BC ‘prolific litigant’ loses another case after her ‘service’ dog kicked out of courthouse

A BC woman with a lengthy history of suing if her “service dog” is denied entry has lost yet another case, this time taking legal action against the province because her pooch was kicked out of a courthouse.

According to an April 1 BC Human Rights Tribunal decision, Jessica Simpson claimed the Ministry of Attorney General had discriminated against her due to her physical and mental disabilities when she was refused access to court buildings because of her service dog.

However, the Tribunal found Simpson failed to provide “almost any evidence” to prove her point.

“Ms. Simpson has not pointed me to evidence capable of establishing that she needed the dog with her to assist her because of her disabilities,” the Tribunal ruled.

Details of precisely what took place aren’t given in the decision, but Simpson was denied access to a court building with her dog.

The Ministry said it was because of the dog’s alleged disorderly or disruptive behaviour.

Simpson, who is a self-described trans activist, has sued previously for the same issue, unsuccessfully taking on a gas station, restaurants and a pharmacist in separate cases. In one case, she wanted $34,000 compensation.

In 2018, under the surname Yaniv, she filed numerous complaints to the BC Human Rights Tribunal, having been refused a Brazilian wax at several Lower Mainland body waxing salons – even though in some instances it would have meant waxing her scrotum.

The case made international headlines after she won the first stage of her complaint, but the Tribunal later found she was “abusive and deceptive” and threatened and harassed salons. Two closed down as a result of her actions. 

In her case against the courthouse, Simpson claimed she had numerous disabilities.

“I have a physical disability being diabetes. My service dog alerts me to lows and highs,” she said in her claim.

The statement wasn’t enough for the Tribunal.

“There is no explanation of what this means, let alone information to support that these ‘alerts’ are medically or otherwise necessary because of her disability, such that not having them would be detrimental,” the Tribune ruled. “It is not enough for Ms. Simpson to simply allege that the dog was a ‘service dog,’ there must be some evidence of this.”

Over the years, Simpson has become embroiled in a multitude of legal cases, having once been labelled a ‘prolific litigant’ by a Supreme Court judge, having taken on everyone from her Strata to BC ambulance.

Earlier this year, she had a minor legal success against Rebel News after the BC Human Rights Tribunal allowed her to continue her discrimination case against the company.

She claims videos the company posted online about her were discriminatory, as they misgender her, use her dead name and called her inflammatory names.

Rebel News argued it was fair comment, but the Tribunal ruled that encouraging viewers to send money to fund its case, with the goal of Simpson being locked up in a male prison crossed the line. No date has yet been set for the hearing.