O’Hara v. HRC (2003), 180 B.C.A.C. 54 (CA);
297 W.A.C. 54
MLB headnote and full text
Temp. Cite: [2003] B.C.A.C. TBEd. MY.003
William O’Hara (appellant) v. British Columbia Human Rights Commission (respondent)
(CA29717; 2003 BCCA 139)
Indexed As: O’Hara v. Human Rights Commission (B.C.)
British Columbia Court of Appeal
Southin, Braidwood and Hall, JJ.A.
February 28, 2003.
Summary:
O’Hara filed human rights complaints with the British Columbia Human Rights Commission (the Commission).
The Commission dismissed the complaints. O’Hara petitioned for judicial review.
The British Columbia Supreme Court, in a decision reported [2002] B.C.T.C. 559, dismissed the petition. O’Hara appealed.
The British Columbia Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal.
Civil Rights – Topic 7080
Federal or provincial legislation – Commissions or boards – Jurisdiction – Pre-investigation decision not to deal with complaint – Section 27(1)(d)(ii) of the Human Rights Code (B.C.) authorized the British Columbia Human Rights Commission (the Commission) to dismiss all or part of a complaint if proceeding with it would not further the purposes of the Code – Acting pursuant to s. 27(1)(d)(ii), the Commission dismissed complaints after ruling that they did not involve a continuing contravention and that some of them were out of time – A motions judge upheld the rulings as not being patently unreasonable – The British Columbia Court of Appeal upheld the motions judge’s decision where the motions judge had correctly applied the “patently unreasonable” standard of review.
Statutes Noticed:
Human Rights Code, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 210, sect. 27(1)(d)(ii) [para. 5].
Counsel:
William O’Hara, appellant, on his own behalf;
No one appearing for the British Columbia Human Rights Commission;
L.R. Greathead, for Her Majesty the Queen in Right of the Province of British Columbia.
This appeal was heard at Victoria, British Columbia, on February 28, 2003, by Southin, Braidwood and Hall, JJ.A, of the British Columbia Court of Appeal.
The decision of the Court of Appeal was delivered orally on February 28, 2003, and the following reasons were filed:
Braidwood, J.A. – see paragraphs 1 to 29;
Southin, J.A. – see paragraphs 30 and 32;
Hall, J.A. – see paragraph 31.
