Home | Index | Blog | No Autistics Allowed: Autism Society Canada Speaks For Itself The Auton Case: The Intervener's Factum | The Many Varieties of Being Written Off AN AUTISTIC AT THE SUPREME COURT The Auton Case: Application, Opposition, Order 1. THE APPLICATION: (a) Application for Leave to Intervene (b) Affidavit of Michelle Dawson (c) Affidavit of Laurent Mottron 2. THE OPPOSITION: (a) The Parents Oppose (b) The Government Opposes (c) Response to Opposition 3. THE ORDER 1(a). THE APPLICATION: Application for Leave to Intervene File No. 29508
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF CANADA
(On Appeal from the Court of Appeal of British
Columbia)
BETWEEN: THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF BRITISH COLUMBIA and
THE MEDICAL SERVICES COMMISSION OF BRITISH COLUMBIA Appellants
(Respondents on Cross-Appeal) AND: CONNOR AUTON, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad
Litem,
MICHELLE AUTON, and the said MICHELLE AUTON in her personal capacity, MICHELLE TAMIR, an Infant, by her Guardian Ad Litem, SABRINA FREEMAN, and the said SABRINA FREEMAN in her personal capacity, JORDAN LEFAIVRE, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad Litem, LEIGHTON LEFAIVRE, and the said LEIGHTON LEFAIVRE in his personal capacity, RUSSELL GORDON PEARCE, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad Litem, JANET GORDON PEARCE and the said JANET GORDON PEARCE in her personal capacity Respondents (Appellants on Cross-Appeal)
NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR LEAVE TO INTERVENE (Rule 55, Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada) NOTICE OF MOTION TAKE NOTICE that Ms. Michelle Dawson
will apply to a judge of this Court, at a date to be
fixed by the Registrar, pursuant to Rule 55 of the Rules
of the Supreme Court of Canada, and for an order
pursuant to subsection 19(5) permitting oral argument
at the hearing of the appeal.
AND FURTHER TAKE NOTICE that the
following documents will be referred to in such
motion:
Tab 1: Affidavit of Michelle Dawson Tab 2 Affidavit and curriculum vitae of Professor Laurent Mottron and such further or other material as counsel may advise and be permitted. AND FURTHER TAKE NOTICE that the said
motion shall be made on the following grounds:
DATED AT MONTREAL, this 11th day of February 2004. Doug Mitchell IRVING, MITCHELL & ASSOCIATES 4119 Sherbrooke Street West Westmount, Quebec H3Z 1A7 Tel: (514) 935-2725 Fax: (514) 935-2999 Email: dmitchell@irvingmitchell.com Solicitors for the Applicant to Intervene Michelle Dawson ORIGINAL TO: THE REGISTRAR COPIES: 1(b). APPLICATION: Affidavit of Michelle Dawson File No. 29508
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF CANADA
(On Appeal from the Court of Appeal of British
Columbia)
BETWEEN: THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF BRITISH COLUMBIA and
THE MEDICAL SERVICES COMMISSION OF BRITISH COLUMBIA Appellants
(Respondents on Cross-Appeal) AND: CONNOR AUTON, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad
Litem,
MICHELLE AUTON, and the said MICHELLE AUTON in her personal capacity, MICHELLE TAMIR, an Infant, by her Guardian Ad Litem, SABRINA FREEMAN, and the said SABRINA FREEMAN in her personal capacity, JORDAN LEFAIVRE, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad Litem, LEIGHTON LEFAIVRE, and the said LEIGHTON LEFAIVRE in his personal capacity, RUSSELL GORDON PEARCE, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad Litem, JANET GORDON PEARCE and the said JANET GORDON PEARCE in her personal capacity Respondents (Appellants on Cross-Appeal)
AFFIDAVIT OF MICHELLE DAWSON
I the undersigned, Michelle Dawson, postal
worker, residing and domiciled at [street address],
Montreal, Quebec, having been duly sworn hereby depose
and say:
Solemnly declared before me at Montreal, this 11th day of February 2004 (S) Mary Eleftheriadis #148840 ________________________________________ Commissioner for Oaths for the judicial district of Montreal 1(c). APPLICATION: Affidavit of Laurent Mottron File No. 29508
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF CANADA
(On Appeal from the Court of Appeal of British
Columbia)
BETWEEN: THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF BRITISH COLUMBIA and
THE MEDICAL SERVICES COMMISSION OF BRITISH COLUMBIA Appellants
(Respondents on Cross-Appeal) AND: CONNOR AUTON, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad
Litem,
MICHELLE AUTON, and the said MICHELLE AUTON in her personal capacity, MICHELLE TAMIR, an Infant, by her Guardian Ad Litem, SABRINA FREEMAN, and the said SABRINA FREEMAN in her personal capacity, JORDAN LEFAIVRE, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad Litem, LEIGHTON LEFAIVRE, and the said LEIGHTON LEFAIVRE in his personal capacity, RUSSELL GORDON PEARCE, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad Litem, JANET GORDON PEARCE and the said JANET GORDON PEARCE in her personal capacity Respondents (Appellants on Cross-Appeal)
AFFIDAVIT OF LAURENT MOTTRON I, the undersigned, Laurent Mottron,
psychiatrist, residing and domiciled at [street
address], Montreal, Quebec, having
solemnly affirmed, do hereby state:
Solemnly declared before me at Montreal, this 11th day of February 2004 (S) Mary Eleftheriadis #148840 ________________________________________ Commissioner for Oaths for the judicial district of Montreal 2(a). THE OPPOSITION: The Parents Oppose: (February 26, 2004) RE: AGBC et al. v. Connor Auton, et al. Court File No. 29508 “We are the solicitors for the Respondents in
the above-noted appeal and write to set out our
position with respect to the several applications for
leave to intervene now before the Court. […]
“The Respondents oppose the applications for leave to appeal by: […] Michelle Dawson because, in our respectful opinion, the issues will be adequately canvassed by the Court by those referred to above, and of course the parties themselves. […]” (the above is an excerpt; for the complete document click here [136k]) 2(b). THE OPPOSITION: The Government Opposes: (March 1, 2004) Re: The Attorney General of British Columbia
and the Medical Services Commission of British
Columbia v. Auton et al.
