The highest court in the land will hear a challenge of this province’s move to restrict travel during the height of the pandemic.
The Supreme Court of Canada has granted leave to hear the case brought by the Canadian Civil Liberties Association on behalf of Kim Taylor. She was denied permission to travel to Newfoundland for her mother’s funeral in May of 2020, as COVID-19 was taking hold.
The province, in an effort to limit the spread of the virus, all but closed its borders on April 29th of that year. Residents were allowed to return while non-residents, like Taylor, who lives in Nova Scotia, needed special permission to do so.
(Dr. Janice Fitzgerald, Chief Medical Officer of Health for Newfoundland and Labrador, issued the travel ban being challenged at the Supreme Court of Canada.)
But she was refused, leading to court challenges at the province’s Supreme Court and Court of Appeal, both of which were unsuccessful.
Among other things, the challenge alleges that the travel restrictions were unconstitutional and violated Taylor’s rights under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The province’s Supreme Court ruled the legislation was constitutional, adding the decision to deny entry into the province did infringe her right to mobility, but that it was justified under the Charter.
The Court of Appeal then declined to hear the case, saying the arguments were moot because the travel restrictions were no longer in effect by the time the matter came before them.
The Supreme Court of Canada agrees to hear only a small percentage of cases each year, weighing the importance of the issues to the public and laws of the land.
It could still be months before the case is heard and the court delivers its decision.
