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Mar 04 2026

Supportive Housing Tenancy Rules Strengthened [Early Consolidation]

On March 4, Bill 11, the Residential Tenancy Amendment Act, 2026, was introduced and proposes amendments to the Residential Tenancy Act to improve health and safety in supportive housing while continuing to protect the rights of tenants. Supportive housing is subsidized housing with on-site supports for people at risk of or experiencing homelessness, to help improve housing stability, quality of life and greater independence of tenants.

Some of the new tools proposed by the legislation to help supportive housing providers deal with disruptive tenants include:

  • the authority to enforce bans on weapons;
  • options for providers to temporarily restrict access to certain individuals when critical health and safety risks to other residents and staff exist; and
  • clarifying the circumstances on when and where the Residential Tenancy Act applies.

Most of these amendments are set to come into force in the future by regulation.

For your convenience, Quickscribe has published an early consolidation of the changes to the Residential Tenancy Act.

 

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Feb 26 2026

Bill 9 Streamlines Freedom of Information Process

Bill 9, the Freedom of Information and Privacy Amendment Act, 2026, amends the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and intends to streamline the process for Freedom of Information (FOI) requests and improve the Connected Service of BC digital services delivery.

The amendments aim to improve the FOI process for applicants by:

  • enabling the release of information to individuals seeking their own personal information (representing 60% of FOI requests);
  • enabling an applicant to consent to a public body to extend the timeline of an FOI request, without requiring further approval;
  • expanding the process to allow public bodies to apply to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner (OIPC) to disregard certain requests, including any associated with abusive or malicious behaviour; and
  • reducing duplication and the processing of duplicate requests.

The legislation will also improve OIPC operations by enabling collaboration with other regulators in Canada, clarifying research review requirements and allowing for reasonable time extensions for completing reviews. Communications from the judiciary will also be protected to ensure judicial independence.

The amendments will also improve the delivery of Connected Services BC by setting up a single government gateway for people to apply to and receive government services, as well as establish new collection, use and disclosure purposes under the Act.

 

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Feb 23 2026

Bill 8 Introduced - Civil Forfeiture Amendment Act, 2026

Bill 8, the Civil Forfeiture Amendment Act, 2026, which was introduced on February 23, 2026, makes amendments to the Civil Forfeiture Act. The Bill intends to lower litigation costs, improve clarity, strengthen fairness safeguards and preserve the value of assets to be used toward crime prevention programs, services for victims and community safety initiatives. The legislation will improve timelines, dispute rules and safeguards for information sharing. If passed, the Bill will come into force by Royal Assent.

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Recent Contributions From Our Experts

Moon v. International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (Local 891), 2025 BCSC 2238 concerned whether a union’s disclosure of an internal audit report violated British Columbia’s Personal Information Protection Act (“PIPA”). The audit addressed a senior union steward’s mi...

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Karen Zimmer, Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP on PERSONAL INFORMATION PROTECTION ACT

In Vabuolas v. British Columbia (Information and Privacy Commissioner), 2025 BCCA 83, the Applicants challenged an order issued by an adjudicator under the Personal Information Protection Act, S.B.C 2003, c. 63 (“PIPA”). The Applicants are members and elders of the Grand Forks...

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Karen Zimmer, Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP on PERSONAL INFORMATION PROTECTION ACT

In Cohen 2023 BCSECCOM 317 an application was made to the BC Securities Commission for orders than notice delivered under an advance notice policy requiring notice with respect to the election of directors be included in a circular and that the shareholder vote be restrained u...

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Teresa Tomchak, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP on SECURITIES ACT

The policy considerations underlying section 60 of the Wills, Estates and Succession Act, together with the nature of constructive trusts was the subject of some debate in a series of articles published in The Advocate in 2022.

A healthy and respectful canvassing of positi...

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D. Michael Bain, K.C., Hamilton Howell Bain & Gould on WILLS, ESTATES AND SUCCESSION ACT

Decisions of the court under s. 17 are not limited appeal orders and therefore leave is not required under s. 11 of the Court of Appeal Rules to appeal.

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Melanie Harmer, McMillan LLP on JUDICIAL REVIEW PROCEDURE ACT

In Singh v Singh, 2020 BCCA 21, the Court of Appeal restricts the nature of the "other factors" that may be argued in favour of reapoprtionment. Justice Garson reviews the specific factors identified in section 95(2) and, applying the principles of statutory interpretation, co...

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John-Paul Boyd QC, John-Paul E. Boyd Arbitration Chambers on FAMILY LAW ACT

Oppression claims are subject to the Limitation Act. There is, however, no time bar to the court’s exercise of its jurisdiction to grant a remedy under this section, save for what might arise out of the equitable defence of laches. A laches defence will lie if the defendant c...

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Debby Cumberford, Deborah M. Cumberford on BUSINESS CORPORATIONS ACT

The court applied this provision in Re Boisvert Estate, 2026 BCSC 195, allowing the surviving spouse to retain the spousal home, subject to a charge in favour of the deceased's children, but limited the period for which the surviving spouse could retain the home to a further 2...

