B.C. appeals court justices have decided to continue a hearing regarding the validity of COVID-19 vaccine passports after listening to lawyers debate whether the case is still relevant, as the government requirement has not been in place for over a year.
“The orders expired over 17 months ago now and have not been replaced,” representatives for the attorney general’s office told the court. “There are not any current provincial health officer orders requiring proof of vaccination or exemption to attend gatherings and events where food and liquor serving premises in BC currently,”
However, the lawyer for the petitioners, Geoffrey Trotter, said the case was in the interest of the public who were divided over the passport vaccine requirements.
“It’s in the public interest to have an authoritative determination about whether they were legitimate or not,” he said during the court hearing.
The case was brought forward by the Canadian Constitution Federation (CCF). It focuses on three petitioners, two women and a teen girl, who say they suffered harm as a result of the B.C. government’s vaccine passport mandate.
The CCF lost the case in September 2022 but is now appealing the court decision.
In the written decision from 2022, Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson said he found the petitioners “have not exhausted the remedies available to them under the legislative scheme.”
“Had they pursued those remedies, the alternative procedures would not have been duplicative or ineffective.”
However, the CCF says they believe the court decision was incorrect.
“We believe that there were errors in the lower court decision,” CCF Litigation Director Christine Van Geyn said. “Most significantly, there was an error in the finding that the three women who brought this case could have applied for a reconsideration for an exemption from the vaccine passport system, making their court challenge premature.”
A spokesperson from the Ministry of the Attorney General said they won’t comment on the hearing at this time.
“The hearing of the appeal is open to members of the public and to the media. We cannot comment as the matters are currently before the Court,” the spokesperson said in an email to The Epoch Times.
Impact of BC Vaccine Passport
B.C.’s Public Health Office began a vaccine passport system on Aug. 23, 2021. As a part of the COVID-19 health measures, residents were required to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination to attend public spaces such as recreation centers.The three petitioners say they were not able to be fully vaccinated for medical reasons but were not deemed eligible for the provincial exemption from the program.
“I reject the petitioners’ assertions that the impugned Orders affect their rights and those of disabled persons whose conditions are not specifically included in Deferral Form,” the court decision said.
“Those for whom it was dangerous to receive a vaccination had a remedy and were not prevented from obtaining and relying upon a doctor’s evidence of their medical contradiction before the PHO, including after the Variance Order was made,” Justice Hinkson said. “I am not persuaded that the Guidelines created a closed-list system where those with unlisted disabilities were not eligible to apply for an exemption.”
Justice Hinkson noted in his decision that none of the petitioners applied for an exemption.
The CCF said the three petitioners were not eligible for a medical exemption because their situations were not on the government list.
