The applicant municipality brought an application for a declaration that the respondent Ombudsman lacked jurisdiction to investigate its Election Compliance Audit Committee and Property Standards Committee for alleged violations of open meeting requirements.
The Divisional Court held that neither committee falls within the definition of a 'local board' under the Municipal Act, as they are independent adjudicative bodies whose purposes are inconsistent with a municipality's power to dissolve a local board.
The Court granted a declaration that the Ombudsman has no jurisdiction to investigate these committees, but declined to grant a broader declaration regarding all quasi-judicial tribunals or to quash the Ombudsman's non-binding report.
