Ontario’s Court of Appeal has overturned a permanent injunction against a group of Indigenous people who occupied the site of a proposed housing development near Caledonia, Ont.
The court says the Superior Court judge who heard the October 2020 motion erred when he denied an Indigenous man’s rights to procedural fairness.
Justice Lorne Sossin says motion judge John Harper did not properly inform Skyler Williams about the proceeding against him and did not give him an opportunity to consult legal counsel or respond to allegations.
Sossin says it was unfair of Harper to bar Williams from participating in the proceedings after finding him in violation of the injunction, and noted that Williams was brought into the litigation, was self-represented and the court order carried serious consequences for him.
Sossin also noted that Williams had sought to raise issues about Indigenous legal claims, which he was entitled to do.
He also set aside costs of more than $140,000 that Harder had ordered Williams pay to the development company and Haldimand County.
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