VETERANS |
Wood v. Canada (Attorney General)
T-1978-99
MacKay J.
19/1/01
16 pp.
Application for judicial review of Veterans' Review and Appeal Board decision rejecting application for pension benefits with respect to lower back pain disability on ground pain neither arising out of nor directly connected with service in peacetime--Applicant alleging condition due to training, parachute jumps and hockey injury during Canadian Forces Command and Staff College event--Application allowed--Veterans Review and Appeal Board Act, ss. 3, 39 creating liberal and purposive guidelines for claims for veterans' pensions in light of nation's great moral debt to those who served country--Act, s. 39 requiring Board to draw every reasonable inference in favour of applicant: Chénier v. Canada (Minister of Veterans Affairs) (1991), 136 N.R. 377 (F.C.A.)--Normally, standard of review in cases such as present patent unreasonableness: McTague v. Canada (Attorney General), [2000] 1 F.C. 647 (T.D.)--However, standard not apt where error concerning exercise of Board's jurisdiction--Board erred in exercise of jurisdiction by coming to conclusion that failed to deal expressly with evidence from which inference favourable to applicant might have been drawn--Veterans Review and Appeal Board Act, S.C. 1995, c. 18, ss. 3, 39.