Ted J. Murphy

The City of Toronto appealed a decision declaring parts of a municipal by-law unconstitutional.

The by-law prohibited anyone at a Collision Reporting Centre from recommending an auto repair shop to motor vehicle owners.

The application judge found this violated the insurers' freedom of expression under s. 2(b) of the Charter and was not justified under s. 1.

The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, holding that the by-law's objectives of protecting vulnerable accident victims from business pressures and preserving the impartiality of the centres were pressing and substantial.

The Court found the limitation on commercial expression was minimally impairing and justified under s. 1.

The appellant teachers' association appealed a Divisional Court decision that quashed an arbitrator's awards regarding the scheduling of teachers' lunch breaks.

The arbitrator had ruled that under the collective agreement and Regulation 298 of the Education Act, teachers' 40-minute lunch breaks had to occur entirely within the scheduled interval for students' lunch breaks.

The Divisional Court reviewed the awards on a correctness standard and found them incorrect.

The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, holding that the standard of review was patent unreasonableness because the arbitrator was interpreting an external statute intimately connected with his mandate.

The Court found the arbitrator's interpretation was reasonable and reinstated the awards.