Judith Harvie

The appellant municipality abolished its business occupancy tax and restructured its property tax system.

The respondent federal Crown corporations, which previously made payments in lieu of property taxes but not business taxes, deducted an amount equivalent to the abolished business tax from their payments in lieu of taxes.

The Supreme Court of Canada held that the respondents' decisions were unreasonable because they based their calculations on a fictitious tax system rather than the one actually in place.

The Court also found that the port authority's silos were not 'reservoirs' exempt from the calculation.

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) broadcast a report criticizing the Chambre des notaires du Québec (CNQ).

The respondent, a communications consultant for the CNQ, wrote a letter to the CBC requesting a right of reply and pointing out errors in the broadcast.

The CBC subsequently aired a second report that selectively quoted only the erroneous portions of the respondent's letter, portraying him in a misleading and negative light.

The respondent sued for defamation.

The Supreme Court of Canada upheld the lower courts' findings that the CBC committed a civil fault under article 1457 of the Civil Code of Québec by failing to adhere to professional journalistic standards.

The Court also upheld the finding that the CBC and the CNQ were liable in solidum for the damages.