The topic of discriminatory dispositions in wills has been discussed here before.

 

The latest decision is Royal Trust Corporation of Canada v. The University of Western Ontario et al 2016 ONSC 1143.

 

The testator established two bursaries / academic awards in his will.  

 

The first was restricted to "Caucasian (white) male, single, heterosexual students in scientific studies, including medicine, genetics, biology, chemistry, physics and those going into medical pharmacology research".

 

The second was restricted to a "hard-working, single, Caucasian white girl who is not a feminist or lesbian, with special consideration, if she is an immigrant".

 

Citing the holding in Canada Trust Co v. Ontario Human Rights Commission, Justice Mitchell concluded that the eligibility criteria were discriminatory and thus against public policy.  Specifically, the scholarship criteria were found to be discriminatory on the basis of race, marital status, sexual orientation and, due to the prohibition against being a feminist, philosophical ideology. Little was said in the way of explanation.

 

The case adds to the growing list of judgments channeling equality norms into estates law through the doctrine of public policy. To my mind, one of the most interesting aspects of the judgment is the suggestion that scholarship funds cannot discriminate on the basis of "philosophical ideology". This is something new. It raises interesting questions about the validity of religious restrictions for scholarships (which have been upheld in Canada after Canada Trust Co).