The plaintiffs are two non-profit organizations, the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association and the John Howard Society of Canada. The plaintiffs challenged the constitutionality of sections 31-33 and 37 of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (CCRA), which authorized administrative segregation of inmates in federal prisons. Section 31 provided that the purpose of administrative segregation …Read more

The appellant, Patient X,filed a complaint against a physician, Dr. Y, with the College of Physicians and Surgeons. She alleged that he inappropriately touched her breast and made racially inappropriate comments about her “black” lung capacity as compared to “white” lungs. The Investigation Committee dismissed the appellant’s complaint. The Committee’s written decision stated that there …Read more

The appellant was a 62 year old female diagnosed with schizophrenia. She had a long-standing history of hospitalization, treatment, release, de-compensation, relapse, and re-admission. When psychotic, the appellant had a history of troubling behaviour, including attempts to divert traffic, throwing objects out of a window, crashing her car and smashing other cars with brooms. The …Read more

Rodney Nelson sought judicial review of his involuntary admission to a psychiatric hospital under Ontario’s Mental Health Act (“MHA”) and an order for his immediate release due to rights infringements. Nelson had a lengthy history of crimes with many violent offences, including sexual offences against women and children. A psychiatrist completed an application for psychiatric …Read more

After Plaintiff Gloria Taylor was diagnosed with a terminal illness in 2009, she challenged the constitutionality of the Canadian Criminal Code Section 241(b), which prohibited assistance in dying. The trial court held that the law was unconstitutional and granted Taylor an exemption from the law. The Court of Appeal reversed, basing their decision on the …Read more

Mr. Allen was a dentist who required a back operation. A multi-year wait time to be treated within the Alberta health care system and increased pain forced Mr. Allen to sell his dental practice to pay for surgery in Montana (a state in the United States) instead of waiting an additional 18 months to have …Read more

A class of approximately 280 individuals whose medical records were improperly accessed by hospital staff filed suit against the hospital employees. The class alleged that the breaches the staff caused and the hospital’s failure to monitor and implement policies to protect the information led to a breach under the common law tort of intrusion upon …Read more

Mrs. Bentley was an 83-year-old woman suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease. Mrs. Bentley had not spoken since 2010 and did not recognize anyone. In 1991 she had signed a directive that expressed her desire to be allowed to die and not be kept alive by artificial means or heroic measures in case there was no reasonable …Read more

The appellant was a 17 year old boy who applied for permanent residence from within Canada, having previously landed as a refugee claimant. He travelled to Canada to escape threatened violence from the army and police in Sri Lanka, his native country after he was detained and questioned by the Sri Lankan police and army. …Read more

The applicant hospital sought a declaration that J.J., an 11-year-old girl, was a child in need of protection under the Child and Family Services Act (“CFSA”). J.J. was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (“ALL”). If treated with chemotherapy, J.J.’s physicians believed that she had a 90-95% chance of being cured. The physicians were not aware …Read more

The complainant agreed to sexual activity with Mr. Hutchinson, and insisted on him using a condom to prevent her from getting pregnant. However, Mr. Hutchinson poked holes in the condom and the complainant became pregnant. The complainant stated that she did not consent to unprotected sex. Mr. Hutchinson was charged with aggravated sexual assault. The …Read more

In 2012, the Governor-in-Council passed two orders modifying the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP), thereby reducing health insurance coverage for refugee and asylum claimants in Canada. Canadian Doctors for Refugee Care (CDRC) and two groups of lawyers challenged the changes to the program to restore better coverage as the changes had a significant negative impact …Read more

This judgment deals with motions by the federal and provincial Crowns to strike out the plaintiffs’ claims on the ground that the claims disclosed no reasonable cause of action against the federal or provincial government. The plaintiffs’ 5-year-old daughter, died five days after she received the H1N1 influenza virus vaccine. The daughter was in good …Read more

The Appellant, Mr. Bartosz Gajewski, was detained at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (hereinafter CAMH) in Toronto after he was found to be suffering from a mental disorder at his trial on the charges of assault and attempted kidnapping. After his admission into CAMH, the doctor proposed antipsychotic medication and provided information to …Read more

The General Manager of the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (hereinafter “OHIP”) appealed from the decision of the Health Services Appeal and Review Board (hereinafter “the board” ) which was confirmed by the Reconsideration decision of the Board. The appellant had ruled that the respondents, who were seasonal workers in Canada, were not eligible for continued …Read more

