Ontario Court of Appeal rejects Greenbelt constitutional challenge

The Ontario Court of Appeal has rejected a constitutional challenge brought by developer Minotar Holdings Inc. regarding a 2023 law that returned 15 parcels of land to the Greenbelt protected area.

The dispute stems from a previous plan by Premier Doug Ford to open protected land for development. Following reports from the auditor general and integrity commissioner regarding the unfair favoring of certain developers, the province voided a prior settlement with Minotar and restored the land to the Greenbelt. The legislation also mandates that any future changes to Greenbelt boundaries must be made through legislation rather than regulation.

Lawyers for Minotar Holdings Inc. argued that this requirement effectively immunized the government from judicial oversight and violated unwritten constitutional principles. However, in a 2-1 decision, the Appeal Court ruled that the provincial action did not violate the jurisdiction of superior courts, stating that the legislative amendments fall within well-established modes of regulation.