Admission Of Discrimination Not Required For Settlement

Under the Nova Scotia Human Rights framework, a Board of Inquiry must approve any settlement reached after a complaint is referred to a hearing before the Board. Recently, in Nova Scotia (Human Rights Commission) v Grant, 2016 NSCA 37, a Board of Inquiry refused to approve a settlement. The Board concluded that it could not approve a settlement unless the respondent admitted discrimination. As the respondent had not made such an admission, the Board refused to grant the necessary approval - barring a settlement that the parties were willing to accept.

The Board's conclusion that an admission of discrimination was a required element of a settlement departed from past practice in Nova Scotia, and the Human Rights Commission appealed the decision to the Court of Appeal.