Ned Flanders decided that he would become a backyard beekeeper in Calgary. He installed six hives in his backyard with each hive containing approximately 10,000 bees. His next-door neighbour Homer has been quite concerned about Ned's bees. Homer checked the Alberta Bee Act, as he was certain that it would prohibit what Ned was doing. Section 8 of the Act covers "problem bees" but they are defined as being bees that are diseased or have become Africanized. Neither of those conditions apply to Ned's bees. Homer checked with the City of Calgary and learned that there are no city bylaws covering backyard beekeepers. Therefore, there is no legislation, either municipally or provincially, that addresses this issue.

Homer is quite concerned about the safety of his family when they are outside of their home, especially in their backyard, as Ned's bees have been going into Homer's backyard and visiting his flowers. Sadly, this means that Homer and his family have found it necessary to stay out of their backyard for fear of being stung.

Homer asked Ned to remove the beehives and Ned refused, saying that they are legal for him to have in his yard. Homer even decided to put their home up for sale to get away from the bee problem, but no offers were received. His realtor said that potential buyers were troubled by the number of bees in the backyard.

Homer has come to you for advice. He wants to know if he has a civil cause of action against Ned.

1. Advise Homer as to whether he has a civil cause of action and if so, what cause of action. Be sure to include what remedies you would seek.
2. Does Ned have a defence to such an action, whether or not you think Homer should commence one?
3. What is the likely outcome of this case and why?
4. What would your advice be if Ned's bees were attacked by "murder hornets" and murder hornets took over the hives? [Google search "murder hornets" for information about them]