The Divisional Court of Ontario permitted an application for judicial review by a student who had been expelled by the headmaster of a private school for smoking marijuana. The Court of Appeal held that such a decision was not within the jurisdiction of the court to review for two reasons: one, the nexus between the school’s enabling Act and the expulsion decision was not specific enough to make the decision an exercise of statutory power; and two, even if there was a nexus, the decision could not be reviewed by public law or subject to a public law remedy because the decision maker was a private school created by private statute, and its disciplinary decisions are regulated by contracts between the school and the students’ parents.

28. January 2014 0
Administrative law – Decisions of administrative tribunals – School boards – Powers and duties – Statutory provisions – Schools – Students – Code of conduct – Expulsion of students – Judicial review – Jurisdiction – Compliance with legislation Setia v. Appleby College, [2013] O.J. No. 5736, 2013 ONCA 753, Ontario Court of Appeal, December 13, ...

The Law Enforcement Review Board of Alberta overturned a Presiding Officer’s decision at a disciplinary hearing to terminate the employment of a constable who had admitted to 8 counts of misconduct. The Board held that the Presiding Officer’s failure to give weight to the impact of the constable’s depression on his misconduct, on which a psychologist gave expert evidence, was unreasonable, and it reinstated the constable’s employment. On appeal, the Court of Appeal held that the Board erred when it failed to properly apply the reasonableness standard to the Presiding Officer’s decision. The Board substituted its own decision for a reasonable decision of the Presiding Officer.

28. January 2014 0
Administrative law – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Law Enforcement Review Board – Police – Disciplinary proceedings – Penalties and suspensions – Hearings – Judicial review – Evidence – Compliance with legislation – Standard of review – Reasonableness simpliciter Camrose (City) Police Service v. MacDonald, [2013] A.J. No. 1333, 2013 ABCA 422, Alberta Court of ...

The Law Enforcement Review Board overturned a police chief’s dismissal of a complaint on the basis that the investigation was inadequate. The Alberta Court of Appeal overturned the Board’s order that the complaint be directed to a discplinary hearing, because the only appropriate order in the circumstances where there was an inadequate investigation, is to order further investigation. With respect to a second complaint of unlawful arrest, the Board overturned the Presiding Officer’s dismissal of a complaint on the basis that the officers did not have a warrant to enter the home where they made the arrest. The Court found that the Board erred in failing to consider whether the officers had consent to enter the home. As the Board did not consider whether the Presiding Office decided that the officers had consent to enter the home, the Board’s decision was incomplete on a vital point.

28. January 2014 0
Administrative law – Decisions of administrative tribunals – Law Enforcement Review Board – Police – Disciplinary proceedings – Investigations – Inadequate investigations – Remedies – Judicial review – Evidence – Compliance with legislation Land v. Alberta (Law Enforcement Review Board), [2013] A.J. No. 1372, 2013 ABCA 435, Alberta Court of Appeal, December 16, 2013, C.M. ...