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Nearly six years after he made a defiant stand against Ontario's punitive COVID-19 lockdown, Adamson Barbecue owner Adam Skelly is in court challenging the constitutionality of the pandemic-era restriction.

In November 2020, Skelly reopened his Etobicoke restaurant in defiance of the Reopening Ontario Act. The act became known as the “Barbecue Rebellion” as a large number of supporters were on hand as Toronto police forcefully shut the business.

Speaking to Rebel News ahead of this week's court hearing, Skelly said his legal team is claiming “a bunch of Charter violations” occurred in the process.

“Freedom of expression, life and liberty, peaceful protest — even cruel and unusual punishment. If a breach is found, the government will argue it was justified under Section 1,” he told Rebel News' Tamara Ugolini.

The is being heard by Justice Janet Leiper of the Ontario Superior Court in Toronto over February 25–27. Rebel News reporter David Menzies, who closely covered the Barbecue Rebellion as it unfolded, is providing live updates from the courtroom.

Follow along with his posts on X directly or below on this page.

Day 2 of Adam Skelly’s constitutional challenge re: the COVID-19 lockdown mandates is about to kick off. Skelly is represented by lawyer Ian Perry. The respondents: Province of Ontario, City of Toronto, Board of Health for the City of Toronto, and former Toronto medical health…

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Lawyer representing the Province of Ontario is Padraic Ryan. City of Toronto’s lawyer is Penelope Ma.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Perry focuses on the “proportionately” angle. He cited other court cases, noting that peaceful assembly is a fundamental Charter right. Perry says there’s “no evidence” the province looked at accommodating peaceful assembly, and that apparently the idea of “proportional balance”…

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Perry notes it was very troubling for Skelly to layoff more than 50% of his employees in 2020 due to the ban on indoor dining.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Perry states that Skelly’s restaurants were not viable without indoor dining. The ban on indoor dining amounted to a “complete infringement.”
Note: when Rebel News covered the “BBQ Rebellion” in November 2020 (in which Skelly reopened his west end Toronto restaurant), we noticed…

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Perry says Dr. de Villa, when cross examined, clung to a wide range of “refusals” when asked to answer questions and provide data.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Notably, according to expert evidence provided in Perry’s filing, the 4 “interrelated propositions” are noted:
- COVID-19 was highly stratified and declining by November 2020;
- Restaurant closures were not evidence-based;
- Public health decision-making ignored costs and…

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Perry concentrates on the role of Dr. Matthew Hodge. In his filing, Perry notes that the Province of Ontario “relied on a single public health expert, Dr. Matthew Hodge, in support of its disastrous actions.”
Perry also notes: “Dr. Hodge is a government employee on the Province’s…

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Perry states both the Province and City failed to protect Charter rights (Section 1) and violated the Constitution.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

More on Dr. Hodge according to Perry’s filing: “Putting aside his issues of bias and credibility, Dr. Hodge does not meaningfully engage with, rebut,or displace any of the Applicant’s evidence. Instead, he parrots a policy rationale for non-pharmaceutical interventions (‘NPIs’)…

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Perry notes that Dr. Hodge stated he had no idea how decisions were made nor was he given access to people or evidence that make decisions. Said Dr. Hodge: “I am a minnow, the sharks do as they wish.”

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Court now in recess. For all our reporting re: BBQ Rebellion, please go to https://t.co/0zA6qLmqUz

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Court back in session.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Lawyer for the Province, Padraic Ryan, states that our position on both Constitutional challenges should be dismissed.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan states that the Province of Ontario is not liable for the actions of police and municipal employees.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan states restaurants could open for takeout, drive through, and delivery during the lockdown period. He says this was not “a total ban” on foodservice facilities.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan notes at the time, a gathering of 10 people in the parking lot was fine; 10 people going into a restaurant to pickup their food was fine; but indoor dining was not permissible.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan says cabinet was serious about taking “the least restrictive methods.”

