BC Supreme Court orders new hearing in landlord-tenant case over procedural unfairness
The landlord was denied a fair chance to respond to the tenant’s evidence: court
The Supreme Court of British Columbia ruled that the Residential Tenancy Branch (RTB) failed to provide the landlord a fair opportunity to respond to the tenant’s evidence, making the decision procedurally unfair.
The landlord sought judicial review, arguing that the RTB’s process was procedurally unfair. The Supreme Court agreed and found that the RTB deprived the landlord of the opportunity to appropriately respond to the tenant’s evidence due to issues with the exchange of materials before the hearing. Although the RTB tried to rectify this by ordering an exchange of evidence, the court found that it unfairly restricted the landlord from submitting additional evidence in response.
The court ruled that procedural fairness requires that both parties have the right to know and respond to the case against them. The landlord’s failure to do so amounted to a breach of natural justice, warranting a new hearing.
The landlord also alleged bias on the part of the RTB arbitrator, but the court rejected this claim, finding no evidence of partiality. …[Continue Reading]