From Sharma v. Toronto (City) and Beyond: “Mandatory Masking” at the Human Rights Tribunal

  • 15 septembre 2021
  • Janeta Zurakowski, Filion Wakely Thorup Angeletti LLP

Background

Since the province of Ontario entered the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, governments have grappled with adjusting to the colloquially-dubbed “new normal” by enacting new laws and regulations to reduce the transmission of the novel coronavirus, and, as of more recently, its variants.

At the outset of the pandemic, for the first time in recent history, and in conjunction with federal and provincial public health guidelines, various municipalities across Ontario promptly enacted “mandatory masking” by-laws requiring individuals to wear masks when entering various establishments in an effort to reduce transmission of the virus.