Help wanted: Appointment of new Ombudsman 7 months overdue
The role of the Ombudsman is to promote fairness and ensure accountability and transparency in the public sector by resolving and investigating public complaints and systemic issues within the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction.
The position of Ombudsman has been filled on an acting basis only since March 2026. The Cabinet has not nominated anyone to fill this position, and any nomination must then be approved by the Legislature. With the reopening of the Legislature this month after a 147 day break, with only 23 sitting days until it recesses again for the winter holidays, Tribunal Watch Ontario is deeply concerned about the possibility that the Office of the Ombudsman will be without a permanent leader able to set priorities going into 2027.
The Ombudsman of Ontario is the watchdog charged with addressing and resolving complaints of over 1000 government and public sector organizations including provincial ministries and programs, school boards, universities and colleges, agencies, boards, and administrative tribunals. Tribunal Watch Ontario is particularly concerned about the failure to appoint a new Ombudsman because of the importance of the Office in overseeing the tribunal system.
The importance of this oversight function is illustrated by an investigation prompted by thousands of complaints, mostly about delays, from landlords and tenants about the Landlord and Tenant Board. In May 2023, the Ombudsman released Justice Delayed, Justice Denied. That report concluded:
As an administrative tribunal, the Board is fundamentally failing in its role of providing swift justice to those seeking resolution of residential landlord and tenant issues. In doing so, it is denying justice to a significant segment of Ontarians.
The Ombudsman made over 60 recommendations, intended to improve how the Board functions.
Despite assurances from Tribunals Ontario and the LTB that these recommendations would be implemented, landlords and tenants are still facing significant delays. Although there has been some improvement, it still can take five times as long for a landlord application to be decided as was the case before the LTB came under Tribunals Ontario in 2018. Tenant applications take even longer. A follow-up investigation is clearly required.
Tribunal Watch has documented significant ongoing dysfunction at the Human Rights Tribunal, which is also housed under Tribunals Ontario. The Office of the Ombudsman receives a significant number of complaints about the HRTO including about delays of many years. Of all provincial government organizations and programs, Tribunals Ontario is the source of the second highest number of complaints to the Ombudsman (excluding correctional institutions).
The Ombudsman’s 2025/26 Annual Report states: “All Ontarians can rely on us as a stable, independent voice … We are here to listen, to get to the root of problems, to find fair solutions, and to promote good governance.” The Ombudsman is the only recourse left for Ontarians seeking fair services from our tribunals. Tribunal Watch Ontario calls for the expeditious appointment of a new Ombudsman.