A pivotal decision on the future of Canada's controversial quarantine hotel requirement could come on Monday, March 22.
The Canadian Constituion Foundation was in Ontario Superior Court on Friday seeking an injunction against the quarantine hotel program, which was instituted on February 22 and has been the subject of numerous complaints.
Ontario Superior Court Judge Frederick Myers on Friday said he hoped to have a decision by Monday morning.
"We were pleased with how the hearing went, and we thought Mr. Roth, our lawyer, did an excellent job presenting the case and answering the judge's questions," Christine Van Geyn, Litigation Director of the CCF, said in an email. "While the standard for an injunction is high, we believe we have a strong case and the individual travellers we are working with have extremely compelling stories.
"We look forward to the decision on Monday," she said.
The federal government on Feb. 14 brought in a requirement that all arriving passengers coming to Canada must be tested after they land at one of four designated international airports. They also are supposed to present documentation to show they've reserved an airport hotel for a mandatory stay of up to three nights while they await their test results.
The hotels are expensive, sometimes as much as $2,000 for three nights. Many arriving passengers have received their test results in less than a day, but there doesn't appear to be a requirement that hotels refund guests for any unused nights.
In addition to concerns over cost, hotel guests have repeatedly complained of poor service and bad food.
"The biggest issue is that we have a fundamental right to enter Canada and this is a limit on that right and it's not a justified limit," Van Geyn has said.
As well as the Ontario case, there are several other legal challenges being mounted to the quarantine program.
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