Wear and Tear, Cleanliness, Repair, Replacement and Betterment: A Landlord’s Claims for Compensation at the End of a Residential Tenancy

By: Jonnette Watson Hamilton

PDF Version: Wear and Tear, Cleanliness, Repair, Replacement and Betterment: A Landlord’s Claims for Compensation at the End of a Residential Tenancy

Case Commented On: Barry v Navratil, 2019 ABPC 229 (CanLII)

This decision by Judge Jerry LeGrandeur deals with several claims by a landlord for compensation for damages allegedly done to residential premises by former tenants. The landlord claimed for the cost of replacing the carpet in the living room, master bedroom and a closet, based on what the landlord said was damage due to pet urine and, in one specific spot, due to cigarette burns. She also claimed for the cost of replacing the kitchen countertops and backsplash due to a burn from a hot cooking pot. These two claims for replacement rather than repair raised the issue of “betterment,” because the landlord ended up in a better position than she would have been in had the carpet and countertop not been damaged. The landlord also claimed for the cost of materials to sand and paint the garage floor which had been stained by the tenant. That claim raised the issue of wear and tear, although it was resolved as a cleaning issue. Judge LeGrandeur’s written decision provides some helpful clarity for both landlords and tenants on the issues of repairing versus replacing, betterment, wear and tear, and cleaning, as well as the burden of proof, standard of proof, and the need for evidence. It also reinforces the rule that a landlord cannot demand more of a tenant than do the statutory obligations in the Residential Tenancies Act, SA 2004, s R-17 (RTA). Continue reading →

Public Interest in the Transfer of Licenses from Shell Canada to Pieridae Energy?

By: Shaun Fluker

PDF Version: Public Interest in the Transfer of Licenses from Shell Canada to Pieridae Energy?

Matters commented on: AER Public Notice of Applications 1925399, 1925400, 1925403, 1925404, 1925405, and 1925406

On November 5 the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) posted notice of six applications made by Shell Canada to transfer well, pipeline and facility licenses to Pieridae Alberta Production Ltd. While it is hard to discern from the AER information portal what is actually proposed, it would appear these license transfers relate to the disposition by Shell of its foothills sour gas assets to Pieridae Energy. These assets include wells, pipelines, and associated facilities in the Waterton, Jumpingpound and Caroline gas fields west and southwest of Calgary.

This brief comment asks (1) whether the AER should conduct a public interest hearing to assess what measures should be imposed by the AER to eliminate the risk of unfunded liabilities associated with the abandonment and reclamation of these aging sour gas facilities, and (2) should the Attorney General exercise its parens patriae jurisdiction in this case. Continue reading →

Albexit/Wexit/Albwexit and the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

By: Robert Hamilton and David V. Wright

PDF Version: Albexit/Wexit/Albwexit and the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Matter Commented On: Secession by Alberta or Western Provinces

 Talk of western alienation has been on the rise over the past year, reaching a point where notions of secession by one or more western provinces is a daily focus of headlines (see e.g. here and here) and social media threads. Most recently, this is visible in the #wexit hashtag that has been circulating since the re-election of the Liberal government. While the specifics around secession are thin, a reasonably representative version can be found in an op-ed penned by Dr. Jack Mintz in the Financial Post late last year. His version of Alberta separatism is a decent starting point for analysis of the matter, though we note that his focus was on “Albexit” as opposed to “Wexit”. Dr. Mintz was riding the prevailing winds at that time, which have only seemed to intensify. His argument, put briefly, is this: Alberta would benefit significantly from secession and, while Alberta leaving the federation may seem unlikely, so too did Britain leaving the EU until it voted to do so. If it happened there (in principle), he reasoned, what’s to say it can’t happen here. We ask, then, is this a tenable argument? Setting aside complications apparent in the final Brexit steps, does the Wexit or Albexit idea withstand scrutiny?

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Procedural Fairness and the Alberta Inquiry into Anti-Alberta Energy Campaigns

By: Shaun Fluker

PDF Version: Procedural Fairness and the Alberta Inquiry into Anti-Alberta Energy Campaigns

Order Commented On: Order in Council, O.C. 125/2019 (July 4, 2019)

In early July the Lieutenant Governor in Council commissioned an inquiry under power granted by section 2 of the Public Inquiries Act, RSA 2000, c P-39 (the ‘Inquiry’) to investigate and report on any anti-Alberta energy campaigns that are supported, in whole or in part, by foreign organizations. This comment focuses on the threshold question of whether the doctrine of procedural fairness applies to this Inquiry, and examines the potential legal sources of a fairness obligation. I am not digging into the specific allegations of unfairness already directed at the Inquiry (see here and here), but rather my question is more generally whether those persons who are investigated by the Inquiry have a legal right to know and meet the case being compiled against them. This question arises because, on the one hand, an inquiry such as this could be seen as merely a fact-finding mission with no mandate to decide anything or impose liability on anyone, and historically the common law neither imposed fairness obligations on such investigations nor provided remedies in these cases. On the other hand, the Terms of Reference for the Inquiry attached to Order in Council, O.C. 125/2019 suggest a somewhat close relationship between this investigation and decisions with potential adverse consequences for certain groups. As well, the overtly partisan basis for the Inquiry means it is likely that any findings or recommendations made by the commissioner have the potential to damage the reputation of persons named in his report, even if no further actions are taken by the Minister of Energy or the Lieutenant Governor in Council. Continue reading →

Will Alberta’s Lawsuit Against Opioid Manufacturers Improve Public Health?

By: Lorian Hardcastle

PDF Version: Will Alberta’s Lawsuit Against Opioid Manufacturers Improve Public Health?

Matter Commented On: Litigation Against Opioid Manufacturers

Opioid-related deaths and injuries are a critical public health issue, with one Canadian dying every two hours due to opioids. Individuals who become addicted to prescribed opioids may progress to buying legal products on the black market or taking illegal substances like heroin. Heroin is increasingly laced with synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, which can be lethal even in small doses. In 2018, 73% of accidental opioid-related deaths in Canada involved synthetic opioids. Continue reading →