Quebec woman wins MAID case to die at home after legal fight with landlord
Victoria Taylor has ALS, and her health has been rapidly declining with an iPad now her only way to communicate.
A woman seeking medical assistance in dying (MAID) has won a significant case before the Quebec rental board. Victoria Taylor, who has ALS, wanted to die at home, but her landlord opposed her wish.
Taylor, whose health has deteriorated to the point where she can only communicate using an iPad, has been spending her final days enjoying the outdoors near her apartment in the Laurentians.
"It's my little paradise," she expressed through her friend and neighbor, Pascale Beauregard.
Taylor, 63, is at peace with her decision to die at home on October 30. "I don't want to die in a CHSLD," she said, referring to long-term care facilities. She was diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, in 2022.
However, this decision led to a tense conflict with her landlord, who wanted to repossess the apartment and didn’t want her to die there. The landlord cited religious objections to MAID, based on her orthodox faith, though these were not beliefs shared by Taylor.
"Being religious means helping your neighbor," Taylor said.
In response, a lawyer friend of Taylor’s, Isabelle Metivier, decided to represent her pro bono. "The harassment and letters were enough to help me build a case," Metivier explained.
Last month, the Quebec rental board ruled in Taylor’s favor, determining that the landlord’s religious reasoning was merely an excuse to push her out. The board allowed Taylor to remain in her apartment.
The landlord, who asked for anonymity, claimed she was treated unfairly, stating that her goal was to move next to her aging parents, who live in the apartment above Taylor.
"I feel sorry for my dad," the landlord said, adding, "If I’m not mistaken, my dad is 15 years older than Victoria Taylor, and it’s my dad."
She criticized the rental board for overlooking key evidence and said her religious beliefs were being misinterpreted. "I told Victoria, 'I feel so sorry for you,'" she said. "But I would appreciate it if you could... if you feel you can't manage alone, a CHSLD would always be willing to help you find a place."
Metivier expressed surprise at how far she had to go to defend Taylor. "At the hearing, we even suggested postponing the case for a year, knowing Mrs. Taylor wouldn’t survive the year. But the landlord refused," she said.
Though Taylor still feels some pressure from her landlord, she remains firm in her decision, stating, "I will leave one day, but it will be feet first."
