Darrel Smith

The respondents brought a motion to strike portions of an affidavit filed by the applicant in an application seeking to quash a municipal by-law under the City of Toronto Act.

The court had previously struck portions of an earlier affidavit for containing irrelevant historical allegations and improper innuendo about prior municipal actions.

On the renewed motion, the respondents argued the revised affidavit continued to include irrelevant references to earlier by-laws and municipal initiatives.

The court held that most of the objectionable material had been sufficiently sanitized and could remain as factual background potentially relevant to the issues, including whether the impugned by-law conferred a prohibited bonus.

However, one paragraph expressing the deponent’s concerns about public funds used in 2000 was struck as irrelevant.

The appellant appealed a motion judge's discretionary order granting the respondent leave to amend her statement of claim.

The Court of Appeal found no reason to interfere with the order and noted that the entirety of the respondent's claim was not governed by the Provincial Offences Act, as damages could not be recovered under that Act.

The appeal was dismissed with costs.

The City of Toronto appealed a decision declaring its amending by-law unlawful.

The by-law purported to retroactively and prospectively require the municipal pension plan to pay the City's internal administrative costs out of the pension fund.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, holding that the pension plan constituted a true trust in favour of the employees.

The court found that the City did not reserve a power of revocation, and a general power of amendment does not include the power to revoke.

Therefore, the by-law constituted an unlawful partial revocation and breach of trust.