N.S lawyer says homeless man should have been entitled to higher welfare pay

The lawyer for a homeless man who died astatine a Halifax encampment is arguing successful tribunal contiguous that his client’s welfare payments should person been arsenic precocious arsenic those received by radical with imperishable housing.

Vince Calderhead, a quality rights lawyer, primitively represented Lowe successful an unsuccessful bid past Dec. 7 to person the man’s monthly outgo from the Department of Community Services raised.

Lowe was surviving successful a structure successful a metropolis parkland astatine the clip and argued helium should person been eligible for $950 monthly — the modular complaint for radical with disabilities surviving successful a household — alternatively than the $380 for “essentials” paid to a idiosyncratic without a home.

The 30-year-old died connected Dec. 15 astatine different structure encampment that helium was visiting, and an appeal board dismissed his lawsuit 4 days later.

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However, Calderhead is seeking a judicial reappraisal earlier the Nova Scotia Supreme Court connected behalf of Lowe’s estate, arguing that Lowe’s structure was a signifier of “accommodation” nether the legislation.

The lawyer says Lowe’s household continued with the lawsuit successful bid to retrieve retroactive payments, and successful hopes a tribunal triumph could power aboriginal decisions connected income assistance disposable to homeless people.

The Affordable Housing Association of Nova Scotia estimated this period that determination were astir 1,300 homeless people successful Halifax.