The Respondent in this matter alleges he was denied a chaffeur’s driving permit on the basis of his pagan beliefs and “BDSM” lifestyle. On a human rights complaint, the human rights tribunal determined that as a jurisdictional matter, it was not clear that a “BDSM lifestyle” was not incuded in the definition of sexual orientation. The tribunal proceeded to hear the complaint on that basis.

The Respondent applied for judicial review of the tribunal decision in which the Court ruled that the application for judicial review was premature. The Court of Appeal agreed with that position and upheld the decision that a judicial review was premature in the matter.