FCM’s Legal Defense Fund - A TRACK RECORD OF SUCCESS

FCM’s Legal Defense Fund

A TRACK RECORD OF SUCCESS

CONSTITUTIONAL JURISDICTION OF MUNICIPALITIES

The 2001 decision by the Supreme Court of Canada in the Spraytech v. Hudson case, in which FCM intervened on behalf of the municipal sector, ushered in a new approach to how courts should interpret the legislative authority of municipal councils. In that case, the Supreme Court indicated that courts should show deference to the choices made by local elected officials, in this case the Town of Hudson, Quebec. The Court also indicated that municipal legislative authority should be interpreted broadly and that local rules could coexist with federal regulations. Since then, FCM has continued to play an active role, as intervener, in a number of cases where the basic ability of municipalities to use their legislative powers has been at stake. Recent examples include Rogers v. Châteauguay, Windsor v. Canadian Transit Company (both heard by the Supreme Court in 2016) and Hamilton v. Canada Post (Court of Appeal for Ontario in 2016).

RIGHTS-OF-WAY MANAGEMENT

The deregulation of the telecommunications sector in 1993 completely changed the ROW environment overnight. A number of new, commercially aggressive providers sought quick access to municipal ROWs to deploy their networks. Through its Technical Committee on ROWs (some 40 legal and technical experts from across the country), FCM has coordinated the municipal sector's response for 25 years: development of best practices, information sharing and active participation in a number of legal cases. FCM was the Appellant to the Federal Court of Appeal in the landmark Ledcor case that established the principle that municipalities have the right to recover all incremental costs related to telecommunications activity on their land. FCM also intervened in early cases such as the Edmonton LRT tunnels as well as recent precedent-setting cases: next-generation access agreements (CRTC decision in Hamilton v. Bell), the applicability of general ROW bylaws to federal undertakings (Court of Appeal for Ontario in Hamilton v. Canada Post) and the use of bylaws to grant “consent” under the Telecommunications Act (brought by Calgary and currently before the CRTC).

WHAT MUNICIPAL LEADERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE LEGAL DEFENSE FUND:

“The FCM Legal Defense Fund has played a critical role in advancing municipalities' constitutional and legal interests. In 2012, FCM defended the sector's interests in our city's payments in lieu dispute before the Supreme Court of Canada with the federal government regarding the valuation of Halifax's Citadel Hill. After a successful Supreme Court decision, this case was successfully resolved in 2016. The Fund remains a key tool for bringing the national voice to legal disputes and in defending the municipal sector's collective interests.” Mayor Mike Savage, City of Halifax, Nova Scotia

“Defending municipal jurisdiction in court is a tall task for municipalities to bear on their own — especially for smaller municipalities. That's why FCM's Legal Defense Fund is such a critical tool. A well-supported Fund is key to defending the legal interests of municipalities of all sizes. FCM is consistently recognized by the courts as the sole national representative of our sector in cases of national importance. We need to continue to support the Fund to ensure that FCM is able to intervene in precedent-setting cases that impact each and every one of us.” Councillor Lorne Olsvik, Lac Ste. Anne County, Alberta

To learn more, visit the membership page at fcm.ca.