Lowe Estate v Nova Scotia: A Landmark Victory for Dignity, Safety and Housing Justice

Yesterday, the Court of Appeal made a monumental decision in the case of Lowe Estate v. Nova Scotia (Department of Opportunities and Social Development), 2026 NSCA 61 determining that a person eligible for Income Assistance and living in a tent can “own their accommodation” for the purpose of receiving Standard Household assistance, increasing the amount of income assistance they can receive. This decision has the potential to dramatically increase the capacity of Nova Scotia’s most vulnerable, marginalized individuals to access basic needs, gain self-sufficiency, be safe and protected from violence, and eventually work towards overall housing and income security.

The case began in 2023 after Bradley Lowe, who was living in a tent he owned in Victoria Park in Halifax, applied for the Enhanced Standard Household Rate of Income Assistance and was denied because the Department considered him to be “unhoused”, rather than owning his accommodations. Although he qualified medically for the enhanced rate, Department determined that he was only eligible for the substantially lower essential rate of $380 per month because he was living in a tent. Mr. Lowe appealed the decision internally and then to the Assistance Appeal Board, but the Department’s decision was upheld.

Mr. Lowe tragically passed away shortly after that decision, but his estate continued the legal proceedings and sought judicial review before the Nova Scotia Supreme Court. The Supreme Court ultimately agreed with the Appeal Board that Mr. Lowe did not qualify for the Enhanced Rate. Mr. Lowe’s estate then appealed that decision to the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal, resulting in the decision that we are celebrating today.

Mr. Lowe sadly was not able to witness this decision being made in his favour, but his efforts will have a broad and wide-reaching impact. People living in tents in Nova Scotia who are eligible for Income Assistance may now be eligible for the increased income assistance that they require and deserve.

Drawing from the organization’s vast experience with supporting some of the province’s most oppressed, neglected, and barrier-facing women and gender-diverse individuals, the Elizabeth Fry Society of Mainland Nova Scotia (EFMNS), represented by Emma Arnold of PATH Legal, intervened in the case, urging the Court to adopt a broader and more inclusive interpretation of “accommodation”. Alongside the Estate, EFMNS asked the Court to consider the ordinary meaning of “accommodation”; substantive equality and Charter values; Canada’s international human-rights obligations; and the feminization of poverty, including women and gender-diverse individuals’ disproportionate representation among people experiencing severe poverty and housing insecurity.

The importance of EFMNS’s intervention is particularly evident in the Court’s rejection of the Department’s speculative argument that providing higher income assistance to people living in tents could incentivize them to choose living in a tent over shelters or transition houses. The Court expressly cited EFMNS’s submissions in rejecting that concern, noting the absence of evidence that people would choose to live in tents in order to receive a higher rate of assistance. EFMNS’s submissions situated that issue within the broader, interconnected cycles of gender-based violence, poverty, and housing insecurity experienced by women and gender-diverse individuals. Profoundly inadequate income assistance does not create safer housing choices; instead, it can deepen the economic barriers that make it more difficult for people to leave unsafe or precarious living situations. Increasing income assistance for people living in tents can improve access to the resources needed to secure safer and more stable housing and, in turn, help disrupt cycles of poverty, housing insecurity, and violence.

The Elizabeth Fry Society of Mainland Nova Scotia is immensely grateful for this life-changing, cycle-breaking, and thought-provoking decision. Congratulations to the brilliant Emma Arnold on successfully intervening in the case on behalf of our organization—thank you for your deep, unwavering commitment to advocating for the community we serve. We also extend our deepest gratitude to Mr. Lowe’s estate and legal counsel for continuing this important fight and for their perseverance in securing a decision that will have a lasting impact across Nova Scotia.