A B.C. judge lets nine fired Victoria school trustees take their case forward, questioning whether the education minister acted in bad faith.
Fired School Board Gets Its Day in Court
A group of nine former school trustees from Victoria just won a major step forward in their legal battle against the province. On Wednesday, a B.C. Supreme Court judge ruled that their lawsuit challenging their dismissal can move ahead — and that the provincial government must hand over every document tied to the decision.
Justice Lindsay LeBlanc said there’s “some basis” for the trustees’ claim that Education Minister Lisa Beare may have acted in bad faith when she fired the entire board earlier this year. The ruling doesn’t mean the trustees have won — but it’s a clear sign their argument deserves to be heard.
Why the Trustees Were Fired
The controversy began when the Greater Victoria School District (SD 61) voted in 2023 to end its police liaison program — a move that followed a B.C. Human Rights Commissioner report questioning the effectiveness of such programs, especially for marginalized students.
That decision quickly sparked backlash. Parents, local First Nations, police, and community safety advocates voiced concern that ending the program could put students at risk.
In response, Minister Beare ordered the district to draft a new safety plan, one that included working with police. She appointed former Abbotsford superintendent Kevin Godden to help guide the process. But things didn’t go smoothly. Godden criticized the board for refusing to cooperate, while the trustees claimed they were being pressured to adopt a policy they didn’t support.
By January, Beare had lost patience. She dismissed all nine trustees and replaced them with a single appointed trustee to run the district.
The Legal Battle Begins
In March, the ousted trustees filed a lawsuit seeking a judicial review of Beare’s decision. They argue they were removed without notice or a fair chance to respond, and that the minister overstepped her legal authority.
Their case also points to email exchanges between Godden and former board chair Nicole Duncan, which, according to the judge, reveal “different approaches” to the safety plan that made collaboration “futile.”
The trustees claim the government’s demand for a plan over the holiday period was unreasonable and politically motivated — a way to force a democratically elected board to bow to a policy they believed was “ill-advised.”
Government Stands Firm
The province, for its part, says Minister Beare acted in good faith and within the powers granted under the School Act. Officials argue that removing the trustees was a legitimate, legislative decision — one meant to protect student safety, not to silence dissent.
While B.C. governments have replaced school boards before, this marks the first time the NDP government has done so. The last such case came in 2016 when the B.C. Liberals dismissed the Vancouver School Board over budget issues.
What Happens Next?
Justice LeBlanc made it clear that the province does have authority to intervene in school boards. However, she questioned whether this specific removal — done through a cabinet order — counts as a purely “legislative” act, which would shield it from judicial review.
That question will be decided in a full court hearing. But the outcome could reshape how much power the provincial government has to override local school boards in the future — especially since B.C. has increasingly relied on cabinet orders to push through policy changes.
For now, the fired trustees have earned something powerful: the right to be heard. And in the words of Justice LeBlanc, their allegations of “dishonesty, abuse of power, unfairness, and unreasonableness” may yet have their day in court.
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