A Rare Case of Excessive Delay

During the early months of the pandemic the New Brunswick regulator for pharmacists felt the urgent need to be able to waive some of its registration requirements to ensure that there were enough pharmacists to meet the province’s health care demands. However, their registration requirements were set out in mandatory language without the ability to exempt them. In New Brunswick College of Pharmacists v Province of New Brunswick, 2020 NBQB 92, <http://canlii.ca/t/j8hzz>, the regulator asked the Court to use its inherent jurisdiction to enable the regulator to register applicants who did not meet all of the compulsory requirements. The government consented to the application. However, the Court declined the request. The Court viewed its role as interpreting the law, including ensuring that laws comply with the Constitution of Canada. The Court did not see its role as creating law in a manner that was inconsistent with laws already enacted by the Legislature or created by the government (e.g., in a regulation). The Court suggested that the regulator approach the government to enact amending regulations on an urgent basis.

More Posts

Controlled Acts and Criminal Offences

A senior osteopathic practitioner and instructor knew that performing an internal vaginal procedure was a “controlled act” that was not permitted to him under the

Standoff

In registration matters, regulators often ask for additional information to support the application. Often the application is considered incomplete until all of the requested information

Applicants with a Criminal History

There has been increasing scrutiny of the fairness of registration requirements based on the criminal record of applicants. To address that concern, many regulators conduct

Getting Technical

In 1979, Ontario’s Divisional Court said that an allegation of professional misconduct “is not in the form of [a criminal] indictment and it should not