(Disponible en français)
For questions, please contact Tribunals Ontario at:
Office of the Executive Chair
15 Grosvenor Street, Ground Floor
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M7A 2G6
Effective August 21, 2023, revised Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT) Rules will begin to apply to LAT appeals. The Application Rules Information Sheet provides information about the application of the revised LAT Rules. The Common Rules continue to apply to LAT matters for a period of time as set out in the information sheet and application rules.
The Common Rules continue to apply to all Animal Care Review Board and Fire Safety Commission matters.
The Safety, Licensing Appeals and Standards Tribunals Ontario (SLASTO) is a cluster of adjudicative tribunals created on April 1, 2013. SLASTO is designated as a cluster pursuant to s. 15 of the Adjudicative Tribunals Accountability, Governance and Appointments Act, 2009 and s. 4 of Ontario Regulation 126/10.
The constituent tribunals of SLASTO are the:
Effective October 2, 2017, these Common Rules of Practice and Procedure apply generally to all adjudicative proceedings conducted by the LAT, the ACRB, and the FSC. Each of the tribunals in SLASTO has a distinct mandate and conducts proceedings under a variety of separate statutes. These Common Rules are general and are designed to accommodate all of these distinct mandates. Please note that these Common Rules replace all previous versions of the Rules of the LAT, ACRB and FSC.
UPDATE:
Effective January 1, 2019, the constituent tribunals of SLASTO are now constituent tribunals of Tribunals Ontario – Safety Licensing Appeals and Standards Division.
Effective February 7, 2019, amendments have been made to Rule 18.
Table of Contents
These Rules are made pursuant to s. 25.1 of the Statutory Powers Procedure Act (SPPA) and pursuant to s. 6 of the Licence Appeal Tribunal Act, 1999.
These Rules should be read and understood together with the SPPA and all other relevant statutes or regulations dealing with the specific type of proceeding before the relevant tribunal.
If there is a conflict between these Rules and any statute or regulation, the provisions of the statute or regulation prevail.
These Rules are known as the Licence Appeal Tribunal, Animal Care Review Board, and Fire Safety Commission Common Rules of Practice and Procedure, Version I (October 2, 2017).
These Rules apply to all new appeals filed with the Tribunal on or after October 2, 2017.
Matters filed with the Tribunal prior to the implementation of these Rules shall be dealt with in accordance with the Rules existing at the time.
These Rules apply generally to all appeals unless a Rule states otherwise.
“Special Rules” set out as Rules 20 through 23 are unique or additional Rules, or modifications of Rules, that apply only to particular types of proceedings.
“Appeal” includes any application, appeal, or claim before the LAT, the ACRB or the FSC pursuant to a statute or regulation that gives the Tribunal the authority to hear the appeal.
The term “appeal” is used throughout these Rules for purposes of convenience. Other Tribunal documents and forms may reference “application” or “claim”; however, all are referred to as “appeals” for the purposes of these Rules.
“Appellant” means a person who has started an appeal with the Tribunal.
“Automobile Accident Benefits Service (AABS) Claim” means an application to the LAT pursuant to s. 280(2) of the Insurance Actseeking resolution of a dispute involving statutory accident benefits.
“Case Conference” has the same meaning as “Pre-Hearing Conference” as defined in the SPPA.
“Certificate of Service” means the form used to confirm the manner and time of delivery of a document.
“Contact information” includes:
“Day” means a calendar day.
“Business Day” means any day that is not a “holiday”.
“Holiday” means any Saturday, Sunday, statutory holiday, or other day on which the Tribunal’s offices are closed for business.
“Document” includes data and information recorded or stored by any means, including in electronic form.
“Electronic Format” means the format of an oral hearing, case conference, or other part of a proceeding before the Tribunal that is held by conference telephone call, video, internet, or any other form of electronic technology allowing persons to hear or see one another.
“Hearing” means a hearing (including the hearing of a motion) before the Tribunal in which a party has the opportunity to participate in any of written, in-person, or electronic formats.
