Litigation
CCD intervenes in test cases so that the judge/judges hearing cases will have the opportunity to benefit from the collective experiences of the disability rights community and the analysis of human rights by legal experts fully informed by disability experience. (A test case is one which is likely to lead to a legal precedent and alter a law or practice.) CCD has been involved in many of the landmark cases that helped to bring down barriers that were preventing the full and equal participation of Canadians with disabilities. For example, CCD has used the Canadian legal system to advance jurisprudence on the following issues:
- the accommodation of people with disabilities in employment (Bhinder, O'Malley, and Grismer cases)
- access to long term disability benefits (Gibbs case)
- how equality is defined under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the Andrews case, the Lovelace case)
- inclusive education (Eaton case)
- the right of deaf people to have interpreters in medical settings (Eldridge case)
- the application of the proscribed legal penalties when the victim of a killing is a person with a disability (Genereux and Latimer), and
- the equal protection of the law (Latimer case)
Recent Work
November 15, 2011
Factum in the D.A.I. Case
In the D.A. I. case, the Supreme Court of Canada was asked to consider whether people with intellectual disabilities should be allowed to testify in court. Specifically, the question before the Court is whether people with intellectual disabilities are required to demonstrate an understanding of the concept of a “promise to tell the truth” in order to be permitted to testify. CCD was been granted intervener status in this case. CCD argued that courts should not impose a test to allow people with disabilities to testify that is not imposed on others. Courts should focus scrutiny on the testimony given by individuals not the individuals themselves. Read more.
March 8, 2011
Factum in the Mowat Case
This case involves a woman, Ms. Donna Mowat, who filed a human rights complaint after she experienced sexual harassment at work. According to the Federal Court of Appeal, Ms. Mowat, whose sexual harassment complaint was largely successful, was entitled to only $4000 in compensation, although her legal fees to bring her complaint forward were nearly $200,000.
In this appeal, the Supreme Court was asked to decide if those who experience discrimination should be reimbursed for their legal costs relating to filing human rights complaints. The legal fees to file complaints and to have them heard by the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal can be more than what is awarded as compensation to successful complainants. As a result of this, even when victims of discrimination win their cases, they are very often out of pocket several thousands of dollars.
The CCD argued that the human rights legislation must be accessible to people who experience discrimination. This is particularly important for people with disabilities who represent the largest proportion of complainants before the Canadian Human Rights Commission. Read more.
December 10, 2010
Council of Canadians with Disabilities to Intervene at Supreme Court of Canada Hearing Regarding Access to Justice for Victims of Discrimination
The Council of Canadians with Disabilities, a national human rights organization, will be appearing before the Supreme Court of Canada in Mowat v. Canada (Attorney General), an appeal about access to justice for victims of discrimination. The CCD was granted leave to make written and oral arguments in this matter. Read more.
More on Litigation
September 21, 2010
Report of the Council of Canadians with Disabilities Human Rights Committee's Litigation: 2009-2010
May 27, 2010
Factum in the Caron Case
October 21, 2009
CCD Affidavit in the Hughes Case
July 27, 2009
CCD Factum in the Moore Case
June 19, 2008
Groups Call for Complete Restoration of Court Challenges Program
April 7, 2008
People with Disabilities Appear in Federal Court and Argue that Two Agencies of the Federal Crown have Failed to Accommodate Their Needs in the York Steps Project
Jim Derksen views inaccessible York Street Steps in Ottawa. CCD intervened in the Brown Case, which challenged an inadequate accommodation developed for the Steps.
The Latimer Case
The Latimer case directly concerned the rights of persons with disabilities. Mr. Latimer's view was that a parent has the right to kill a child with a disability if that parent decides the child's quality of life no longer warrants its continuation. CCD explained to the court and to the public how that view threatens the lives of people with disabilities and is deeply offensive to fundamental constitutional values. Learn more.