Landmark Case: The Montfort Hospital Case – Lalonde v. Health Services Restructuring Commission (Ontario)

Each OJEN Landmark Case includes a case summary, classroom discussion questions and worksheets that encourage students to explore both the legal and societal importance of the case.

The Ontario Health Services Restructuring Committee recommended that Hôpital Montfort, the only Francophone teaching hospital in Ontario, become an ambulatory care centre and maintain a limited number of beds. The hospital’s board of trustees challenged the decision on the grounds that the hospital was integral to the survival of the Franco-Ontarian community and cultural identity. They argued that  implementing the directives would increase the assimilation of the minority Franco-Ontarian community to the Anglophone majority. The Ontario Court of Appeal rejected the Commission’s proposed directive, holding that the Commission could not ignore Hôpital Montfort’s constitutional role as a Francophone institution necessary to enhancing the Franco-Ontarian identity as a cultural and linguistic minority in Ontario. The full decision is available here.