“In-Person Format” means the format of an oral hearing, case conference, or other part of a proceeding before the Tribunal that is held by means of the parties or representatives attending before the Tribunal in person.
“Member” means a person appointed by Order-in-Council made by the Lieutenant Governor-in-Council to the Tribunal.
“Motion” means a request for an order or decision from the Tribunal to (a) rule upon its jurisdiction; (b) give directions concerning its procedures; or (c) make an order for any other purpose necessary to carrying out its functions.
“Objector” means, in the context of a public interest proceeding under the Liquor Licence Act, either:
“Particulars” means specific facts that clarify an allegation or assertion or provide additional information about a person’s statement.
“Party” means a person, association or corporation who has the right to participate in a proceeding and has notified the Tribunal of their intention to participate in the proceeding.
“Proceeding” means the entire Tribunal process from the start of an appeal to the time a matter is finally resolved.
“Public Interest Proceeding” means an appeal at the LAT under the Liquor Licence Act in which the Tribunal will determine whether the issuance of a licence to sell liquor would not be in the public interest having regard to the needs and wishes of the residents of the municipality in which the premises are located.
“Registrar” means the Registrar of the Tribunal.
“Representative” means a person who acts for a party in a proceeding and is authorized under the Law Society Act to represent a party in such a proceeding.
“Respondent” means the party identified as the respondent in an appeal or the party who is identified as the respondent under the applicable legislation.
“Response” means the response a respondent is required to provide in relation to an appeal or as may otherwise be specified by the Tribunal.
“Rules” or “Common Rules” means these Rules, i.e., Licence Appeal Tribunal, Animal Care Review Board, and Fire Safety Commission Common Rules of Practice and Procedure, Version I (October 2, 2017).
“SABS” means the Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule, Ontario Regulation 34/10 (Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule—Effective September 1, 2010), made under the Insurance Act, as revised from time to time, or a previous version of the SABS.
“Tribunal”, means the Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT), Animal Care Review Board (ACRB), or Fire Safety Commission (FSC).
“Written Format” means the format of a hearing, motion, or other part of a proceeding before the Tribunal which is held by means of exchange of documents, including submissions.
These Rules will be liberally interpreted and applied and may be waived, varied or applied on the Tribunal’s own initiative, or at the request of a party, to:
The Tribunal may issue public Practice Directions or similar types of documents to provide further information about the Tribunal’s practices or procedures.
The Tribunal may decline to process an appeal unless all of the following conditions are met:
The Tribunal will notify the party who filed the appeal if any of the above requirements are not met, and shall give the party such time as the Tribunal determines appropriate in the circumstances to comply with the requirements before declining to process an appeal under this Rule.
The Tribunal may dismiss an appeal without a hearing if:
Before dismissing an appeal under this Rule, the Tribunal shall:
The Tribunal may add a person as a party to a proceeding if the person has a significant interest in the proceeding.
Tribunal communications and proceedings (e.g. hearings, case conferences) may be conducted in English, in French, or in both languages.
Subject to Rule 20.6, if a party or a witness requires an interpreter in a language other than English or French in order to effectively participate in a proceeding, the party shall notify the Tribunal not less than 14 days before the hearing or case conference, and the Tribunal will either arrange for an interpreter at the expense of the party or approve the use of an interpreter of the party’s choosing at the expense of the party.
All written communications with the Tribunal in relation to an appeal must be made through the Office of the Registrar and must include current contact information.
All communications, other than a request for summons, must be copied to the other parties.
A party or a party’s representative must notify the Tribunal and the other parties or their representatives, in writing, as soon as possible, of any change in their contact information.
Where an action is to be done within a specified number of days, the days are counted by excluding the first day and including the last day.
Where the time for doing an act ends on a holiday, the act may be done on the next day that is not a holiday.
Documents must be filed with the Tribunal, sent by the Tribunal, or served on a party, as the case may be, in one of the following ways:
Where a document is served by a party, filed with the Tribunal, or sent by the Tribunal, receipt is deemed to have occurred when served or sent by:
The previous Rule does not apply if the person for whom the document was intended establishes that through absence, accident, illness or other cause beyond that person’s control, the document was not received until a later date or not at all.
