Sagen v Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, 2009 BCCA 522 (20 November 2009) The British Columbian Court of Appeal has confirmed that the Canadian Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms does not apply to non-governmental entities or activities.  The Court also held that the Charter right to equal benefit of the law does not apply in respect of benefits that are created by a private entity that is not acting as an agent of the Crown.

EW, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2009] EWHC 2957 (Admin) (18 November 2009) In this case, the England and Wales High Court held that the extradition of an asylum seeker to a safe third country did not constitute refoulement even if that country was not able to provide temporary accommodation and financial support.  The right to freedom from cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment is entrenched in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and, relevantly for this case, the European Convention on Human Rights.  However, the Court in EW found that this right did not impose a positive obligation to ensure a ‘general right to accommodation or a minimum standard of living’ and, as such, would not be breached by the extradition.  The Court stated that ‘the setting of such a minimum standard – no matter how low – is a matter for social legislation, not the courts’.

Travel Sisters (Anti-Discrimination Exemption) [2009] VCAT A189/2009 (17 November 2009) In 2009, Erin Maitland applied to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (‘VCAT’) under s 83 of the Equal Opportunity Act 1995 (Vic) (‘EO Act’), for an exemption to allow her to operate women only travel tours. The applicant submitted that her proposed business would provide access to a safe and secure environment for women wishing to travel.

McInnes v Vicroads (General) [2009] VCAT 2342 (4 November 2009) McInnes made an application under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Vic) (‘FOI Act’) to VicRoads for a copy of an anonymous letter that VicRoads had received warning that his health might impact on his driving.  VicRoads asked McInnes to provide them with a medical report, upon the presentation of which his licence was confirmed by VicRoads.  However, the process caused McInnes to feel stressed and victimised.  McInnes believed that a neighbour in his hostel had sent the letter.

Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Ltd & Ors v Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty & Ors [2009] EWHC 2716 (QB) (30 October 2009) The High Court of England and Wales refused to grant amendments to an interim injunction that would have prevented animal rights activists from wearing blood spattered clothing, covering their faces with masks, displaying banners and using fireworks at a protest against a pharmaceutical company.  The Court explored where to draw the line between free expression and unlawful harassment, observing that this is a matter of fact and degree. 

Russell v Yarra Ranges Shire Council [2009] VSC 486 (29 October 2009) On 29 October 2009, Kaye J of the Supreme Court of Victoria considered the duty that a court or Tribunal might owe to an unrepresented litigant to ensure that the person understands his or her legal rights.  His Honour considered the principles of natural justice under common law and also the right to a fair hearing under s 24 of the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006.  Justice Kaye found that the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal had not breached the principles of natural justice and therefore had not denied rights under s 24 of the Charter. 

R (on the application of L) v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis [2009] UKSC 3 (29 October 2009)The United Kingdom Supreme Court has held that decisions to release information stored in public records about an individual’s criminal convictions, including non-conviction information, will always engage art 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights.  Accordingly, when deciding whether to release information under s 115 of the Police Act 1997 for the purposes of an enhanced criminal record certificate, decision makers must consider whether the disclosure of the information is likely to interfere with the applicant’s private life, and, if so, whether that interference can be justified.

Carey Baptist Grammar School Ltd (Anti-Discrimination Exemption) [2009] VCAT 2221 (23 October 2009) Carey Baptist Grammar School ('Carey') was also successful in its application to VCAT for an exemption from the Equal Opportunity Act 1995 (Vic) ('EO Act').  VCAT renewed Carey's exemption to enable it to treat prospective female students preferentially in order to promote a gender balance of the student body. 

Secretary to the Department of Justice v Fletcher (Ruling No 3) [2009] VSC 503 (22 October 2009)Section 49(2) of the Charter states that the Charter ‘does not affect any proceedings commenced or concluded before the commencement of Part 2’.In this case, the question arose as to whether a particular application in relation to an Extended Supervision Order (‘ESO’) under the Serious Sexual Offenders Monitoring Act 2005 (Vic) (‘SOM Act’) was a ‘proceeding’ and, if so, the relevant date of its commencement.

Metro West v Sudi [2009] VCAT 2025 (9 October 2009) The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal has held that a non-profit housing agency is a ‘public authority’ under section 4(c) of the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (Vic).

Joseph v City of Johanesburg [2009] ZACC 30 (9 October 2009) The Constitutional Court of South Africa has held that government-owned electricity service providers have an obligation to accord procedural fairness to tenants receiving electricity before disconnecting supply.

Mazibuko v City of Johanesburg [2009] ZACC 29 (8 October 2009) The decision of the Constitutional Court of South Africa in Mazibuko v City of Johannesburg [2009] ZACC 28 is the first to consider the right of access to sufficient water entrenched in the South African Bill of Rights.  Its elucidation of the principles to be applied when Courts adjudicate cases based on economic and social rights will be crucial to the understanding of these rights both within and outside South Africa.