Three applicants, who were all current or former prostitutes, challenged the constitutionality of three provisions of the Criminal Code, R.S.C. 1985. The three provisions outlawed “bawdy-houses” (also referred to as brothels), “living on the avails” (living off of a prostitutes profits), and public communication with prostitutes. Prostitution was legal in Canada, however, Parliament was allowed …Read more

The Court examined the constitutionality of Brian’s Law, which was passed in 2000 after a man named Brian Smith was fatally shot by an untreated schizophrenic. The law included expanded committal criteria and allowed for involuntary admission for individuals who had experienced “substantial mental deterioration,”even if they were not necessarily a danger to others. In …Read more

Doctors Cuthbertson and Rubenfeld sought a declaration that the withdrawal of life support from a patient was not treatment requiring consent under the Health Care Consent Act (“HCCA”) where its continued provision is deemed futile. In 2010, following surgery to remove a benign brain tumor, Mr. Rasouli contracted an infection that caused severe brain damage. …Read more

The plaintiffs brought a case before the British Columbia Supreme Court following the 2006-2007 decision by the Ministry of Public Safety to cancel the Mother Baby Program at the Alouette Correctional Centre for Women, a women’s prison. This program had allowed incarcerated mothers and their babies to live at the institution together, subject to the …Read more

The plaintiff, who had previously given birth via caesarean section, was due to give birth a second time. Her obstetrician recommended a vaginal birth. During labor, Cojocaru’s uterus ruptured, which restricted oxygen supply to the baby. The scar from the previous caesarean contributed to the rupture, and an emergency caesarean section was performed. The baby …Read more

The plaintiff qualified for a class action suit and sought to gather members to the class. The class action was filed for physical harm suffered by patients who were injected with a cosmetic facial filler called Dermalive manufactured by Dermatech, Intradermal Distribution Inc., and Vivier Pharma Inc. The plaintiff proposed to directly notify class members …Read more

The plaintiff, Cassidy Ediger (C) suffered from persistent bradycardia (slow heartrate) during birth resulting in severe brain damage. During the delivery procedure, the doctor attempted a mid-level forceps procedure as C’s mother’s labour was not progressing. Dr. Johnston did not inform C’s mother of the risks involved in the procedure including bradycardia and hence did …Read more

As a result of his alleged non-disclosure of his HIV-positive status to 3 complainants prior to engaging in sexual relations, the appellant (defendant), Lester Felix, was convicted of five counts of aggravated sexual assault and one count of sexual assault. Felix appealed all convictions. There was no evidence of the appellant’s level of risk of …Read more

The Respondent was charged with nine counts of aggravated sexual assault for not disclosing his HIV-positive status to nine Complainants before engaging in sexual intercourse with them. None of the Complainants tested positive for HIV. At trial, the Respondent was convicted on six counts and acquitted on three. He was acquitted on the basis of …Read more

The Centre for Addition and Mental Health (CAMH) and the Mental Health Centre Penetanguichene (MHCP)appealed an order by the Mental Disorder Court to send a person accused of sexual assault to a hospital for psychiatric treatment. The judge knew that beds for treatment would not be available until six days later. The appeal was on …Read more

Mr. T. and Ms. D separated after three years of marriage when their child- V was two years old. The couple had major disagreements over the care and custody arrangements. Ms. D. was given sole interim custody and authority over all health care decisions. Ms. D. refused to vaccinate the child against common infectious diseases. …Read more

The Crown alleged that the complainant, a 26-year-old woman with the mental age of a three to 6-year-old was repeatedly sexually assaulted by her mother’s partner D.A.I during the four years that he lived in their home. The Crown sought to call the complainant to testify about the alleged assaults. The trial judge found that …Read more

The applicant was a citizen of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines who entered Canada on a visitor visa, and remained in Canada illegally after his visa had expired. During this time, he was hospitalized after losing his eyesight and memory. He was diagnosed with a benign tumor affecting his brain and pituitary gland. The tumor …Read more

Insite was a medical facility that supervised intravenous drug use. It was established in response to escalating intravenous drug use and a rise in HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C infections among the population of the downtown eastside (DTES) area of Vancouver. In 2003, pursuant to section 56 of the Controlled Drug and Substances Act (CDSA), which …Read more

In British Columbia (“BC”), the Medical Protections Act (“MPA”) prevents physicians who have opted out of BC’s public health care scheme from charging patients more than the amount charged for services under the public fee schedule. The Cambie Surgeries Corporation (“Cambie”) faced complaints of overbilling patients and “double dipping” – billing both the patient and …Read more