VANCOUVER, BC: The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms announces that the Delta Hospice Society has been granted intervenor status in a constitutional challenge that will determine whether faith-based health care facilities in British Columbia can be forced to offer Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) to palliative care patients.
The Supreme Court of British Columbia will hear the case, with trial proceedings scheduled to run from January 12 to February 6, 2026, in Vancouver.
Chief Justice Ronald A. Skolrood granted the Delta Hospice Society intervenor status, allowing the Society to present evidence and legal arguments in support of assisted suicide-free palliative care spaces. The legal costs associated with the Society’s intervenor application are being funded by the Justice Centre.
The lawsuit arises from the death of a terminally ill woman who sought assisted suicide but was receiving care at St. Paul’s Hospital, a Catholic institution that does not provide assisted suicide. Her family alleges that the refusal to offer assisted suicide on-site violated her Charter rights, including section 2(a), which protects freedom of conscience and religion, and section 7, which guarantees the right to life, liberty, and security of the person.
As an intervenor, the Delta Hospice Society will argue that many terminally ill patients wish to spend their final days in palliative care settings that affirm life and do not introduce euthanasia. The Society will submit that section 7 of the Charter requires the availability of assisted suicide-free palliative care spaces for patients who seek them.
Constitutional lawyer Allison Pejovic said, “There are many terminally ill palliative care patients in British Columbia who desire to spend their final days without being asked if they want their life ended by their health care provider.”
“It is important that these patients are able to access a MAID-free space which upholds their human dignity, liberty, and bodily autonomy,” she added.
Delta Hospice Society Executive Director Angelina Ireland said, “We look forward to confirming section 7 of the Charter for Canadians who seek life-affirming spaces during their illnesses, so they are not deprived of life, liberty, and the security of the person.”
Intervenors are expected to file written submissions in March 2026, with the possibility of oral submissions in April 2026, at the court’s discretion.
The case has broad implications for religious freedom, patient choice, and the future of palliative care in British Columbia and across Canada.
