Category Archives: Human Rights

The Tragic Effects of COVID-19 in the Long-Term Care Sector

PDF Version: The Tragic Effects of COVID-19 in the Long-Term Care Sector

Matters Commented On: Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMOH) Orders 09-2020 and 10-2020

Close to half of Canada’s 1300 COVID-19 deaths have occurred in long-term care facilities, with the number of fatalities expected to grow in the coming weeks. News reports reveal shocking conditions in Canadian long-term care homes, including residents in critical condition abandoned by staff, workers without protective equipment, residents begging to die, and conditions so bad that criminal charges may be laid. The situation in Quebec is so dire that the government has implored doctors and other health professionals to help and has requested that the federal government provide military assistance. This blog post addresses the vulnerabilities that COVID-19 has exposed in the long-term care sector, the steps governments have taken to slow the pandemic, and improvements that must be made to better protect residents in the future. Continue reading →

The Effects of COVID-19 on the Health System: Legal and Ethical Tensions Part II

By: Lorian Hardcastle

PDF Version: The Effects of COVID-19 on the Health System: Legal and Ethical Tensions Part II

Matter Commented On: COVID-19 in Alberta and Canada

Since it appeared in Canada at the end of January, the number of cases of COVID-19 has steadily increased. Despite considerable efforts to contain the spread of the disease, Canada has seen over 1000 new cases per day since late March, with this number reaching 1600 new cases in a single day on April 5. On April 7, 58 people succumbed to the disease in one day. The ongoing COVID-19 outbreak raises numerous pressing legal and ethical tensions. In a previous ABlawg post, I examined the trade-offs that governments have made between individual liberties and protecting the public good. In this post, I consider two additional legal and ethical tensions: health care priority setting in the face of scarce resources and the disproportionate effects of public health measures on vulnerable people. Continue reading →

The Effects of COVID-19 on the Health System: Legal and Ethical Tensions Part I

By: Lorian Hardcastle

PDF Version: The Effects of COVID-19 on the Health System: Legal and Ethical Tensions Part I

Matter Commented On: COVID-19 in Alberta and Canada

Introduction

Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that affect humans and animals and, in some circumstances, can pass between species. Coronaviruses cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to SARS. A novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, was first identified in Wuhan, China in December 2019. There have been over 1,250,000 cases worldwide, over 68,000 of which have been fatal. Actual infection rates are likely much higher, given the limited number of tests conducted in many jurisdictions, the backlog in receiving test results, and the prevalence of false negative tests. As of April 5, there have been 1181 cases in Alberta, including 20 fatalities. Continue reading →

Boulachanis v Canada: Transgender Inmate Moved to Women’s Prison

By: Amy Matychuk

PDF Version: Boulachanis v Canada: Transgender Inmate Moved to Women’s Prison

Case Commented On: Boulachanis v Canada (Attorney General), 2019 FC 456 (CanLII)

In Boulachanis v Canada, Justice Sébastien Grammond of the Federal Court granted Jamie Boulachanis’ application for an interlocutory injunction ordering that she be transferred to a women’s prison. Ms. Boulachanis, who is a transgender woman, initially made a transfer request to Correctional Service Canada (CSC) and was denied. She applied for judicial review of the decision denying the transfer. While waiting for resolution of her judicial review application, she was moved to administrative segregation due to threats to her safety from other (male) inmates. Accordingly, she successfully applied for an interlocutory injunction and an order that she be moved to a women’s prison immediately.

Justice Grammond’s decision discusses Ms. Boulachanis’ history, the rights of transgender people in a correctional environment, and the tripartite test for an interlocutory injunction. He found, “the refusal to transfer Ms. Boulachanis to a women’s institution constitutes prima facie discrimination based on gender identity or expression” (at para 3). Justice Grammond’s decision is an important victory for the rights of transgender inmates, who face unique roadblocks and safety risks and who must contend with persistent myths and misinformation about their gender identities and expressions. Continue reading →

Alberta Human Rights Tribunal Decision Reinstates Reinstatement

By: Linda McKay-Panos

PDF Version: Alberta Human Rights Tribunal Decision Reinstates Reinstatement

Case Commented On: Pratt v University of Alberta, 2019 AHRC 24 (CanLII)

While it has always been legally possible for an employer to be ordered to reinstate an employee after there has been a finding of discrimination, recent tribunals and courts have been reluctant to award this remedy. However, the Pratt case may open the doors again to this possibility in some circumstances.

Carmen Pratt (Mittelstadt) made a human rights complaint in June 2013 alleging discrimination on the ground of mental disability in the area of employment under s 7(1) of the Alberta Human Rights Act, RSA 2000, c A-25.5 (AHRA) (at paras 1, 4). After completing her Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Alberta (U of A), in December 2011, Pratt started working as a casual employee at the U of A’s Book and Record Depository. This became a permanent position on March 1, 2012. As an assistant, her job duties were split between the Special Collections Library (SCL) and the University Archives (at para 2), and she had one supervisor in each department. Three weeks later, on March 24, 2012 Pratt learned that her brother had committed suicide and she was thereafter involved with dealing with her brother’s estate and burial (at para 2). Continue reading →