BREAKING NEWS RELEASE: Former high school teacher asks court to restore Charter protections after dismissal
Former high school teacher Jim McMurtry, dismissed for a classroom discussion about residential schools, is seeking a judicial review. His petition argues that the Labour Relations Board failed to consider his Charter right to freedom of expression, and that unions should be required to consider Charter rights when deciding to pursue grievances. The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms is funding the legal action.
NEWS RELEASE
Tuesday, July 28, 2026
Former high school teacher asks court to restore Charter protections after dismissal
Jim McMurtry (Courtesy of Jim McMurtry)
VANCOUVER, BC: The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms announces that lawyers funded by the Justice Centre have filed a petition for judicial reviewin the Supreme Court of British Columbia on behalf of former high school teacher Jim McMurtry. The petition asks the Court to review a Labour Relations Board decision after Mr. McMurtry’s union declined to challenge his dismissal, arguing that the Board failed to consider his Charter right to freedom of expression.
Mr. McMurtry taught in British Columbia public schools for nearly 30 years and also served in senior educational leadership roles internationally. Throughout his career, he was never the subject of disciplinary action. That changed on May 31, 2021, while working as a substitute teacher in a Grade 12 calculus class, when he led a classroom discussion after a school announcement concerning the reported discovery of unmarked graves at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.
During the class discussion, Mr. McMurtry raised questions about historical facts, the terminology being used before any investigation had been completed, and other causes of death documented at residential schools. School administrators removed him from the classroom that day, suspended him the following day, and in February 2023 terminated his employment for cause.
The British Columbia Teachers’ Federation declined to take Mr. McMurtry’s dismissal grievance to arbitration. After the Labour Relations Board upheld that decision, lawyers funded by the Justice Centre filed a petition for judicial review in the Supreme Court of British Columbia.
The petition argues that because the Labour Relations Code gives unions exclusive control over the grievance process, a government employee may be prevented from obtaining a remedy for an alleged violation of Charter rights if the union declines to advance the case. Mr. McMurtry asks the Court to recognize that a union’s duty of fair representation must include consideration of the Charter rights at stake when deciding whether to proceed with a grievance.
“This case raises an important constitutional question affecting thousands of unionized government employees across Canada,” said constitutional lawyer Hatim Kheir.
He continued, “For our constitutional rights to be meaningful, we must also be able to obtain a remedy. Under the status quo, Canadians who work for government institutions may be thwarted in seeking relief for violations of their rights if their unions decide not to take the case.”
Mr. McMurtry said, “I was removed from teaching for speaking truthfully about residential schools, but in this David and Goliath fight against powerful institutions, I needed legal support and am deeply grateful to the Justice Centre for coming to the aid of a teacher buffeted by winds of intolerance.”
The next step in the proceeding is for the parties to obtain the Labour Relations Board’s record of proceedings and exchange affidavits before the matter is scheduled for hearing.
For media inquiries, please contact media@jccf.ca.
We Defend Freedom in Canada
The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms is Canada’s leading civil liberties organization fighting for Charter rights and freedoms in the courts of law and in the court of public opinion. Founded in 2010, the Justice Centre funds lawyers across Canada, relies entirely on voluntary donations to carry out its mission, and issues official tax receipts to donors.
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Wherever freedom of speech is denied regarding those that speak the truth then reconciliation will never be achieved in Canada🔥
At the time that treaties were signed with Indigenous Tribes many of them were at war with one another. The taking of SLAVES was commonplace, and, in some cases, instances of CANNIBALISM were documented.
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Those factors provide the NECESSARY CONTEXT within which the establishment of Reserves and Residential Schools must be understood.
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Without a doubt there was a concerted effort to remove the Indian from the Indian. No one is disputing that.
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You want truth … here’s the TRUTH.
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Five years have passed and ZERO BODIES have been found … GOT THAT … ZERO.
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What has happened is that Indigenous communities have received MILLIONS OF $$$. The Assembly of First Nations, the group asking for more money is not an elected body. It is a Lobby Group funded by the Federal Government.
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Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, is a Sign of Insanity. If you want to end this farce then just cut the WELFARE PAYMENTS going to these ‘Sovereign Nations’ until the so-called burial sites have been exhumed.
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WITHOUT TRUTH THERE WILL BE NO RECONCILIATION. UNTIL THEN THE DRUM BANGERS CAN SHOVE IT UP THEIR A$$E$.
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Extract
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“The Manitoba government says it will hold a hearing to determine who can participate in an upcoming inquest.”
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBQCs0lsloc
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