This case was heard in the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador (Trial Division).

When the Vista School Board chose a site for a new public school that would put the school near an oil refinery and transshipment facility, community members formed the Concerned Citizens Committee of the Isthmus of Avalon and raised concerns about the proposed location. The Committee brought two matters before the Court: (1) it requested judicial review of the School Board’s decision not to conduct a full “human health risk assessment” before choosing the location for the school, and (2) it asked the Court to quash the Minister of Environment and Labour’s decision not to order an environmental assessment of the project.

The Court determined that the standard of review for the decision of the School Board was the reasonableness standard, and it determined that the standard of review for the decision of the Minister was the standard of patent unreasonableness. After holding that both the School Board and the Minister had acted reasonably, the Court held that there was no reason to interfere with either decision.