Articles & Publications

Publication, Staff | April 14, 2019 |

Social Media: Have Local Governments Been Blessed or Cursed? Practical Strategies for Risk Management

As published in CBA Municipal Law Section

Social media is a source of both opportunities and liabilities for local governments as service providers and employers. Social media differs from traditional media in that, instead of a oneway broadcast by trained professionals who abide by journalistic codes or ethics and have editors to provide objective review of content for accuracy and compliance with journalistic codes and ethics, social media involves a two-way platform that is available and accessible by anyone with a computer, with no editorial overview. Social media is much further reaching than traditional media used to be, as the content can be disseminated globally in an instant…

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Publication, Staff | October 26, 2018 | Sonia Sahota

Construction Bonds: A Useful Tool in a Local Government’s Strongbox

As published in Roadrunner Fall 2018:

Construction bonds are commonly used for public works infrastructure projects. Broadly speaking, a bond is a three-party agreement between the bonding company (the “Surety”), the service provider, such as a general or subcontractor (the “Principal” or “contractor”) and the service recipient or beneficiary, such as the project owner (the “Obligee” or “owner”). Under the bond, the Surety is required to step in and fulfill the Principal’s obligations to the Obligee in the event that the Principal breaches its obligations…

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Article, Staff | October 26, 2018 |

Cannabis Producer Challenges Municipal Land-Use Regulation, and Wins

The matter of 0826239 B.C. Ltd. v. Richmond (City), 2018 BCSC 1438 (CanLII) involved a business owner planning to operate an agricultural greenhouse facility within the City of Richmond and seeking building permits from the City to construct the greenhouses for the operation.  The dispute is seeded in lands that are part of the Agricultural Land Reserve (“ALR“).  The issue before the court was whether the City…

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Article, Staff | October 24, 2018 |

BC Supreme Court Reaffirms the Broad Discretionary Nature of the DVP Approval Process

The BC Supreme Court, in 1139652 B.C. Ltd. v. Whistler (Resort Municipality), 2018 BCSC 1806, recently reaffirmed the discretionary nature of the development variance permit (DVP) approval process under the Local Government Act (LGA) and the broad range of factors that may be considered by a local government council in considering an application.  While there is …

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Publication, Staff | October 23, 2018 |

A Battle of Priorities – Municipal property taxes and court orders in insolvency proceedings

Revenue from taxes on land and improvements are the life blood of municipal services.  As such, it is not surprising that each of Canada’s provinces and territories have enacted legislation to authorize not only the imposition and collection of such “property taxes,” but also to secure their collection. While there are some differences in the statutory language between jurisdictions, the various provincial and territorial statutes dealing with municipal and…

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Publication, Staff | June 26, 2018 | Sonia Sahota

The Climate is Changing, Are We?

As published in Roadrunner Summer 2018:

The provincial and federal governments, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) and the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) have officially stated that climate change is having an impact on local governments and their infrastructure due to increased extreme weather events and a rise in sea levels. The legal liability risks of climate change impacts include potential negligence claims, nuisance claims and regulatory liability…

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