CCLA Granted Leave to Intervene in BC Case on Medical Assistance in Dying and Freedom of Religion

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) has been granted leave to intervene in Gaye O’Neill et al. v. His Majesty the King in Right of the Province of British Columbia et al., a case that examines whether faith-based hospitals can invoke independent freedom of religion protections to refuse providing medical assistance in dying (MAiD).

The plaintiffs, including the family of the late Ms. O’Neill, challenge the legislative framework that allows faith-based healthcare institutions that are publicly funded to deny MAiD for religious reasons. Ms. O’Neill, diagnosed with Stage 4 cervical cancer, was denied access to MAiD at St. Paul’s Hospital, which is operated by Providence, a Catholic health organization that opposes the procedure on religious grounds. In order to access MAiD, Ms. O’Neill had to be transferred to another hospital. Due to excruciating pain, Ms. O’Neill was sedated heavily during the transfer. Tragically, she never regained consciousness afterwards, and was thus deprived of the dignified death she sought through MAiD.

CCLA will intervene in this case to provide a principled framework for assessing whether, and to what extent, faith-based organizations can claim standalone freedom of religion protections that would be independent from the medical staff’s individual right to conscientious objection. CCLA will argue that when an organization’s primary purpose is not worship or the promotion of religious beliefs and practices, ascribing independent religious rights to the organization will pose inevitable difficulties. Resolving this issue is critically important to this case because the existence and scope of institutional s. 2(a) rights will impact how such rights are reconciled or balanced against other potentially competing rights or interests.

CCLA is grateful for the outstanding pro bono representation of Robert J.C. Deane, Michelle T. Maniago and Alysha Flipse from Borden Ladner Gervais LLP in this case.