Legal

  In a decision issued on April 2, 2024, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice struck down sections of the Safe Streets Act that prohibit panhandling in certain circumstances, effective immediately. The decision marks a significant step forward in affirming Ontario’s obligation to respect the rights and dignity of all its residents, including the most marginalized.

 

  The Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) is pleased that a recent Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) ruling confirmed it has jurisdiction to resolve Human Rights Code-related claims of discrimination by unionized employees.

  In a significant decision, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) found that Convention refugees should not face discriminatory barriers to accessing employment and contributing fully to Ontario society.

Settlement relating to Toronto Police Service Memorial Wall (Ontario Human Rights Commission v. Mark Saunders and Toronto Police Services Board) On November 11, 2015, the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) filed an Application with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) alleging discrimination in employment based on disability because of the Toronto Police Service’s (TPS) failure to include on its Memorial Wall officers who end their lives as a result of a mental health disability incurred in the line of duty.

Protecting the rights of trans persons in police custody: [Boyd Kodak] v. Toronto Police Service, Toronto Police Services Board and Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services In July 2015, the OHRC intervened in a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario Application concerning the treatment of trans persons in custody.

Background The applicant, Ian Cole, is a middle-aged man with a severe intellectual disability who lives in the community. To live in the community, Mr. Cole depends on the receipt of nursing services. The primary source of funding for the nursing services is his local Community Care Access Centre (CCAC). The maximum funding for nursing services is set out in a regulation made under the Home Care and Community Services Act, 1994.  At the time the application was filed, funding was available for nursing services to a maximum of four visits per day.

September 2016 - The OHRC intervened in Misetich v. Value Village, a case before the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO), involving allegations of discrimination on the basis of family status. The OHRC intervened to ensure that the Federal Court of Appeal's decision in Johnstone v.

  Toronto — Hockey Canada, through its Ontario branches, ushers in a new era of transgender inclusion in time for the 2016-2017 hockey season by posting transgender inclusive policies. This step is part of a settlement agreement between Hockey Canada, on behalf of its Ontario members, the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) and Jesse Thompson, a trans teenaged boy who played amateur hockey and courageously decided to take on the system.

Background This case involved a transgender boy, Jesse Thompson, who was denied access to the boys’ locker room the rest of his amateur hockey team used during the 2012-2013 hockey season. Jesse alleged that this resulted in him being ‘outed’ as trans, excluded from important team interaction and bonding, and exposed to harassment and bullying.