Sterilized without consent, B.C. man awarded $150,000 - Health - Brief Article

Community Action, July 15, 2002

VANCOUVER -- A Nanaimo surgeon will pay $150,000 plus costs to a British Columbia man who was sterilized in 1997 without his consent.

The B.C. Supreme Court approved the settlement in a lawsuit brought by the Public Guardian and Trustee, Jay Chalke, on behalf of the man. Chalke said his office would work with the client and his family to ensure that the money is used for his benefit.

Current British Columbia law says nobody can give consent on someone else's behalf to a sterilization that is not medically necessary. It is based on the 1986 Re Eve case in which the Supreme Court of Canada was asked to rule on that issue. The court said non-therapeutic sterilization could never be said to be a decision for the benefit of a person who is incapable of consenting.

For other medical procedures, the Supreme Court of British Columbia can appoint a legally authorized substitute decision maker, known as a "committee of the person" under the Patients Property Act.

In arguing the current case, Chalke urged that guidelines regarding sterilizations of persons unable to give or refuse their own consent be developed to assist families and physicians in complying with the law. 604-660-4474