismissal of her application for judicial review of a dismissal of her complaint to the Human Rights Tribunal was dismissed where the Court of Appeal found that the Tribunal member did not act unreasonably, in bad faith, or with improper purpose in concluding the complaint had no chance of success at hearing

25. April 2006 0
Administrative law – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Human Rights Tribunal – Human rights complaints – Discrimination – Lack of Evidence – Employment law – Termination of employment Berezoutskaia v. British Columbia (Human Rights Tribunal), [2006] B.C.J. No. 436, British Columbia Court of Appeal, March 2, 2006, Hall, Levine and Smith JJ.A. Berezoutskaia was a refugee from ...

VIA Rail succeeded in appealing a finding of the Canadian Transport Agency (the “Agency”) that the VIA Rail meal distribution policy constituted an undue obstacle to the mobility of a passenger who used an electric wheelchair (“Sikand”)

28. March 2006 0
Administrative law – Human rights complaints – Discrimination – Disability – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Canadian Transportation Agency – Obstacle to the mobility of a passenger – Discrimination – Judicial review – Jurisdiction of tribunal – Statutory interpretation – Compliance with legislation – Standard of review – Correctness Via Rail Canada Inc. v. Canada (Canadian Transportation ...

An Application for judicial review of a decision of the Human Rights Commission of Newfoundland to dismiss the complaint without a hearing was dismissed as there was no information arising from the investigation of the complaint which warranted sending the matter to a full inquiry. The investigation by the Commission was impartial and both parties had full opportunity to put forward their cases.

28. March 2006 0
Administrative law – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Human Rights Commission – Discrimination – Equality rights – Judicial review – Investigations – Procedural requirements and fairness – Evidence – Standard of review – Reasonableness simpliciter Francis v. CHC Composites Inc., [2006] N.J. No. 8, Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court – Trial Division, January 13, 2006, W.G. ...

The Court set aside, in part, the Human Rights Tribunal’s decision not to dismiss the Complainant’s human rights complaint. The Court also set aside the Tribunal’s order for disclosure of certain documents.

28. March 2006 0
Administrative law – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Human Rights Tribunal – Human rights complaints – Discrimination – Gender – Equality rights – Judicial review – Legislative compliance – Disclosure – Relevance of information disclosed – Standard of review – Patent unreasonableness – Correctness Cariboo Chevrolet Pontiac Buick GMC Ltd. v. Becker, [2006] B.C.J. No. 119, British ...

The Court found that a Human Rights Tribunal’s decision that additional information submitted by a Complainant, outside a limitation period, did not constitute a new complaint, was not patently unreasonable

28. March 2006 0
Administrative law – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Human Rights Tribunal – Powers under legislation – Legislative compliance – Human rights complaints – Discrimination – Judicial review – Procedural requirements and fairness – Limitations – Standard of review – Patent unreasonableness Lake City Casinos Ltd. v. British Columbia (Human Rights Tribunal), [2006] B.C.J. No. 115, British Columbia ...

A post-operative male–to-female transsexual (“Nixon”) appealed from a decision on judicial review which found that she was not discriminated against when the Vancouver Rape Relief Society (“Society”) refused to allow her to volunteer as a peer counsellor with their organization

24. January 2006 0
Administrative law – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Human Rights Tribunal – Human rights complaints – Discrimination – Gender – Judicial review – Compliance with legislation Vancouver Rape Relief Society v. Nixon, [2005] B.C.J. No. 2647, British Columbia Court of Appeal, December 7, 2005, Finch C.J.B.C., Southin and Saunders JJ.A. Nixon was born a male but underwent ...

The mother of a deceased disabled adult was unsuccessful in her appeal from a decision that the Human Rights Tribunal had no jurisdiction to continue to entertain the Human Rights complaint made on behalf of the disabled adult son where he had died before a hearing could be held

24. January 2006 0
Administrative law – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Human Rights Tribunal – Human rights complaints – Discrimination – Disability – Judicial review – Jurisdiction of tribunal – Parties – death of a party British Columbia v. Goodwin, [2005] B.C.J. No. 2593, British Columbia Court of Appeal, December 1, 2005, Hall, Low and Lowry JJ.A. Ms. Gregoire filed a ...

The court held that the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal was without jurisdiction over a complaint arising from the exclusion of women members from the Men’s Lounge at the Marine Drive Golf Club as the Men’s Lounge was not an “accommodations, service or facility customarily available to the public”

27. December 2005 0
Administrative law – Human rights complaints – Discrimination – Gender – Private clubs – Customarily available to the public – Definition – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Human Rights Tribunal – Jurisdiction – Judicial review – Compliance with legislation – Standard of review – Correctness Marine Drive Golf Club v. Buntain, [2005] B.C.J. No. 2181, British Columbia Supreme Court, ...

On judicial review of a decision of the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal, the court held that the Tribunal was within its statutory jurisdiction in making the damage awards it did and it did not err in finding liability for discrimination on the facts before it

27. December 2005 0
Administrative law – Human rights complaints – Discrimination – Disability – Remedies – Certiorari – Damages – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Human Rights Tribunal – Judicial review – Jurisdiction – Crown immunity – Standard of review – Patent unreasonableness British Columbia v. Bolster, [2005] B.C.J. No. 2365, British Columbia Supreme Court, October 27, 2005, Parrett J. The Province ...