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Stanley Rule, Sabey Rule LLP on WILLS, ESTATES AND SUCCESSION ACT

In Wang v. Li, 2025 BCCA 256, the Court of Appeal dismissed two appeals in related family and civil proceedings concerning the respondent ex-wife, her parents, and the appellant ex-husband and their various assets located in BC and China. With respect to certain of the Chinese...

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OnPoint Legal Research, Onpoint Legal Research Law Corporation on FAMILY LAW ACT

College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia v. Madryga, 2025 BCCA 250: Section 53(1) imposes a general duty to preserve confidentiality “with respect to all matters or things that come to the person’s knowledge while exercising a power or performing a duty under thi...

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Joel Morris, Harper Grey LLP on HEALTH PROFESSIONS ACT

The filing of a Notice of Dispute is a "proceeding" for the purpose of this section. After a Notice of Dispute is filed, the court may appoint an administrator pending legal proceedings. In Glendale v. Walker, 2024 BCSC 1947, the disputant successfully brought a petition to ap...

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Stanley Rule, Sabey Rule LLP on WILLS, ESTATES AND SUCCESSION ACT

In BC EST # D063/17 (Red Chris Development Company Ltd.), the Employment Standards Tribunal considered an appeal relating to an overtime claim. The employer argued that the employment agreement contained or constituted an averaging agreement because (among other reasons) it ...

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Scott Marcinkow, Harper Grey LLP on EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS ACT

This section was drawn from section 2.1 of the Arbitration Act, RSBC 1996, c. 55, and is needlessly confusing. On the one hand it seems to say that people can agree to arbitration anything that "may be the subject of a family law dispute in the future," while on the other is s...

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John-Paul Boyd QC, John-Paul E. Boyd Arbitration Chambers on FAMILY LAW ACT

This provision is mandatory and there is no discretion to order payment to be made to someone other than the PGT. See 2019 BCCA 171 at paras 7 - 11.

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Dan Orsetti, Public Guardian And Trustee of British Columbia on WILLS, ESTATES AND SUCCESSION ACT

The BC Supreme Court considered this section in BCEST 2023 79 (Re), 2025 BCSC 2304, at paragraphs 40-41. The judge confirmed that section 58 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, S.B.C. 2004, c. 45 applies to decisions of the Employment Standards Tribunal. The "applicable sta...

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Scott Marcinkow, Harper Grey LLP on EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS ACT

In Mithaq Canada Inc. 2024 ONCMT 9 the Ontario Capital Markets Tribunal (Tribunal) dismissed the application of Mithaq Capital SPC (Mithaq) to cease trade a private placement that Aimia Inc. (Aimia) completed in October 2023. Mithaq had asserted that the private placement was ...

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Teresa Tomchak, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP on NATIONAL INSTRUMENT 62-104 TAKE-OVER BIDS AND ISSUER BIDS (B.C. Reg. 21/2008)

In Sarao v. Fraser Health Authority, 2025 BCCA 267, the Court of Appeal upheld the chambers judge’s order granting the respondent’s application to strike the appellant’s claim for lack of jurisdiction. The essential character of the dispute fell within the scope of the labour ...

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OnPoint Legal Research, Onpoint Legal Research Law Corporation on LABOUR RELATIONS CODE

Li v. Vancouver General Hospital, 2025 BCCA 247: There is no duty of care to a family member in the situation where someone has been involuntarily detained under the Mental Health Act. The certification under the Mental Health Act occurs when a person is a danger to themselves...

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Joel Morris, Harper Grey LLP on MENTAL HEALTH ACT

Section 36 of the Property Law Act does not apply to the Crown land owned or controlled by the Provincial government: Fox v British Columbia (Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development), 2022 BCSC 541

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Peter Roberts, Lawson Lundell LLP on PROPERTY LAW ACT

The term "obsolete" means something that is "no longer practised or used, discarded; [and] out of date". A determination of obsolescence is a consideration of the nature of the charge itself in the circumstances of the use of the relevant property and a determination of whet...

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Peter Roberts, Lawson Lundell LLP on PROPERTY LAW ACT

The implications of this section are canvassed by Jennifer Bednard in "Will or Will Not: Practice Implications of Section 58 of the Wills, Estates and Succession Act Part I: What is a Testamentary Document Anyway?" (2020) 78 Advocate 527.

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D. Michael Bain, K.C., Hamilton Howell Bain & Gould on WILLS, ESTATES AND SUCCESSION ACT

The Court of Appeal quashed a decision of the Tribunal that denied legal representation on the basis that legal counsel could instead provide assistance anonymously and behind the scenes.

The constitutionality of the Civil Resolution Tribunal's limitation on legal representat...

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Melanie Harmer, McMillan LLP on CIVIL RESOLUTION TRIBUNAL ACT

This section qualifies the application of s. 364(4) insofar as a limitation defence is invoked. In this case, in November 2020, the plaintiff corporation filed a claim against the defendants. The claim was declared a nullity because, at the time of filing, the plaintiff was di...

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Debby Cumberford, Deborah M. Cumberford on BUSINESS CORPORATIONS ACT

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