The BC-based non-profit taking legal action against the provincial government’s COVID-19 related measures will return to the courtroom in April..The Canadian Society for the Advancement of Science in Public Policy (CSASPP) filed a proposed class action suit against Provincial Health Officer (PHO) Dr. Bonnie Henry in January 2021, and its much anticipated certification hearing was expected to conclude in December, however, the complexity of the case and respective heel-dragging meant it needed to be extended into 2023..Both parties have now arranged for the hearing to continue on April 24 for five days before BC Supreme Court Justice David Crerar..In a recent update, CSASPP’s Executive Director Kip Warner recalled a previous hearing when Crown counsel "controversially" addressed the nature of the relationship between the PHO and the BC Center for Disease Control (BCCDC)..“Dr. Henry is now claiming the BCCDC does not answer to her, but is in fact an independent program of the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA),” said Warner..“The PHSA is not named as a defendant in this proceeding. She needs this to be true because adding the BCCDC as a defendant would create additional delays and procedural obstacles that might mitigate the risk of accountability.”.CSASPP maintains its position that the BCCDC is a scientific operational arm of the PHO, citing the words of BC’s Deputy PHO Dr. Brian Emerson, who previously stated the same..Warner now accuses Emerson of “back peddling” in a recently filed affidavit..“She [Henry] will be relying upon this affidavit at the continuation of our certification hearing,” said Warner..“If Dr. Henry wishes to throw the BCCDC under the bus, she should seek leave from Justice Crerar to file a third party notice.”.A third party notice is what a defendant files when they wish to argue that a third party is at fault, therefore prompting indemnification..“In other words, it is the legal process of pointing the finger at someone else. This is what the government is trying to do now as part of their argument that they did not impose isolation or quarantine requirements on all of us,” said Warner..“In the meantime, while we prepare to resume the hearing, let us try to make the best of the time by replenishing our war chest if you can.”.The soon to be resumed certification hearing is not to be mistaken with CSASPP’s petition for healthcare workers faced with vaccination mandates nor its recently axed — and since appealed — vaccine passport petition..With respect to the vaccine passport petition, Warner told the Western Standard Thursday he'll be publishing more details shortly..READ MORE: No timeline for BC's unvaccinated nurses, mandate will remain enforced.WATCH: Henry says masks 'not going to make a tremendous difference'
