'I'm feeling vindicated': Court of appeal rules in favour of St. Andrews mayor stripped of duties

A majority of council members in the R.M. of St. Andrews, Man., voted to strip Mayor Joy Sul of a large portion of her power and authority as mayor during a special council meeting on Dec. 16, 2019. (Source: Danton Unger/ CTV News Winnipeg)

A Manitoba mayor stripped of key duties by her own council in 2019 says she has been vindicated after the province's highest court ruled the council didn't have the authority to do what it did.

RM of St. Andrews Mayor Joy Sul's more than three-year-long court battle wrapped up on Friday.

"It's been a long haul and a very difficult one, but I was able to hang in," Sul told CTV News.

Sul was first elected mayor of the RM in 2018 with nearly 63 per cent of the vote.

However, in a special meeting of council in December 2019, a majority of council voted to pass a bylaw and resolution removing key duties from Sul, including her role as chair of council meetings and spokesperson for the RM.

READ MORE: 'This is unprecedented': St. Andrews Mayor stripped of power at packed special council meeting

In a ruling released on Friday, a panel of three Justices in the court of appeal declared both the bylaw and resolution passed by council to remove Sul as council chair are invalid.

"I was just numb by the news when the lawyer phoned and I’m just totally ecstatic," Sul said.

The ruling comes more than three years after Sul first took the RM to court over the decision, requesting a judicial review. Her request was dismissed at the time, with the Justice saying Sul had not "established by clear evidence any bad faith or fraudulent intent."

But that would not be the end of the legal battle.

Sul launched an appeal in 2021, arguing the duties removed by council are set out by Manitoba’s Municipal Act and cannot be undone by municipal councils.

Bernice Bowley, the lawyer for the R.M. of St. Andrews, argued the municipality was properly interpreting the legislation when it passed the bylaws.

READ MORE: MB Court of Appeal hears case of St. Andrews mayor removed from certain duties as election looms

In the ruling on Friday, the Justices said the Manitoba Municipal Act restricts when the duty to preside over council meetings can be removed from an elected head of council only when the head or deputy head are unable to act or the offices are vacant.

The Justices said there is only one reasonable interpretation of the act.

"That interpretation does not allow for council, by way of procedures by-law, to appoint a member to execute the duty of the head of council to chair council meetings absent the specified conditions, which do not exist in this case," the appeal decision reads.

It goes on to say that regardless of how it was framed, the effect of the bylaw passed by council was to remove the duty to chair council meetings from Sul in her elected role as mayor.

The decision says council did not have authority to pass the bylaw.

Sul's lawyer John Stefaniuk told CTV News he was pleased to hear the decision, saying it has set a precedent.

"This is a message to all councils of all municipalities that this is not something that's permitted under the legislation that governs municipalities."

It is a sentiment Sul agrees with.

"I'm feeling vindicated. I mean, I won in a landslide election in 2018. I won again by 60.2 per cent of the vote in the last election. I don't know why this even happened."

She said the whole case has racked up around $80,000 in costs, which she said came out of her own pocket and required her to dip into her retirement funds.

"I'm so glad the appeal court, which is the highest court in Manitoba, you know, came to the right decision," she said.

CTV News has reached out to Bowley for comment, but has not yet heard back.

Court previously heard whoever was re-elected as mayor in October would regain the traditional role of mayor, despite the bylaw passed by council. Sul was re-elected Mayor of the RM of St. Andrews in October with around 60 per cent of the vote.