File Number
29508[…] “We are in receipt of nine applications for
leave to intervene in the above captioned matter. The
Appellant, Attorney General of British Columbia,
submits that the interests of many of the proposed
interveners are so conjoined that they should not be
allowed to file separate factums, or to make separate
oral submissions, assuming the right to make oral
submissions is granted. The Attorney General further
submits that several of the proposed interveners, viz.,
DAWN Canada, the Society for Making Autism Readily
Treatable, and Michelle Dawson cannot provide a unique
perspective on the issues in this case and as such,
their applications should be denied. The position of
the Attorney General with regard to each of the
applications is set out below. […]
“The proposed intervener, Michelle Dawson, indicates that she is an adult diagnosed with autism. Michelle Dawson seeks to place before this Court the perspective of an adult person with autism in respect of certain comments made in the Courts below regarding people with autism generally. Such a perspective was not before the Courts below. In the result, this application should be denied. […]” (the above is an excerpt; for the complete document, click here [318k]) 2(c). THE OPPOSITION: Response to Opposition Direct line: (514) 935-2725
March 5, 2004dmitchell@irvingmitchell.com BY TELECOPIER The Registrar SUPREME COURT OF CANADA Room 166 301 Wellington Street Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0J1 Attention: Joanne Laniel Re: A.G.B.C. et al. v. Connor Auton et al. Court File No.: 29508 _____________ Dear Ms. Laniel, We are the attorneys for Michelle Dawson in the
above-noted appeal and wish to reply to the
submissions by both the Appellants and the Respondents
in response to Ms. Dawson’s Application for Leave to
Intervene.
First of all, we are disappointed to note that both parties who claim to be representing the interest of autistic individuals claim that the intervention of an autistic individual would serve no useful purpose for this Court. For the reasons that are in our Application for Leave to Intervene we believe it would be extremely beneficial for the Court to have the perspective of at least one autistic individual in this hearing. In addition, we note with some irony that while the Respondents state that Ms. Dawson’s Application for Leave to Intervene should be refused since it adds nothing to the matter, the Appellant takes the position that Ms. Dawson’s intervention should not be granted since it represents a perspective that was not before the lower courts. In our view, the Respondent is right that the perspective represented by Ms. Dawson’s intervention was in fact not before the courts below. Furthermore, our view is that it is vital that such a perspective be before the court and it is precisely because of this unique perspective which Ms. Dawson’s intervention brings that the intervention should be granted. This court has recognition in Harper that an individual with a particular expertise and experience can make a valuable contribution to the Court’s full understanding of the issues before it. I trust this is satisfactory, and remain, Yours very truly, Doug Mitchell DM/me
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF BRITISH COLUMBIA and
THE MEDICAL SERVICES COMMISSION OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
v. CONNOR AUTON, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad
Litem, MICHELLE AUTON, and the said MICHELLE AUTON,
in her personal capacity, MICHELLE TAMIR, an Infant,
by her Guardian Ad Litem, SABRINA FREEMAN, and the
said SABRINA FREEMAN in her personal capacity,
JORDAN LEFAIVRE, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad
Litem, LEIGHTON LEFAIVRE in his personal capacity,
RUSSELL GORDON PEARCE, an Infant, by his Guardian Ad
Litem, JANET GORDON PEARCE, and the said JANET
GORDON PEARCE in her personal capacity
(B.C.) (29508)LEBEL J.: UPON APPLICATIONS by the Canadian
Association for Community Living and the Council of
Canadians with Disabilities, the British Columbia
Coalition of People with Disabilities, the Families
for Early Autism Treatment of Ontario, the Autism
Society Canada, the Families for Effective Autism
Treatment of Alberta Foundation, The Women's Legal
Education and Action Fund and the DisAbled Women's
Network Canada, Ms. Michelle Dawson, the Society
Making Autism Readily Treatable and the Friends of
Children with Autism for leave to intervene in the
above appeal;
After reviewing the material filed in support, it appears that not all these motions should be granted. I am of the view that the motion of the British Columbia Coalition of People with Disabilities, which belongs to the Canadian Association for the Autism Society of Canada, fails to indicate any distinct perspective which would be of assistance to the Court and should be dismissed. The applications of the Families for Early Autism Treatment of Ontario and the Families for Effective Autism Treatment of Alberta Foundation raise the same issues and the same perspectives. They should be granted leave to intervene, but will have to file a joint factum. The motion of the Society Making Autism Readily Treatable should not be allowed as it seeks to introduce new issues and additional evidence in the record. The other applications should be granted. AND HAVING READ the material filed; IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT:
The requests to present oral argument are
deferred to a date following the receipt and
consideration of the written arguments of the
parties and the interveners.
The interveners shall not be entitled to
raise new issues or adduce further evidence or
otherwise to supplement the record of the parties.
Pursuant to Rule 59(1)(a) the
interveners shall pay to the appellants and
respondents any additional disbursements
occasioned to the appellants and respondents by
their intervention.
J.C.S.C.
J.S.C.C. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
For the full text of the Charter, click here. For further developments see: The Auton Case: The Intervener's Factum The Many Varieties of Being Written Off An Argument About Autism As Catastrophe The Auton Case: The Decision of the Supreme Court An Autistic Victory The True Meaning of the Auton Decision |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Top | Comments | E-mail | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||