Hughes v. Canada (Attorney General)

Hughes v. Canada (Attorney General)

The Federal Court upheld the Tribunal's order of instatement and its award of special damages for reckless discrimination as reasonable, but found the Tribunal's selection of May 2011 as the cut-off date for lost wages and benefits to be unreasonable because it lacked a rational evidentiary connection (the five-year tenure inference was unsupported). The remedial decision is quashed only insofar as the cut-off date is set aside and the matter is remitted to a differently constituted Tribunal panel for redetermination; otherwise the Tribunal's remedial findings stand.

Citation
2019 FC 1026
Parties
Applicant / Respondent (in Cross File): Attorney General of Canada; Respondent / Applicant (in Cross File): Chris Hughes
Court
Federal Court
Jurisdiction
Canada
Judgment Date
31 July 2019
Procedural Posture
Judicial Review / Federal Court Judgment on Judicial Review of Canadian Human Rights Tribunal Remedial Decision
Outcome
Application for judicial review T-1286-18 dismissed; Application T-1293-18 granted in part; Canadian Human Rights Tribunal decision dated June 1, 2018 set aside insofar as it fixed May 2011 as the cut-off date for lost wages and benefits and remitted to a differently constituted Tribunal panel for redetermination;...
Legal Topics
Remedies, Instatement, Compensation for Lost Wages, Causation, Mitigation, Special Compensation Under S.53(3) of the CHRA, Judicial Review, Standard of Review
Source Language
English
Human Rights Law Administrative Law Employment Law Remedies Instatement Compensation for Lost Wages Causation Mitigation +3 more

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Parties

Attorney General of Canada

Applicant / Respondent (in Cross File)

Chris Hughes

Respondent / Applicant (in Cross File)

Procedural Posture

Judicial Review / Federal Court Judgment on Judicial Review of Canadian Human Rights Tribunal Remedial Decision

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Was it reasonable for the Tribunal to order instatement of the complainant?
  2. 2 Did the Tribunal err in its causation analysis and in fixing May 2011 as the cut-off date for lost wages and benefits?
  3. 3 Was it reasonable for the Tribunal to award special damages under subsection 53(3) for reckless discrimination?

Ratio Decidendi

The Federal Court upheld the Tribunal's order of instatement and its award of special damages for reckless discrimination as reasonable, but found the Tribunal's selection of May 2011 as the cut-off date for lost wages and benefits to be unreasonable because it lacked a rational evidentiary connection (the five-year tenure inference was unsupported). The remedial decision is quashed only insofar as the cut-off date is set aside and the matter is remitted to a differently constituted Tribunal panel for redetermination; otherwise the Tribunal's remedial findings stand.

Court Disposition

Application for judicial review T-1286-18 dismissed; Application T-1293-18 granted in part; Canadian Human Rights Tribunal decision dated June 1, 2018 set aside insofar as it fixed May 2011 as the cut-off date for lost wages and benefits and remitted to a differently constituted Tribunal panel for redetermination;...

Orders

  • Application for Judicial Review in Court file T-1286-18 dismissed
  • Application for Judicial Review in Court file T-1293-18 granted in part