Author Archives: Kaye Booth

About Kaye Booth

Kaye Booth is a graduate of the University of Calgary Faculty of Law (JD 2019) and practices litigation services through Empathy & Advocacy Family Lawyers. She also runs a freelance legal research and writing business through Insight Legal Research in Calgary.

The Right to Your Day in Court

By: Kaye Booth

Case commented on: Heiser v Bowden Institution, 2022 ABCA 300 (CanLII)

PDF Version: The Right to Your Day in Court

Courts have the responsibility to listen to the applications brought before them, especially when an individual’s liberty is at issue. On the other hand, courts have the inherent power to prevent the misuse of their procedures and to control proceedings. These two roles of the court may conflict with each other – if the court has the inherent power to label litigants as vexatious and prevent them from making further applications, how is this squared with the litigant’s right to access the court and the court’s duty to hear them? Continue reading →

Finding Clarity: ABQB Upholds Decision by Worker’s Compensation Board’s Appeals Commission

By: Kaye Booth

PDF Version: Finding Clarity: ABQB Upholds Decision by Worker’s Compensation Board’s Appeals Commission

Case Commented On: In-Line Contracting Partnership v Alberta (Workers’ Compensation Appeals Commission), 2018 ABQB 529.

In-Line Contracting Partnership v Alberta (Workers’ Compensation Appeals Commission) (ILCP) is a decision regarding the proper interpretation of “suitable” permanent modified work in the context of the policies of the Worker’s Compensation Board (“WCB”). On November 3, 2013, Tracy McKnight, who worked as a labourer on a road construction crew, suffered four broken ribs and a soft tissue injury when a co-worker fell on her (ILCP at para 1). Ms. McKnight took time off work, during which time she was compensated by the WCB. By March, the WCB found that Ms. McKnight was able to return to work, and her employer, In-Line Contracting Partnership (“In-Line”), offered her a job as a labourer, which Ms. McKnight rejected. A few months after, the WCB was alerted to the fact that Ms. McKnight had not fully recovered, and is now suffering from a permanent disability. This was communicated to In-Line, who offered Ms. McKnight modified work, which she once again rejected. The Appeals Commission for the WCB found that the job offer for permanent modified employment was not suitable according to the WCB’s guidelines (ILCP at para 3). ILCP is an appeal from the WCB’s Appeals Commission to the Court of Queen’s Bench.

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JH v Alberta Health Services: The Constitutional Implications of Indefinite Psychiatric Detention

By: Kaye Booth and Heather Forester

PDF Version: JH v Alberta Health Services: The Constitutional Implications of Indefinite Psychiatric Detention

Case Commented On: JH v Alberta Health Services, 2017 ABQB 477 (CanLII)

In 2015, JH appealed a decision by a Review Panel, appointed to determine the need for his continued detention under the Mental Health Act, RSA 2000, c M-13 (Alberta MHA), that he should be held indefinitely in the care of the Foothills Hospital (JH v Alberta Health Services, 2015 ABQB 316 (CanLII)). JH had come to the Foothills with a fever and an infected knee injury the year prior, and was then kept there against his will, based on the Review Panel’s determination. The Review Panel’s conclusion that JH should continue to be detained was based on its view that JH lacked insight into his medical needs and exhibited poor judgment, both of which might put him at risk of harm. The outcome of the case and whether JH would continue to be held in detention was contingent on whether JH fit the criteria for detention set out in section 8(1) of the Alberta MHA, namely that he: (a) suffered from a mental disorder; (b) was likely to cause harm to himself or others, or to suffer substantial physical or mental deterioration if not kept in detention; and (c) was unable to continue at the facility other than as a formal patient. JH’s consulting psychiatrist testified that it was his opinion that JH fit these criteria, as he suffered from a neurocognitive disorder which manifested itself as poor judgment and memory, and that without mental health support in the form of psychiatric detention, JH would deteriorate both mentally and physically. However, an assessment completed by another doctor concluded that JH only had mild memory impairment, and that he understood his health problems enough to maintain health treatment on his own. Justice Eidsvik of the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench considered JH’s steady employment history prior to the car accident that had left him with cognitive issues, his ability to obtain help both financially and medically on his own, and his commitment to continue on his medication. Based on this evidence, the Court concluded that Alberta Health Services (AHS) failed to prove that JH should continue to be detained, and that any risks to him were not severe enough to justify constraints on his liberty and self-determination. Continue reading →