The right to a healthy environment gains global (and some Canadian) traction
By the end of 2019, more than 80 percent of United Nations (“UN”) Member States recognized the right to a healthy environment in law, with more than 110 countries recognizing the right to a healthy environment in their national Constitutions.[1] […]
BC Court of Appeal allows recovery of legal fees as remediation costs
Introduction Last year, the British Columbia Court of Appeal (“BCCA”) rendered its decision in Victory Motors (Abbotsford) Ltd. v. Actton Super-Save Gas Stations Ltd., 2021 BCCA 129, providing that legal costs reasonably incurred in connection with the remediation of a […]
Environmental Law 2021: Trends & Developments
Bryan Buttigieg, Adina Georgescu, Darin Hannaford and Christie McLeod co-author the Trends & Developments – Canada chapter in the Chambers and Partners Environmental Law 2021 Global Practice Guide. The chapter highlights current national developments on trending topics like climate change, […]
SCC upholds validity of federal government’s carbon pricing system
On March 25, 2021, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) released its decision in the Reference re Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act, upholding the constitutionality of the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (“GGPPA”). In a 6-3 split decision, the majority […]
New triggers requiring site disclosure statements: BC rolls out a new contaminated sites regime
Last month, amendments to British Columbia’s Environmental Management Act (“EMA”) and Contaminated Sites Regulation (“CSR”) came into force, altering how contaminated sites are identified in BC. When a site is classified as contaminated, it alerts the Ministry of Environment and Climate […]
Cambie Surgeries Corporation v. British Columbia (Attorney General): Case comment
Summary In Cambie Surgeries Corporation v. British Columbia (Attorney General) (“Cambie”), the plaintiffs claimed that sections 14, 17, 18 and 45 of British Columbia’s (“B.C.”) Medicare Protection Act (the “MPA”) violated their rights under sections 7 and 15 of the […]
Appeal launched against Federal Court’s dismissal of youth climate change lawsuit
The Federal Court’s recent dismissal of a climate change lawsuit brought by a group of 15 Canadian youths has been appealed to the Federal Court of Appeal. In La Rose v Canada,[1]the Plaintiffs claimed against Her Majesty the Queen in […]
Supreme Court of Canada to consider dichotomy between policy and operational decisions in negligence claims
The Supreme Court of Canada has recently granted leave to appeal the decision of the B.C. Court of Appeal in Marchi v Nelson (City of), 2020 BCCA 1. The key question on appeal is whether certain acts or omissions on […]
