Real Estate & Urban Development @ Gowlings: October 18, 2012

Edited by Manuel Martins

City of Toronto New Comprehensive Zoning By-Law an Update

We last reported on the City's progress respecting a new zoning bylaw in our June 2011 issue of the Real Estate & Urban Development @ Gowlings newsletter. At that time, amidst considerable objection, confusion and political turmoil over the new Zoning Bylaw (Bylaw 1156-2010 - the "Bylaw"), the City's administration was in the throes of repealing the Bylaw. As reported at that time, City Council did repeal the Bylaw on May 18, 2011, and further directed its planning staff to re-engage the public and attempt to resolve some of the more than 600 objections to the Bylaw towards bringing forward a less complex Bylaw but one that maintains the same format and structure, for potential adoption in 2012.

Case Comment: Teal Cedar Products Ltd. v. British Columbia (Ministry of Forests)

Expropriation cases are rarely argued at the Supreme Court of Canada.1 In July of 2012, the Supreme Court of Canada granted leave to appeal to Her Majesty the Queen in right of the Province of British Columbia's application in Teal Cedar Products Ltd. v. British Columbia (Ministry of Forests) ("Teal Cedar"). This case will likely be heard in 2013.

British Columbia raised two issues at the Court of Appeal, stating that the lower court judge erred:

In ordering that Teal is entitled to compensation for losses incurred during the period between the creation of the park in July 1995 and the reduction in its allowable annual cut in April 1999...