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March 19, 2024
The Adjudicative Tribunal Justice System: Statement of Principles (2024)

Introduction The Ontario adjudicative tribunal justice system consists of specialized, expert bodiesthat take the place of the courts in resolving a range of disputes that arise in specificfields of law. Adjudicative tribunals are part of our justice system, and they are differentfrom the many other government boards or agencies that are focused on policies,regulation, investigations, […]

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October 31, 2023
Oversight of government appointments to tribunals has become a farce

Over the course of a mandate, governments make thousands of appointments to agencies boards and tribunals. In Ontario, the Standing Committee on Government Agencies is mandated to bring some oversight to these appointments by requiring selected intended appointees to appear before the Committee. This system has degenerated to the point that very few appointees appear, […]

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October 07, 2023
Political patronage, Ontario adjudicative tribunal system

The recent controversy about the Ontario government’s revival of the King’s counsel (KC) honorific is a stark reminder that political patronage is alive and well in Ontario. The KC designation was bestowed on Conservative Party contributors, and all current Conservative Party members of the provincial legislature who are lawyers. The honorific was also bestowed on […]

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June 21, 2023
Tribunal Watch Ontario Commentary on McAnsh v Ontario

A recent decision of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, McAnsh v Ontario, 2023 ONSC 3537 has found that governments are free to make decisions about whether an adjudicator appointed to an adjudicative tribunal should be reappointed based entirely on political motives. This disturbing outcome arises from a proposed class proceeding. The putative members of […]

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May 30, 2023
Public Request to the Ontario Auditor General

Introduction Tribunal Watch Ontario is a non-partisan, public interest organization, dedicated to promoting an independent and accessible adjudicative tribunal system in Ontario. Tribunal Watch Ontario advocates for accessible, efficient, timely and fair dispute resolution processes at Ontario tribunals. Tribunal Watch Ontario is filing this Public Request with the Office of the Auditor General of Ontario […]

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July 08, 2022
Access to Justice / Access to Justness

Volumes have been written on the concept of “access to justice” (A2J). The bulk of the inkexpended on A2J has focused on the judicial system, how courts provide justice. Tribunal WatchOntario would like to extend the discussion of access to justice to examine its place, impact andimport in the adjudicative tribunal justice system. Tribunals exist […]

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December 02, 2021
The Independent, Expert, and Competent Tribunal

Tribunal Watch Ontario has produced a Statement of Principles which sets out the values that should guide the development of a modern adjudicative tribunal system. In this paper, which complements the Statement, we elaborate on what must be done to ensure that the adjudicative tribunal system has the necessary independence, expertise, and competence to ensure […]

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October 31, 2021
The Adjudicative Tribunal Justice Council: A Proposal

The need for change Ontario’s adjudicative tribunals resolve many more disputes than the courts. Ontario’s citizens are much more likely to have legal issues before tribunals – about all aspects of their lives – than before the courts. Public confidence in the administration of justice requires that adjudicative tribunals and their adjudicators are independent, impartial, […]

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May 06, 2021
The Adjudicative Tribunal Justice System: Statement of Principles and Commentary

Introduction The Ontario adjudicative tribunal justice system consists of specialized, expert bodies that take the place of the courts in resolving all disputes in narrow fields of law. The advantage of this system is that disputes are resolved by tribunals with expertise in the specific subject matter and law pertinent to those fields. They are […]

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August 18, 2020
Ontario’s Adjudicative Tribunals – Basic Information

Adjudicative Tribunals Tribunal Clusters Leadership, Structure