BREAKING: Ontario Superior Court Justice Breese Davies has DENIED an injunction to the Toronto International Celebration Church, which was seeking the right to hold in-person services which are currently prohibited under Ontario’s lockdown restrictions.

However, the judge recommended the full application be heard on an "expedited" basis.

Justice Davies found that the church met two of the three criteria required for an injunction, but fell short on the third – the balance of convenience. Davies found "the risk to public health outweighs the harm being suffered by the church and its members."

However, Justice Davies was clear that there is "irreparable harm" being suffered by the Toronto International Celebration Church and its members by the provincial lockdown. She said there's "no way to compensate the church or its members for the lost opportunity" to worship.

For those not familiar with injunctions, this was not a full hearing of the facts and constitutional issues at play, but rather an interim hearing before such a time as the case can be fleshed out in full.

Justice Davies found there is a serious issue to be adjudicated, as well as that restricting service attendance to just 10 people (the church holds 1,000) would cause irreparable harm, but decided the balance of convenience favoured the government.

Davies said there is "strong public interest to allow the government to legislate and regulate the protection of public health."