Julia E. Holland

Canada Post applied for judicial review of an arbitrator's decision reinstating 29 employees dismissed for theft.

The arbitrator ruled that evidence of the thefts was inadmissible because Canada Post failed to provide the employees with a report of their infractions within ten days, as required by the collective agreement.

Canada Post argued this interpretation was patently unreasonable because it prevented covert investigations of widespread criminal activity.

The Divisional Court dismissed the application, holding that the arbitrator's interpretation was not patently unreasonable as it was consistent with 20 years of arbitral jurisprudence and the collective agreement's stare decisis clause.

The Health Services Restructuring Commission issued directions that would significantly reduce the services and teaching capacity of Hôpital Montfort, Ontario's only francophone general hospital.

The applicants sought judicial review, arguing the directions violated s. 15 of the Charter, administrative law principles, and the unwritten constitutional principle of the protection of minorities.

The Divisional Court dismissed the Charter and administrative law arguments but granted the application on constitutional grounds.

The Court held that the protection of minorities is a fundamental organizing principle of the Constitution, and the Commission failed to act according to law by ignoring the broader institutional role of Montfort in preserving the Franco-Ontarian minority culture.