A notice or document not given in accordance with this Rule shall be deemed to have been validly filed, served, or sent if the Tribunal is satisfied that its contents came to the attention of the person to whom it was intended within the required time period.
Documents received by the Tribunal after 5:00 PM will be deemed to have been received on the next day that is not a holiday.
When a document in a proceeding is served on a person or party, the party serving the document must:
A party may be self-represented or may have a representative.
Parties, representatives and witnesses are entitled to accommodation of Ontario Human Rights Code-related needs, including accessibility needs, and should notify the Tribunal as soon as possible if such accommodation is required.
The Tribunal may issue a summons on its own initiative or at the request of a party.
A person requesting a summons must file a Request for Summons with the Tribunal. The Request shall provide a brief explanation of the information the witness is expected to give at the hearing.
Service of a summons and payment of attendance money is the responsibility of the party that requested the summons. A party summonsing a person to attend before the Tribunal is required to pay that person the same fees or allowances as the person would be paid if attending before the Superior Court of Justice (Ontario). Fees and allowances are to be calculated in accordance with Tariff A of the Rules of Civil Procedure.
The Tribunal may at any stage in a proceeding, including prior to a case conference, order any party to provide such further particulars or disclosure as the Tribunal considers necessary for a full and satisfactory understanding of the issues in the proceeding.
A party to a hearing shall, at least 10 days before the hearing, or at any other time ordered by the Tribunal or undertaken by the party:
A party may seek an order from the Tribunal at any stage of the proceeding ordering a party to:
If a party fails to comply with any Rules, directions or orders with respect to disclosure or inspection of documents or things, or list of witnesses, that party may not rely on the document or thing as evidence, or call the witnesses to give evidence, without the consent of the Tribunal.
For the purpose of these Rules, an expert witness is a person who is qualified to provide professional, scientific, or technical information and opinion based on special knowledge acquired through education, training or experience in respect of the matters on which he or she will testify.
A party who intends to rely on or refer to the evidence of an expert witness shall provide every other party with the following information in writing:
The disclosure required by Rule 10.2 shall be made:
A party intending to challenge an expert’s qualifications, report, or witness statement shall give notice, with reasons, for the challenge to the other parties as soon as possible and no later than 10 days before the hearing and must file a copy with the Tribunal.
Notice of a constitutional question shall be served on the Attorney General of Canada, the Attorney General of Ontario and all other parties, and delivered to the Tribunal in the following circumstances:
A Notice of Constitutional Question Form must be delivered as soon as the circumstances requiring the notice become known and, in any event, at least 15 days before the question is to be argued.
In accordance with applicable provisions of the SPPA, the Tribunal may hold a hearing or case conference in any of the following formats, as it considers appropriate:
The Tribunal may provide public access to the following documents:
The Tribunal will not provide public access to any other documents including correspondence between the parties and the Tribunal, documentary or other evidence submitted by the parties but not admitted in a proceeding, case conference reports, and settlement discussions.
The Tribunal may limit access to a record of proceedings or, during a proceeding, make an order at the request of one of the parties or on its own motion, limiting public access to all or part of any document or record or hearing to protect confidentiality of personal or sensitive information, as it considers appropriate in relation to:
The Tribunal may record an in-person or electronic hearing. Where a hearing is recorded, the recording does not form part of the Tribunal's record of proceedings including any record filed in respect of an application made under the Judicial Review Procedures Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.J.1.
A party who wishes to make his or her own recording of a hearing may do so if authorized by the Tribunal and subject to the party undertaking to comply with any restrictions on use of the recordings specified by the Tribunal. Requests for permission to make recordings must be made in writing to the Tribunal at least 10 days prior to a hearing and the request must be copied to the other parties. The other parties may make submissions on the request in the time specified by the Tribunal. A recording made by a party does not become part of the Tribunal’s record of the hearing. A party who makes a recording must provide a copy to all other parties and, upon request, to the Tribunal.
