MB Court of Appeal hears case of St. Andrews mayor removed from certain duties as election looms
A legal battle hangs over the race for mayor in the R.M. of St. Andrews north of Winnipeg, a dispute that on Wednesday reached the Manitoba Court of Appeal.
Incumbent mayoral candidate Joy Sul was elected mayor in 2018.
A year later, a majority of council voted to pass a bylaw to remove key duties from her including serving as chair of meetings and spokesperson for the R.M. Duties now undertaken by a new chair of council named to replace Sul.
“What is scary, why is there a mayor ballot if you can just draw a name out of a hat?” Sul said outside court on Wednesday, after a panel of three justices heard arguments in her appeal.
Those duties she was stripped of are typically done by the mayor as set out by Manitoba’s Municipal Act, which Sul’s lawyer John Stefaniuk argued can’t be undone by municipal councils.
“We’re hoping that the court will take a good look at the action of the municipality and find that the only reasonable interpretation of the Municipal Act does not allow council remove the chair function of a mayor or a head of council,” Stefaniuk said outside court.
Manitoba Court of King’s Bench Justice Vic Toews previously dismissed Sul’s case for a judicial review of the council’s actions.
Stefaniuk argued if the appeal court upholds that decision it could have consequences for others elected to municipal office in the province.
“We see this as a significant issue, especially for women and other underrepresented groups who sit on municipal councils,” Stefaniuk said.
Court heard there was no evidence Sul was removed specifically because she’s a woman. Her lawyer conceded council wasn’t running as smoothly as it should. Something Bernice Bowley, the lawyer for the R.M. of St. Andrews and current chair of council John Preun, keyed in on during her arguments.
“In passing the bylaw and resolution as it did, the municipality certainly had a reasoning processing that it was properly interpreting the legislation in order to do that,” Bowley argued in court.
“There was and is sufficient evidence that there were problems with governance conduct.”
Preun, who’s named as a respondent in the appeal and replaced Sul as chair of council, is now challenging her for the mayor’s chair in the upcoming election.
He said the dispute played a role in his decision to run.
“I would like this to be behind us so that we can bring back a government that this community deserves and move forward in a reasonable fashion,” Preun said on Wednesday.
Court heard whoever’s elected would regain the traditional role of mayor, despite the bylaw passed to remove Sul from some of her duties.
Sul said she has little to gain but a lot to lose, noting challenging this move has cost her personally around $80,000.
“There’s no financial gain for me in this,” Sul said. “It affects every mayor in all 137 municipalities.”
Bowley argued otherwise. She told the court the issues in the application are not a matter of public interest and the decision doesn’t have implications for the public at large or other municipalities.
The three Court of Appeal justices reserved their decision in the matter.
No date for a ruling was given.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Poilievre will do 'anything to win,' must condemn Alex Jones endorsement: Trudeau
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is ramping up his attacks on Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre as he promotes his government's federal budget.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
New evidence challenges the Pentagon's account of a horrific attack as the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan: CNN exclusive
New video evidence uncovered by CNN significantly undermines two Pentagon investigations into an ISIS-K suicide attack outside Kabul airport, during the American withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
All Alberta wildfires to date in 2024 believed to be human-caused: province
There are 63 wildfires burning in Alberta's forest protection area as of Wednesday morning and seven mutual aid fires, including one in the Municipal District of Peace.
Suspects waving weapons, smashing glass in Toronto jewelry store robbery caught on video
Arrests have been made after five men were captured on video rampaging through a jewelry store in Toronto, waving weapons and smashing glass display cases.
Pilot proposes to flight attendant girlfriend in front of passengers
A Polish pilot proposed to his flight attendant girlfriend during a flight from Warsaw to Krakow, and she said yes.
Ottawa injects another $36M into fund for those seriously injured or killed by vaccines
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
Ex-SNC executive sentenced to prison term in bridge bribery case
The RCMP says a former SNC-Lavalin executive has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison in connection with a bribery scheme for a bridge repair contract in Montreal.