The appellant, Imperial Oil, formerly operated a petroleum depot on a site that was later sold and developed for residential use.
When hydrocarbon contamination was discovered, the present owners sued the developers, the city, and the Minister of the Environment.
The Minister subsequently ordered Imperial Oil to prepare a site characterization study at its own expense under the polluter-pay principle.
Imperial Oil challenged the order, arguing the Minister was in a conflict of interest and breached the duty of impartiality because he was a defendant in the civil suits.
The Supreme Court of Canada dismissed the appeal, holding that the Minister was exercising a discretionary, political power to protect the public interest, not an adjudicative function, and therefore the strict judicial standard of impartiality did not apply.
