Canada Case Law

Williams v. Nova Scotia Health Authority

Court

Nova Scotia Court of Appeal

The Court dismissed the appeal because the judge correctly applied the Chhina/Dorsey exception: the Criminal Code Review Board provides a complete, comprehensive and expert statutory scheme at least as broad and advantageous as habeas corpus for the appellant's challenges; additionally the appellant's proposed fresh evidence failed the Palmer test as not relevant to this appeal.

Source excerpt

• Detention conditions
• Solitary confinement/isolation
• Criminal code review board procedures
• Jurisdictional exceptions to habeas corpus
• Fresh evidence admissibility
• Procedural fairness

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Richard v. Canada (Attorney General)

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The Ontario Court of Appeal dismissed Canada’s appeal and upheld certification of a class action over immigration detainees held in provincial prisons.

• Charter s.7
• Charter s.9
• Charter s.12
• Charter s.15
• Negligence - duty of care
• Certification - common issues

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Wilband v. R.

Court

Supreme Court of Nova Scotia

The Court found that for the specific dates March 17, 18, 19, 25, 31, April 2 and April 3, 2024 the daily unlock times constituted an unreasonable outcome amounting to a material deprivation of residual liberty; although the decisions to reduce unlock time were made within legal authority and with procedural fairness, the particular outcomes were unreasonable and therefore unlawful; the Court issued a declaration of unlawfulness for those dates but declined to order a bail review or release because the passage of time rendered that remedy ineffective and habeas corpus bail relief is an except…

Source excerpt

• Habeas corpus
• Residual liberty
• Bail
• Reasonableness review
• Procedural fairness
• Detention conditions

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Foeller v. Nova Scotia (Attorney General)

Court

Supreme Court of Nova Scotia

The rotational lockdowns implemented at the facility in response to staffing shortages were a reasonable and proportionate administrative measure that did not amount to unlawful detention warranting habeas corpus relief, and the applicant was not unlawfully denied access to counsel; habeas corpus cannot be used to compel changes in staffing or resource allocation.

Source excerpt

• Habeas corpus
• Rotational lockdown
• Detention conditions
• Access to counsel
• Staffing shortages

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Canada (Citizenship and Immigration) v. Tjhang

Court

Federal Court

The Federal Court upheld an Immigration Division release order for Eko Tjhang, finding the Member reasonably explained the shift from earlier detention findings and properly assessed the bondsperson.

• Detention review
• Alternatives to detention
• Bondsperson suitability
• Judicial review - reasonableness
• Release conditions
• Detention conditions

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R. v. Budlakoti

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The Charter Appeal was quashed because it constituted an interlocutory appeal for which there is no statutory right; the appropriate vehicle to challenge the pre‑trial ruling is an appeal against conviction under s.675. The application for appointment of counsel under s.684 was properly dismissed because there was no arguable ground on the Habeas Appeal and therefore appointment was not in the interests of justice.

Source excerpt

• Interlocutory appeal
• Section 7 charter
• Section 675 criminal code (appeal against conviction)
• Section 684 criminal code (appointment of counsel)
• Detention conditions
• Stay of proceedings

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Casseus v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration)

Court

Federal Court

The Federal Court dismissed judicial review of a PRRA refusal, finding the officer reasonably assessed the evidence and the applicant failed to prove a personalized risk on return to Haiti.

• Pre‑removal risk assessment (prra)
• Detention conditions
• Standard of review (reasonableness)
• Serious criminality and deportation
• Personalized risk assessment
• Pre-removal-risk-assessment

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2020 RLLR 150

Court

Royal Canadian Mounted Police Labour Relations

The claimant, a credible transgender woman, established on a balance of probabilities that she would be legally classified as male for Singaporean conscription because she has not had gender affirmation surgery, that she faces a real likelihood of prosecution/detention for failure to enlist, and that detention conditions and treatment (forced male presentation, denial of hormones, severe psychological harm, and real risk of physical and sexual violence) in the Singapore context amount to a serious possibility of persecution; state protection and internal flight alternatives are not available;…

Source excerpt

• Convention refugee
• Particular social group
• Gender identity
• Military conscription
• Detention conditions
• State protection

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Cox v. Nova Scotia (Attorney General)

Court

Supreme Court of Nova Scotia

The court held the respondents had jurisdiction and, based on credible evidence of the December 2 incident, weapons searches, staffing shortages and work refusals, the decision to place and retain the applicants on West 4 IDR rotation was lawful and reasonable and did not breach procedural fairness; Cox's application was moot in respect of West 4; therefore the habeas corpus applications were dismissed.

Source excerpt

• Segregation
• Close confinement
• Procedural fairness
• Reasonableness review
• Detention conditions
• Staffing and safety in correctional facilities

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MB8-13552

Court

Refugee Protection Division

Claimant is a stateless Palestinian who established two countries of former habitual residence (UAE and Jordan); he demonstrated a serious possibility of persecution in Jordan due to systemic discrimination preventing employment and, on the balance of probabilities, a risk of cruel and unusual punishment in the UAE due to harsh detention conditions for undocumented returnees; he cannot return to either country and is therefore a person in need of protection under s.97(1) IRPA.

Source excerpt

• Convention refugee
• Person in need of protection (s.97 irpa)
• Country of former habitual residence
• Persecution
• Detention conditions
• State protection

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