Canada Case Law

Port Hawkesbury Paper LP v. Nova Scotia (Energy Board)

Court

Nova Scotia Court of Appeal

The Court held the Energy Board correctly interpreted the 2024 Term Sheet as effecting a refund that extinguished the pre-December 1, 2024 FAM balance and replaced it with a new federally guaranteed amortizing debt payable over 2024–2052 to the same above-the-line customer class; the Board did not err in law in its ratemaking analysis because the restructuring better matched costs and benefits, did not effect retroactive ratemaking, and PH Paper remains protected by its below-the-line tariff unless it elects service under a tariff that includes Maritime Link costs

Source excerpt

• Rate setting
• Inter-class equity
• Retroactive ratemaking
• Contract interpretation
• Federal loan guarantee
• Fuel adjustment mechanism

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Yukon Energy Board v. Yukon Utilities Board

Court

Yukon Court of Appeal

Leave to appeal was granted in a challenge to the Yukon Utilities Board’s disallowance of DSM costs from YEC’s rate base under the Public Utilities Act.

• Rate base
• Demand-side management
• Prudency review
• Leave to appeal
• Jurisdictional scope
• Leave-to-appeal

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East Hants (Municipality) v. Nova Scotia (Utility and Review Board)

Court

Nova Scotia Court of Appeal

The Court set aside the Board order because the Board lacked statutory authority to adjudicate a complaint about a proposed charge arising from the municipal subdivision approval process; the Municipality was acting under the MGA (not as a public utility), the Board is a creature of statute and may not inject itself into subdivision negotiations absent explicit statutory power, and questions of jurisdiction and statutory interpretation are reviewed on a correctness standard.

Source excerpt

• Jurisdiction of administrative tribunals
• Standard of review (correctness)
• Subdivision approval process
• Separation of municipal and utility functions
• Board oversight of rates and charges

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Cape Breton Explorations Ltd. v. Nova Scotia (Attorney General)

Court

Nova Scotia Court of Appeal

The motion to sever and abridge the record was denied because the confidential agreements and the tribunal record could be relevant to the contested legal issues; it would be neither just nor convenient to sever the issues or abridge the record without full access to the materials necessary to determine jurisdictional and statutory interpretation questions; the court has power to sever but the test of just and convenient was not met.

Source excerpt

• Severance of issues
• Abridgement of record
• Jurisdiction under statutory scheme
• Rate base inclusion
• Statutory interpretation
• Confidentiality of evidence

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BC Transmission Corporation v. Lemoignan

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court granted an interlocutory injunction preventing obstruction of construction for the Vancouver Island Transmission Reinforcement Project, citing lawful approvals and safety concerns.

• Injunctions
• Public safety
• Regulatory approvals
• Environmental assessment
• Contempt of court
• Police enforcement

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710357 Ontario Limited v. Penetanguishene (Town)

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

'Consumer' in the Public Utilities Act means the user of the water supply (the tenant), not the owner; the Act contains no authority to treat a non‑using owner as a consumer simply because premises are not individually metered; therefore By-law 33/95 (and s.13 of By-law 37/92 as replaced) exceeded the Town's statutory authority and is ultra vires and must be quashed.

Source excerpt

• Ultra vires
• By-law validity
• Definition of consumer
• Liability for utility charges
• Municipal billing authority

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Clark v. Peterborough Utilities Commission et. at.

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The appeal was quashed as moot because the core controversy no longer existed: the PUC adopted a new security deposit policy and the appellants were no longer subject to the challenged policy; courts should not decide constitutional issues absent a live controversy and the successful interlocutory remedy below removed any live issue for appeal.

Source excerpt

• Security deposits
• Mootness
• Charter s.7
• Charter s.15
• Public utilities act s.50(4)

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Canada (Dir. of Investigation) v. N.B. Telephone

Court

Supreme Court of Canada

The Supreme Court of Canada allowed the appeal and restored the Board’s refusal to permit the Director to intervene in the tariff proceeding.

• Intervention
• Standing
• Statutory authority to intervene
• Tribunal procedure
• Combines investigation act
• Administrative-law

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Atco Ltd. v. Calgary Power Ltd.

Court

Supreme Court of Canada

The Supreme Court held that a company could be an “owner of a public utility” under Alberta legislation through control obtained by share ownership, and dismissed the appeal.

• Control
• Ownership
• Takeover bid
• Jurisdiction
• Statutory interpretation
• Union/amalgamation

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Nova, An Alberta Corporation v. Amoco Canada Petroleum Company Ltd.

Court

Supreme Court of Canada

The Supreme Court of Canada upheld Alberta utility rate orders that varied Nova’s charges retroactively to the complaint date and allowed review of the tax component recoverable in rates.

• Retroactivity of regulatory orders
• Rate regulation and justness/reasonableness
• Income tax treatment recoverable in rates
• Scope of administrative jurisdiction
• Retroactive-regulatory-orders
• Utility-rate-regulation

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