Dust Allergy (LTB)

CET-29366-13 (Re), 2013 CanLII 51046 (ON LTB)

The Supreme Court of Canada has indicated in Tranchemontagne v. Ontario (Director, Disability Support Program), 2006 SCC 14 (CanLII), [2006] 1 S.C.R. 513, that tribunals like the Board must apply the Code in proceedings before it. What this means here is that the obligation of the Landlords under section 22 of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (the ‘Act’) to refrain from substantially interfering with the Tenants’ reasonable enjoyment, includes the obligation to comply with the Code.

The application requires the following analysis:

Did the Landlords breach the Code?

1. The answer to this question requires a three part analysis:

i. Is the Tenants’ child’s dust allergy a disability as defined under paragraph 10(1)(b) of the Code?

ii. Did the Landlords discriminate against the Tenants contrary to subsection 2(1) of the Code by failing to remove the carpet?

iii. If the presence of the carpets in the rental unit is found to constitute discrimination, did the Landlords accommodate the Tenants to the point of undue hardship pursuant to section 17 of the Code?

2. If the answer to issue one above is ‘no’, then: did the Landlords’ decision not to remove the carpet from the rental unit otherwise substantially interfere with the reasonable enjoyment of the rental unit by the Tenants or a member of their household?