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan says Ontario has 14 million people and public health units were stretched.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan states Skelly is not the right person to litigate for the rights of others. He notes Skelly has “no shame”.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan references 2B of the Charter regarding people who engage in illegal activity. I.e., it’s not valid for someone to speed as a way of protesting speed limits.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan cites a case in which a pharmacist wanted to sell tobacco which is against the regulations in Ontario. Ryan says it would’ve been fine for the pharmacist to display a sign stating, “We hate the government, we love selling tobacco.” But he could not break the law by selling…

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan cites another case of a restaurant that opened for indoor dining based on the fact the operators were “conscientious objectors” to the COVID-19 mandates. The court did not buy that argument.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan says with respect to the Emergency Order, the province did not shutdown Mr. Skelly’s business in that drive through, takeout and delivery service were all permitted.
Note: yesterday, Perry noted that indoor dining was crucial to Skelly’s business model and that his…

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan states the purpose of the Emergency Order was to prevent the spread of a deadly disease during a global pandemic.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan states Dr. Hodge noted that the risk of COVID transmission is heightened when people gather together (i.e., indoor dining) and that it is impossible for people to eat and drink while wearing a mask.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan says Perry seemed to suggest that the restrictions should’ve been focused more on people in long term care homes. He says this is not less impairing but rather more impairing to those people who are not Mr. Skelly.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan cites the Reopening Ontario Act that was focused on less restrictive measures. But the government explained it would move into more restrictive measures if the case count increased.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan references the outdoor gathering ban. There was a finite number of reasons that allowed someone to leave their home - but to engage in a political protest was not a valid reason.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan states that what Mr. Skelly was allowed to do - and what everyone else in Ontario was allowed to do in 2020 - was to have a gathering of up to 10 people.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan says the Court of Appeal ruled that the 10-person gathering rule was perfectly valid.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan notes there was a higher likelihood of transmission indoors than outdoors. He says Dr. Hodge noted that the problem with restaurants is that’s where people are gathering, so we have to regulate that.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Court is now adjourned until 2:25 p.m.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Court has resumed.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan states that at the time (2020) COVID was a fast-moving global pandemic. He notes that when it comes to the hard evidence argument raised by Perry (re: connecting indoor dining with increased transmissions): “If we held the government to the gold standard for every law we…

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ryan states losing the right to travel, opening restaurants, gathering for protests, etc., must be outweighed by would could’ve been the potential harm faced by society as a whole.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Now making the case for the Province of Ontario is lawyer Adam Kouri.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Kouri repeats what Ryan had previously stated: restaurants were not completely locked down. Restaurants could operate by embracing drive through service, takeout, and delivery.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Now addressed the court is Penelope Ma, the lawyer for the City of Toronto, the Board of Health for the City of Toronto, and former medical health officer Dr. Eileen de Villa.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ma says COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic in March of 2020. Ma notes everyone in the court today is attending in person and not wearing a mask. But this was not the reality in 2020.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ma says the City appoints the Medical Officer of Health. The MOH reports to the board but can also exercise her authority independently. The MOH may make an order if the conditions exist (in this case, a global pandemic.)

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ma says in Fall 2020 Toronto was in the second wave of the pandemic and no vaccine available yet. By November, the medical system was overwhelmed. The City received 121 complaints from citizens after Skelly announced he was going to reopen his restaurant.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ma states the following day the City received 140 additional complaints re: the impending reopening of Adamson BBQ.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ma states that Dr. de Villa issued a Section 22 order the day before Skelly planned to reopen. A sign was posted on the restaurant, noting that the facility had been ordered closed by the MOH.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ma states that Dr. de Villa ordering the restaurant closed was an enforcement measure available to her under the regulations.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ma says the locks on the door were changed by order of Dr. de Villa under Section 24 of the HPPA.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ma says despite the lock change, Skelly accessed Adamson BBQ via another door and then kicked down the main door from within the restaurant which allowed many patrons to come inside the restaurant.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ma says Dr. de Villa sent the Section 22 letter to Skelly on Nov. 24 2020. Dr. de Villa set out the reasons for her order, noting that COVID-19 spreads from person to person.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

*HPPA = Health Protection and Promotion Act. HPPA Ontario is the primary provincial legislation designed to manage public health matters, control the spread of diseases, and promote the health and safety of Ontarians. It provides the legal framework for public health programs,…

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

The court has recessed for 10 minutes.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Ma wants to see the case dismissed. One of the reasons is the timeline, i.e., some complaints go back more than 5 years ago.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026

Court has adjourned for the day. We’re back tomorrow for the third & final day.

— David Menzies (@TheMenzoid) February 26, 2026