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Old 15th Dec 2016, 01:13
  #327 (permalink)  
peekay4
 
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however when part of the 'public' - one or more individuals - are hurt, have every right to sue
No, there is no such right. Otherwise anyone can sue the government for every wrongdoing by any regulated entity. That would be nonsense.

In general, governments enjoy sovereign immunity. This comes from a very long heritage in common law, where in the old days "a king can do no wrong" (rex non potest peccare). In more modern times, a suit could only go forward if the government has waived its right to immunity in limited circumstances, as codified in statutes (e.g., in Canada, in the Crown Liability Act).

Also, in this specific case, Transport Canada as the regulator does not have a "proximate" (close and direct) relationship with any individual passenger, but only to the public collective. Without this proximity, there is no "duty of care" -- as the judge correctly observed -- and so there is no right to sue. See the Supreme Court case of Kamloops v. Nielsen.

It would be different if the suit had alleged some sort of operational error by Transport Canada, but that's not the case here. Equipping certain approaches with ILS vs VOR is a policy question, not an operational one, and government entities are generally immune to liability from broad policy decisions. For reference see the Supreme Court judgement in Just v. British Columbia.

The reason Transport Canada can be named as part of the suit is only because of their dual role as the airport's landlord -- so they may be liable, like any other landlords.
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