A party who wishes to retain a court reporter for a hearing may do so if they advise the Tribunal and the other parties in writing at least 5 days before the hearing.
A party who retains a court reporter for a hearing does so at that party's expense and must ensure that all other parties have an equal right to request, at their own expense, a transcript from the court reporter.
If a party requests a transcript, it is the responsibility of the requesting party to provide a certified copy of the transcript to the Tribunal upon request and at no cost to the Tribunal.
Despite Rule 1.4, this Rule applies to all appeals effective July 1, 2024.
A member or any other person presiding over a case conference pursuant to section 5.3(2) of the SPPA may issue procedural or administrative directions as necessary for the conduct of the proceeding. A member presiding at a case conference may make any such further orders as necessary.
The Tribunal may on its own initiative, or in response to a party’s written request, direct the parties to participate in a case conference to consider:
A Member who presides at or otherwise takes part in a case conference shall not participate as a Member of a panel at a subsequent hearing of the appeal except with the consent of the parties.
All settlement discussions in a case conference and the documents put forward solely for the purpose of settlement are confidential. Settlement discussions are held on a “without prejudice” basis. Settlement discussions shall not be communicated to the Member that participates in the hearing or otherwise be relied on in a hearing before the Tribunal for any purpose unless the parties consent.
A case conference is not open to the public unless the Tribunal so directs.
Parties are required to attend the case conference. If a party is unable to attend a case conference, the party must at least 7 days before the scheduled case conference:
A party bringing a motion shall deliver a Notice of Motion setting out:
A party may have a motion heard at a case conference or hearing, provided the party files the Notice of Motion and all supporting materials with the Tribunal at least 10 days in advance, or in accordance with any other schedule as may be determined by the Tribunal, and serves the Notice and supporting materials on all other parties.
A responding party shall serve any materials it intends to rely on in response to the motion to all parties and file them, with a certificate of Service, with the Tribunal at least 5 days before the motion is to be considered.
A request for an adjournment of a case conference or hearing must be in writing, be served on the other parties, and shall include:
Despite Rule 16.1, a request for an adjournment may be made orally before a Member in exceptional circumstances with the consent of the Tribunal.
The Tribunal may at any time:
The Tribunal may, on its own initiative or upon request of a party, if the request is made within 21 days of the date of the decision, reconsider any decision of the Tribunal that finally disposes of an appeal.
A request for reconsideration from a party should be in the form, if any, that is provided on the Tribunal’s website for reconsideration requests. The request must be served on all other parties and must include:
The determination of the request for reconsideration shall be heard by written submissions and may be heard by the same Member whose decision is the subject of the request.
The Tribunal shall not make an order under 18.4(b) unless satisfied that one or more of the following criteria are met:
Responding parties will have an opportunity to make submissions before any order is made under 18.4(b).
Upon reconsidering a decision of the Tribunal, the Tribunal may:
If the Tribunal orders a rehearing of the matter, the Tribunal may make any order that it could make following a case conference.
Despite Rule 1.4, this Rule applies to any request for reconsideration of a decision or order issued on or after February 7, 2019. Requests for reconsideration of decisions or orders issued before February 7, 2019 will be dealt with in accordance with the Rules existing at the time the decision or order was issued.
Where a party believes that another party in a proceeding has acted unreasonably, frivolously, vexatiously, or in bad faith, that party may make a request to the Tribunal for costs.
A request for costs may be made to the Tribunal in writing or orally at a case conference or hearing, at any time before the decision or order is released.
The Tribunal may order that a party making a request orally under Rule 19.2 shall provide written submissions to the Tribunal and all other parties within 7 days of that oral request. A submission on costs shall set out the amount being requested.
A submission on costs shall set out the reasons for the request and the particulars of the other party’s conduct that are alleged to be unreasonable, frivolous, vexatious, or in bad faith.
