Sylvie Gadoury

The CBC appealed a decision dismissing its motion to broadcast a video recording of a statement made by the accused to the police, which was tendered as an exhibit at trial.

The trial judge had held that the Rules of Practice of the Superior Court of the Province of Quebec, Criminal Division prohibited broadcasting the recording.

The Supreme Court of Canada held that the rules prohibit broadcasting recordings of proceedings, not exhibits.

Access to exhibits is governed by the open court principle, and trial judges must apply the Dagenais/Mentuck test to determine if broadcasting should be limited.

The appeal was dismissed as moot because the accused had been acquitted.

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.