Alberta government doesn’t have authority to fire Sean Chu: law firm

The Minister of Municipal Affairs does not have the power to remove Ward 4 Councillor Sean Chu from office.

That according to a release sent out by Ric McIver on Friday, saying he consulted with lawyers outside of the provincial government and they confirmed what he thought.

Brownlee LLP concluded the minister does not have the authority to remove a councillor from office under the legislation, particularly for events that took place before a councillor was elected.

Here is the report submitted to Minister McIver regarding his ability to remove a city municipal councillor. #yyc #yyccc #ableg pic.twitter.com/ACgijgUxYx

— Courtney Theriault (@cspotweet) November 13, 2021

“Dismissal of a councillor by the Minister is an extraordinary exercise of authority that should not be pursued lightly,” Brownlee LLP said in its response.

“Exercising Ministerial authority to remove an elected official must be done in accordance with the requirements of the Municipal Government Act (the “MGA”) and a high degree of procedural fairness, not simply by decree.”

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The law firm says, in order to dismiss a sitting councillor, each one of the following must be met:

•  Completion of an inspection pursuant to section 571 of the MGA; an inquiry pursuant to section 572 of the MGA;
• The Minister considers the municipality to be managed in an irregular, improper or improvident manner as a result of the inspection or inquiry;
• The Minister issues an order directing the council, the chief administrative officer or a designated officer of the municipality to take any action that the Minister considers proper in the circumstances;
• The Minister’s order is not carried out to the satisfaction of the Minister;
• Following non-compliance with the Minister’s order, the Minister considers the municipality to continue to be managed in an irregular, improper or improvident manner;
• Notice of the intended order to dismiss the councillor has been given to the municipal authority with at least 14 days to respond;
• All reasonable efforts to resolve the situation have been attempted and have been unsuccessful.

The notice adds that even where a councillor’s conduct does fall within the Minister’s jurisdiction to review, “dismissal of a councillor is a last resort only to be utilized if the municipality continues to be managed in an irregular or improper manner.”

Chu has been under immense fire after a decades-old sexual misconduct case came to light ahead of the municipal election.

Just days after Calgary’s new city council was formed, councillors voted in favour of barring Chu from joining any standing policy committee, board, or commission.