What is the test for voiding a section of a municipal by-law that prohibits certain types of drug use?
British Columbia, Canada
The following excerpt is from R. v. Gill, 1998 CanLII 5554 (BC SC):
In determining whether a provision is void for vagueness, courts are guided by the principles of fundamental justice as outlined in Canada v. Pharmaceutical Society (Nova Scotia), 1992 CanLII 72 (SCC), [1992] 2 S.C.R. 606. In the context of municipal by-laws, a person reading the by-law must know what conduct is permitted and what conduct is prohibited. The enforcement of the by-law cannot be a "standardless sweep" that encompasses whomever the enforcement authorities, in their discretion, decide comes within the prohibited use.
Applying these principles of fundamental justice, Lambert J.A. in Perry v. Vancouver (City) (1994), 19 M.P.L.R. (2d) 280 (B.C.C.A.) at 284 described the test as follows: Is the provision so uncertain that it does not provide an adequate basis for legal debate, that is, for reaching a conclusion about its meaning by reasoned analysis applying legal criteria?
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