In deciding whether to order costs and the amount of costs to be ordered, the Tribunal shall consider all relevant factors including: the seriousness of the misconduct; whether the conduct was in breach of a direction or order issued by the Tribunal, whether or not a party’s behaviour interfered with the Tribunal’s ability to carry out a fair, efficient, and effective process; prejudice to other parties; and the potential impact an order for costs would have on individuals accessing the Tribunal system.
The Tribunal may deny or grant the request for costs or award a different amount than requested.
The amount of costs shall not exceed $1000 for each full day of attendance at a motion, case conference or hearing.
Rule 20 applies to AABS Claims pursuant to the Insurance Act only. All other Tribunal Rules also apply to AABS Claims except to the extent varied or negated by this Rule.
A response to an AABS Claim shall be provided by a respondent, in the form specified by the Tribunal, within 14 days of the respondent having been served with the AABS Claim, or within such other period as may be specified by the Tribunal.
A response to an AABS Claim must clearly detail any jurisdictional issues that the respondent seeks to have considered by the Tribunal.
Each party shall file an AABS Case Conference Summary, in such form as may be required by the Tribunal, with the Tribunal at least 10 days before a scheduled Case Conference. An AABS Case Conference Summary shall include:
Where two or more AABS Claims have been made involving the same parties or the same accident, the Tribunal may:
Where a party gives notice pursuant to Rule 4.2 regarding the need for an interpreter, the Tribunal shall arrange for an interpreter at the Tribunal’s expense, despite Rule 4.2.
Rule 21 applies only to applications to the Tribunal under s.11 (4) of the Liquor Licence and Control Act 2019 to remove a condition of a licence.
All other Tribunal Rules also apply to these applications, except to the extent varied or negated by these Rules.
A Licensee may file an application to the Tribunal for the removal of one or more conditions on a liquor sales licence under section 11 (4) of the Liquor Licence and Control Act 2019 by completing the Tribunal’s Application to Remove Conditions from a Liquor Licence form and submitting it together with the prescribed filing fee and any other documentation that the Licensee considers necessary and appropriate to assist the Tribunal in arriving at its decision. The Licensee shall serve the application on the Registrar under the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario and file it with the Tribunal together with a Certificate of Service.
Within 15 days of receipt of the application, the Registrar under the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario shall serve on the Licensee and file with the Tribunal, together with a Certificate of Service, reply submissions that set out the Registrar under the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario's position, with reasons, with respect to the Licensee’s application. The reply submissions will include the original decision, any consents or orders imposing the condition and any other documents the Registrar under the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario considers necessary to assist the Tribunal in arriving at its decision.
Rule 22 applies only to public interest proceedings under the Liquor Licence and Control Act 2019.
In a public interest proceeding pursuant to the Liquor Licence and Control Act 2019, objectors for whom the Tribunal has complete mailing or e-mail addresses shall be given notice of the first case conference in the proceeding. An objector who attends a case conference or has a representative attend on their behalf shall be given notice of the next case conference or hearing.
If an objector does not attend a case conference for which they had notice, and does not have a representative attend on their behalf, the Tribunal may proceed without their participation and a binding settlement may be reached between the parties. The objector is not entitled to further notice of the proceedings.
An objector, including an individual, a group of objectors, a residents’ association, or a municipality, may ask to be made a party in a public interest proceeding, which request shall be made before or at the case conference.
An objector who is made a party to a public interest proceeding has the right to participate in the proceeding.
An objector who is not a party may still give evidence at the hearing and have their views considered.
Rule 23 applies to appeals pursuant to the Highway Traffic Act. All other Tribunal Rules also apply to these appeals, except to the extent varied or negated by this Rule.
Appeals under the following sections of the Highway Traffic Act (HTA) are scheduled to be heard within 30 days of receipt of a complete appeal:
Disclosure in appeals respecting the suspension or cancellation of a driver’s licence, as set out in 23.2(a), shall be made:
Disclosure in the HTA appeal types set out in 23.2 (b), (c) and (d) shall be made: