Margaret Leighton

The applicant children's aid society sought judicial review of a decision by the Child and Family Services Review Board.

The Board had overturned the society's refusal of an adoption plan proposed by the children's paternal aunt and uncle, who resided in another province, and ordered the children placed with them primarily to preserve their native cultural identity.

The society argued the decision was unreasonable as it ignored the children's strong attachment to their foster parents of three and a half years and the oldest child's explicit wish to remain.

The Divisional Court agreed, finding the Board made palpable and overriding errors by giving undue weight to the cultural heritage factor while ignoring the children's overall best interests, stability, and the negative assessments of the proposed adoptive home.

The court quashed the Board's decision and reinstated the society's approval of the foster parents' adoption plan.

The applicant, a suppression firefighter, sought judicial review of a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decision that summarily dismissed his age discrimination complaint regarding mandatory retirement at age 60.

The Tribunal had dismissed the complaint under Rule 19A, finding no reasonable prospect of success based on a previous test case (Espey) that upheld the mandatory retirement provision as a bona fide occupational requirement.

The Divisional Court held that the Tribunal's decision was reasonable, as the applicant failed to provide evidence demonstrating that the result in his case would differ from the established precedent.

The applicant sought judicial review of decisions by the Ontario Labour Relations Board and the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, which dismissed his complaints for delay.

The applicant had filed complaints regarding his termination and a subsequent settlement agreement 18 months and over two years after the events, respectively.

The Divisional Court found that both tribunals reasonably exercised their discretion in determining that the applicant failed to provide a good faith explanation for the delay.

The application for judicial review was dismissed.

The applicant sought judicial review of three Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decisions that dismissed his five applications alleging discrimination and reprisal by the respondent church, and declared him a vexatious litigant.

The Divisional Court applied a reasonableness standard of review and found no errors of law or unreasonable findings of fact in the Tribunal's decisions.

The application for judicial review was dismissed, and costs of $3,000 were awarded to the respondent.

The applicant, a nurse, sought judicial review of two decisions by the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario regarding her complaints against her employer hospital.

The Adjudicator had found the hospital failed to accommodate her disability after October 2009 but dismissed claims of discrimination prior to that date, and awarded monetary compensation rather than reinstatement.

The Divisional Court dismissed the application, finding the Adjudicator's decisions on the merits and remedy were reasonable and supported by the evidence, and that there was no denial of procedural fairness in limiting witness testimony to individual rather than systemic claims.

The applicant sought judicial review of four decisions of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, which had dismissed his complaint of disability discrimination against his former employer and union.

The Divisional Court upheld the Tribunal's decisions, finding it reasonable to bar re-litigation of facts decided by the Ontario Labour Relations Board, rejecting allegations of bias, and finding no denial of procedural fairness in refusing late document production.

The Court also found the Tribunal reasonably concluded that the applicant's termination was based on misconduct, not disability.

The applicant sought judicial review of a preliminary decision by the Child and Family Services Review Board regarding its jurisdiction to hear a complaint.

The Divisional Court dismissed the application for prematurity, applying the principle that courts should not interfere with ongoing administrative proceedings absent exceptional circumstances.

The court found no exceptional circumstances and noted that the applicant could challenge jurisdiction on a full record after a decision on the merits.

The stay of proceedings was lifted.

The applicant sought judicial review of a decision of the Social Benefits Tribunal.

The Divisional Court dismissed the application, finding that the applicant had failed to exercise his statutory right to appeal under s. 31(1) of the ODSPA, which constituted an adequate alternative remedy.

The applicant failed to identify any exceptional circumstances that would justify bypassing the statutory appeal process to pursue judicial review.

The applicant sought judicial review of a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decision finding it discriminated against the respondent on the basis of disability by terminating her after she requested medical leave for breast cancer treatment.

The Tribunal awarded $20,000 in general damages and $2,640 in special damages.

The Divisional Court applied a reasonableness standard of review and found no error in the Tribunal's factual findings or damages assessment.

The application for judicial review was dismissed with costs awarded to the respondent.

The appellants, a police officer and the Chief of Police, appealed a Divisional Court decision upholding a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario finding that the officer discriminated against a Black mail carrier.

The officer stopped and questioned the mail carrier while on patrol in an affluent neighbourhood.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding that the Tribunal reasonably applied the prima facie test for discrimination, correctly placed the onus on the complainant, and properly considered the unique statutory duties of police officers.

