Case information

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Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.

Charter of Rights - Right to equality - Discrimination based on age - Discrimination based on sex - Discrimination based on marital status - Enforcement - Limitation of actions - Appellant losing her surviving spouse benefits upon her remarriage, pursuant to The Workers’ Compensation Act, 1979, R.S.S., c. W-17 - Legislative amendments allowing retroactive reinstatement of benefits for spouses who remarry not extending back to the benefit of Appellant - Appellant pursuing action to have legislation declared unconstitutional and discriminatory pursuant to s. 15 of the Charter - Whether the Court of Appeal of Saskatchewan erred in law in holding that the Appellant was not bound by The Limitation of Actions Act, R.S.S. 1978, c. L-15 from challenging the constitutionality of various workers’ compensation legislation, but was precluded from advancing any claim for personal relief incidental thereto.

Because of the date upon which she remarried, the Appellant did not qualify for the legislated reinstatement of a surviving spousal benefit to which she had been entitled when her first husband died from injuries arising out of and in the course of his employment. The reinstatement was only retroactive to the date upon which s. 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms came into effect, and the Appellant had remarried six months earlier. The Appellant did not apply for a lump sum payment available to persons in her predicament under The Special Payment (Dependant Spouses) Act, S.S. 1999, c. S-56.01. Instead, she brought an action seeking a declaration that s. 25 of The Workers’ Compensation Amendment Act, 1985, S.S. 1984-85-86, c. 89, and s. 98.1(5) of The Workers’ Compensation Act, 1979, S.S. 1979, c. W-17.1, along with The Special Payment (Dependant Spouses) Act, are unconstitutional and of no force and effect. She claimed they are discriminatory on the basis of sex, age and marital status, contrary to s. 15 of the Charter. She also sought reinstatement of her spousal pension, damages, interest and costs. The Respondents applied for the determination of a point of law pursuant to Rule 188 of The Queen’s Bench Rules. The issue was whether the Appellant’s cause of action was subject to s. 3 of The Limitation of Actions Act, R.S.S. 1978, c. L-15, and was thereby statute barred.

The Court of Queen’s Bench of Saskatchewan held that the Appellant’s cause of action was subject to s. 3 of The Limitation of Actions Act and was thereby statute barred. The Court of Appeal of Saskatchewan allowed the appeal and ordered the reinstatement of the prayers for relief in paras. (a) to (c) of Appellant’s statement of claim relating to the declarations of unconstitutionality of the legislative provisions. Smith J.A., dissenting, would have allowed the appeal in its entirety.