The Saskatchewan Court of Appeals has overturned the ruling that had broad implications for the separate school system in the province.
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The court case began in 2003, when Theodore School was closed, and then reopened as St. Theodore Roman Catholic School in the town of Theodore. The initial closure, when the Theodore school was part of the Yorkdale School Division, and made due to declining enrolment. The town then formed the Theodore Catholic School Division, which re-opened the school as a minority religion separate school. Crucially, it also allowed non-Catholic students to take part in classes.
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The move had precedent, as the town of Englefeld did the same thing in the 1990s to form the Englefeld Protestant Separate School Division after their school was closed.听
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However, in a 2017 ruling, Justice Donald Layh ruled that the province was violating the Charter of Rights and Freedoms by allowing the funding for non-minority faith students in Catholic schools. The ruling had broad effects for the province鈥檚 Catholic school system, and the Provincial Government invoked the notwithstanding clause to continue funding students as-was until the appeal made its way through the court.
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The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal has now made its ruling, and it has ruled in favor of the Government of Saskatchewan and the Christ the Teacher Catholic School Division.听
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During the course of the case, the school divisions merged, with the Yorkdale School Division becoming part of the Good Spirit School Division, while the one school Theodore Catholic School Division was made part of the Christ the Teacher Catholic School Division.
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In a 133 page ruling, the Court of Appeal outlined why they have rejected Layh鈥檚 earlier ruling.
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The court of appeal stated that the case was not about the constitutionality of funding of non-Catholic students in Catholic schools, stating 鈥渢o define the case so narrowly overstates what is at stake and understates the interconnectivity of the constitutional protection afforded to separate schools and the legislative scheme at play.鈥� Instead, the Education Act of 1995 and The Education Funding Regulations, RRS c E-0.2 Reg 20 鈥渃onfer a right on any child resident in any school division to attend any publicly funded school within that division.鈥� Because the separate school system remains a publicly funded system, that means parents can choose which school division they want to send their children to attend.
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The appeals court also disputed the GSSD鈥檚 case of religious discrimination based on private religious schools receiving partial government funding, stating that it was not the proper application of the Charter right of religious freedom.
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The third grounds for dismissal was that the protections offered to separate schools do not create inequality under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, stating one part of the constitution cannot be used to invalidate another.听
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The appeal also set aside the earlier decision awarding the Good Spirit School Division legal costs from the Christ the Teacher Catholic School Division. No order was made for costs in the Court of Appeals decision, as the plaintiffs and defendants in the case - two school divisions and the Government of Saskatchewan - share the same source of funding, the taxpayers of Saskatchewan.听