The applicant sought judicial review of a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decision dismissing his complaint of discrimination against a Children's Aid Society and its employees, as well as the Tribunal's refusal to reconsider the decision.

The applicant alleged discrimination based on sex, family status, and disability (Multiple Sclerosis) arising from a child access dispute and a request for a mental health assessment.

The Divisional Court dismissed the application, finding the Tribunal's decisions were reasonable, there was no denial of procedural fairness, and no reasonable apprehension of bias was established.

The College of Nurses of Ontario sought judicial review of an interim decision by the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, which refused to dismiss a human rights complaint filed by a nurse.

The nurse alleged discrimination based on disability after the College's Registration Committee imposed conditions on her certificates of registration.

The Health Professions Appeal and Review Board (HPARB) had previously reviewed and upheld the conditions, finding they reasonably accommodated her disability while protecting the public.

The Divisional Court quashed the Tribunal's decision, holding that the Tribunal erred in its interpretation of s. 45.1 of the Human Rights Code by failing to defer to HPARB's specialized public protection mandate and by improperly assessing the adequacy of HPARB's reasons rather than whether the substance of the complaint was appropriately dealt with.

The applicant sought judicial review of a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decision that found the Ontario College of Teachers discriminated against him but awarded only $10,000 in general damages and no damages for loss of income.

The Divisional Court applied a reasonableness standard of review and dismissed the application.

The Court found it was reasonable for the Tribunal to conclude that the applicant lacked the required academic and language proficiency for certification, meaning he had no chance of being hired to teach in Ontario regardless of the discriminatory conduct.

The applicant sought judicial review of two interlocutory decisions by the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario: deferring her human rights complaint pending a grievance, and adding her union as an intervenor.

The Divisional Court quashed the application for prematurity, finding no exceptional circumstances or loss of jurisdiction to justify reviewing interlocutory decisions.

The court also declined to hear a Charter issue that was not raised before the Tribunal.

The applicant sought judicial review of a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decision dismissing his application alleging employment discrimination based on race and place of origin.

The Divisional Court found that the Tribunal's decision was entirely reasonable, as the Vice-Chair had thoroughly reviewed the evidence, assessed credibility, and provided cogent reasons for preferring the respondent's evidence.

The application for judicial review was dismissed with costs.

The applicants sought judicial review of a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decision finding they breached the procedural duty to accommodate the respondent employee's disability.

The applicants argued the employee had repudiated his employment contract, negating any duty to accommodate.

The Divisional Court held the Tribunal's conclusion that the employer failed to sufficiently inquire into the employee's medical condition was reasonable.

The Court also declined to dismiss the application for undue delay, accepting counsel's explanation of ill health.

The application for judicial review was dismissed with costs.

The Health Professions Appeal and Review Board (HPARB) brought a motion to intervene as a friend of the court in an application for judicial review of a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decision.

The underlying application was brought by the College of Nurses of Ontario.

The court dismissed the motion, finding that HPARB's participation was not necessary to assist the court, as other parties were well-equipped to address the relevant issues.

Furthermore, the court noted that HPARB's proposed submissions were inappropriately adversarial for a quasi-judicial tribunal.

The applicant sought judicial review of a decision by the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario dismissing his application for unreasonable delay.

The events underlying the complaint occurred in 1994, but the application was not filed until 2010.

The Divisional Court held that the Tribunal reasonably concluded the 15-year delay would cause substantial prejudice to the respondents and that the delay was not incurred in good faith.

The application for judicial review was dismissed.

The applicant brought a motion to set aside a Registrar's order dismissing his application for judicial review, arguing he did not receive the required notice.

The court accepted that the notice was sent to an incorrect postal code and set aside the dismissal, without prejudice to the respondents bringing a separate motion to dismiss for delay.

The court also granted the applicant leave to amend his application to include the final decision of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, and dismissed his request for relief regarding the conduct of opposing counsel.

The applicant sought judicial review of a Human Rights Tribunal decision finding that the respondent was discriminated against due to the lack of a special diet allowance for hypoproteinemia under the Ontario Disability Support Program.

The Divisional Court reviewed the Tribunal's decision on a reasonableness standard.

The Court found that there was no evidence before the Tribunal to support its finding that eating additional protein from food sources is generally recognized in the Ontario medical community as an appropriate treatment for hypoproteinemia.

Consequently, the Tribunal's decision was deemed unreasonable and quashed regarding the respondent's claim for a special diet allowance for elevated protein requirements.