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• where the Corporation now wishes to enforce the declaration or rules that
were not previously being enforced.
In these situations, a failure to grandfather existing pets could result in owners bringing
an oppression application against the Corporation.
To be grandfathered, owners of non-compliant pets are typically required to register with
management and enter into a grandfathering agreement within a specied time period.
A grandfathering agreement should include the following provisions:
• That the agreement is personal to the owner/resident at the time of the
grandfathering, rather than to the unit itself. Therefore, a subsequent owner
or resident would not receive the benet of the grandfathering agreement;
• When the grandfathered pet dies, it cannot be replaced with a pet not in
compliance. In other words, if the owner currently has a dog that is 45 pounds,
and the Corporation has passed a rule prohibiting dogs in excess of 25 pounds,
the owner would not be able to get a new dog larger than 25 pounds.
Human Rights
Corporations are obliged to comply with the Ontario Human Rights Code. Section 2(1) of
the Human Rights Code provides that every person has a right to equal treatment with
respect to occupancy of accommodations without discrimination because of disability.
This means that a resident with a disability that requires a support/therapy animal will
be able to keep such animal even if their animal would otherwise be prohibited by the
declaration or rules.
When presented with a request to accommodate a resident with a support/therapy
animal, the board should request a letter from a medical professional supporting the
position that the pet is necessary to treat the individual’s disability. The letter does
not need to reveal any personal medical information about the individual, including
the nature of the disability. In some circumstances, it may be appropriate to further
discuss the individual’s medical needs with the medical professional to attempt to
ascertain whether, and to what extent the Corporation is obligated to accommodate the
individual.
If the disability is obvious and apparent, then the Corporation should not ask for medical
information. However, where the disability may not be permanent, the board may be
able to request additional letters on an ongoing basis to conrm that the pet continues
to be necessary. The Corporation may be required to pay for the letter to meet its
obligation to accommodate.