Rights complaint back in court

Lawyer for woman diagnosed with schizophrenia argues Supreme Court judge erred

A human rights complaint over a woman with a mental illness’s access to P.E.I.’s disability support program was back in court recently.

The lawyer for Millie King, who filed the complaint on behalf of her daughter Laura, appeared in the P.E.I. Court of Appeal to argue a lower court judge erred in a judicial review of the case.

Mike Dull argued Supreme Court Justice Nancy Key made several errors when she sent the complaint back to a P.E.I. Human Rights Commission panel. Laura King has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, but was not eligible for the province’s disability support program because it did not cover people with mental illness.

After a hearing, a human rights commission panel ordered the provincial government to pay Laura $15,000 in damages and $16,000 in costs.

It also ordered the province to include people with mental illness in the disability support program.

The government sought a judicial review of that decision.

Before Key delivered her decision that sent the matter back to the human rights commission, the province announced it was going to change the program to include people with mental illness.

Ruth DeMone, a lawyer for the province, was in court arguing the three appeal judges should uphold Key’s decision.

The human rights commission’s executive director, Brenda Picard, was also in court Tuesday where she said Key erred in her decision.

The appeal judges expect to render their decision some time in the new year.