Syndicat Northcrest v. Amselem
Canada Supreme Court
2004 SCC 47, [2004] 2 S.C.R. 551 (2004)
- Written by Kelly Simon, JD
Facts
Moïse Amselem (defendant) was an Orthodox Jew living in a luxury condominium building in Montreal. Amselem built a temporary hut, called a succah, on his balcony to participate in the Jewish religious festival of Succot. Syndicat Northcrest (Syndicat) (plaintiff), the luxury cooperative (co-op) at which Moïse lived, requested that the succah be removed because it violated the cooperative’s bylaws prohibiting construction on the building’s balconies. Syndicat offered that a communal succah could be constructed in the garden. Moïse was dissatisfied with the garden alternative. Syndicat made an application for a permanent injunction to prevent Moïse and others from setting up succahs on the balconies. The injunction was granted by the superior court and was affirmed by the court of appeal based on the trial court’s analysis of what religious practices were required by the Jewish religion. Subsequently, Moïse appealed to the Canada Supreme Court, arguing that the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms (the Quebec charter) protected his right to set up the succah for nine days out of year in furtherance of his sincere religious belief.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Iacobucci, J.)
Dissent (Bastarache, J.)
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