Deference outside a Decision-Maker's 'Home' Statute: Bernard v. Canada (Attorney General), 2014 SCC 13

There is another aspect of Bernard v. Canada (Attorney General), 2014 SCC 13 (discussed here) that is of general interest. When the matter was remitted to it, the Public Service Labour Relations Board had to address whether its order that an employer had to disclose home contact information of non-union employees was compatible with privacy legislation. In particular, it had to ask whether disclosure to the union would be consistent with "the purpose for which the information was obtained" as per s. 8(2)(a) of the Privacy Act. But the Privacy Act is not something that the Board encounters on a regular basis. Was its interpretation nonetheless entitled to deference?

Giving Directions to Administrative Decision-Makers (for Self-Represented Litigants): Bernard v. Canada (Attorney General), 2014 SCC 13

Bernard v. Canada (Attorney General), 2014 SCC 13 represents the end of a long struggle for Ms. Bernard, an employee of the Canadian revenue service who challenged -- without counsel -- her employer's ability to send her personal contact details to a union. A decision ordering disclosure was ultimately upheld as reasonable and constitutional but there was an interesting divergence of views on the Supreme Court of Canada about the jurisdiction of an administrative decision-maker to which a matter has been remitted with directions.