Thomas H. Wall

The appellant suffered a fractured ankle after slipping on an icy municipal sidewalk.

He failed to give the required 10-day notice to the municipality under the Municipal Act, 2001, only providing notice months later after consulting a lawyer.

The trial judge dismissed the action, finding no reasonable excuse for the late notice and no gross negligence by the municipality.

The Court of Appeal reversed, holding that the appellant's severe injury, medication, and resulting depression constituted a reasonable excuse for the delay.

Furthermore, the municipality's failure to salt the sidewalks for nearly 34 hours after becoming aware of dangerous conditions amounted to gross negligence.

The appellants appealed the dismissal of their application for a declaration that a proposed visitation centre at Mount Pleasant Cemetery was not permitted under the City of Toronto Zoning By-Law.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, agreeing with the application judge that the proposed visitation centre, which includes a chapel, visitation rooms, and reception facilities, constitutes an 'associated use' under the by-law and falls within the definition of 'cemetery services' under the Cemeteries Act.

The appellants, anchor tenants in shopping centres, challenged the constitutionality of shortfall recovery provisions in the Municipal Act.

These provisions allowed commercial landlords to recoup property tax shortfalls from tenants.

The appellants argued this constituted indirect taxation, which is ultra vires the Province under section 92(2) of the Constitution Act, 1867.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, holding that the provisions merely regulate the pre-existing transferability of a true land tax, which remains a valid direct tax.