Application & Affidavit for Interlocutory Relief – To add exhibits and authorities also correct errors, mistakes, and omissions in the Written Submission for judicial review hearing May 19, 2017
Notice to the Dishonorable Minister of Municipal Affairs, Deron Bilous, was ignored see exhibit “D” – council resolved (575-2015) to make application for judicial review
On September 22, 2015 Thorhild County Council resolved (575-2015) to make application for judicial review of the June 19, 2015 Municipal Inspection Report of Thorhild County. This occurred 2 weeks after Municipal Affairs surprised Council and the community with the defamatory inspection report and severe directives. On this very same day for my councillor report I read aloud a Notice to Minister Bilous which was a request for assistance, Council then resolved to publish the Notice in the Review newspaper. I personally wrote to assistant deputy minister Gary Sandberg to inform him of the Notice to Minister Bilous and he confirmed that the minister would be notified. Council did not receive any communication regarding the request for assistance from the minister or department.
Services of law firm terminated by council resolution – official administrators (official henchmen) disallow resolutions
3 law firms were used in relation to the inspection report and judicial review. Several lawyers from the 3rd firm were working on the judicial review file from December 2015 to December 2016. A year of frustration with lack of communication, repeated delays and constant changes were the impetus for a telephone meeting in late December 2016 with county lawyers, council, and administration. On January 3, 2017 Council resolved to terminate the services of the law firm regarding the judicial review legal matter and approved the retention of a qualified legal firm to ensure the timely continuance of the judicial review matter. Resolutions 006-2017 and 007-2017 were disallowed by the official administrators thus interfering with natural person powers to change law firms. Council was forced to use the same law firm and it provided a 4th lawyer to take over the judicial review file.
The gold-standard Barclay report ignored by county lawyer.
On January 25, 2017 I supplied the Barclay report to council and administration and requested it be forwarded to the 4th lawyer. This gold-standard inspection/inquiry report was discovered by my research and the combined research of a talented member of the public. The Barclay report was not used by the 4th lawyer for the best interests of the county and I tried to have it added to the written submission. The written submission was filed at the court and council did not have opportunity to review it before filing.
Lawyer quoted $5000 to $8000 to write a letter for me.
At this point I contacted the Law Society of Alberta and was supplied contact information for the Lawyer Referral Service. After speaking to some lawyers it was made clear that legal advice could not be provided unless a lawyer was retained. What was recommended was: an immediate review of the judicial review information to become familiar with the matter – didn’t appear to be any court application that could be made to remedy my concerns – have to start reviewing the file immediately with a retainer of $5000-$8000 – and after concluding the research the most likely option available would be to write to the county lawyer expressing my concerns. $5000-$8000 was far too much of a cost for writing a letter. After this my research partner and I did some additional research and filed an application with affidavit. The importance of this was to add exhibits and authorities to the judicial review record and to correct the errors, mistakes and omissions in the written submission that was not provided to council before the filing deadline.
Remedy claimed or sought:
1. For a court order granting Interlocutory/Interim Relief;
2. To direct Denton’s Counsel to add Exhibits and Authorities contained in my Affidavit supporting this Application into the Record, “Written Submissions for THORHILD COUNTY” for the Judicial Review hearing for May 19, 2017.
Grounds for making this application:
Why this application should succeed:
1. To correct the errors, mistakes and omissions from Dentons’ Written Submission, this would help make better use of Court time, by providing more accurate and relevant authorities and exhibits to all parties to help decide this matter. It would provide a more effective resolution to this matter with parties correctly informed. It would prevent a very costly, unnecessary appeal by the parties involved that would take years to resolve. It would also prevent a future re-litigation of similar issues by other Municipalities or concerned parties.
2. Commissioner R. L. Barclay detailed a very procedurally fair Inspection/Inquiry process that could be implemented in Alberta to guide Municipalities and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs. The relevant Statutes of Saskatchewan (Municipal Act S.S. s. 396 and s. 397 are very similar to that of Alberta with regards to MGA Act s. 571 and s. 572 dealing with Inspections and Inquiries, respectively. These municipal act statutes regarding Inspections and inquiries are directed by the respective Public Inquires Act statutes in terms of correct legal procedures and common law principles to be used in such matters.
3. Without the interference of the “natural person powers” of our municipality by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and especially the actions from the appointed Official Administrators, matters with the Minister could have be easily resolved prior to the completion of the Inspection Record, with a minimum of time and cost to everyone. It was absolutely necessary for Thorhild County to choose their own legal counsel to prevent this blatant “apprehension of bias” from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs in hindering and hobbling us in so many ways.
4. I am making this application, not just for our community, but several other communities and municipalities throughout Alberta to prevent this ever happening again.
Affidavit of Dan Buryn to support an application for Interlocutory Relief
JUDICIAL REVIEW MATTER: MAY 19, 2017