Complaint Rules

EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 19, 2022
(Replaces prior version marked as “Effective October 12, 2021”)

Table of contents

  1. Title
  2. Introduction
  3. Definitions
  4. Purpose
  5. Interpretation and application
  6. Accomodation
  7. Format of documents
  8. Filing of complaints and other forms or documents
  9. Amending complaints
  10. Timelines
  11. Raising preliminary issues
  12. Responsibilities of parties
  13. Interviews
  14. Settlement of complaints
  15. Commission decisions

1. Title

1.1 These Rules may be cited as the Canadian Human Rights Commission Complaint Rules (“Rules”).

2. Introduction

2.1 The Canadian Human Rights Commission (“the Commission”) administers a complaint process pursuant to the Canadian Human Rights Act , R.S., 1985, c. H-6 (“the Act”).

2.2 The Commission is a screening body. It does not decide whether discrimination has taken place. Rather, it exercises a screening role with respect to disputes of a human rights nature in the federal jurisdiction and based on enumerated grounds in the Act.

3. Definitions

3.1 The words and terms used in these Rules have the same meaning as they do in the Act.

3.2 For greater clarity, in these Rules the words below are defined as follows:

Act
means the Canadian Human Rights Act;
alternative dispute resolution
means mediation and conciliation as practiced by the Commission;
assessment
means the Commission’s examination of discrimination complaints during its complaint process; including complaint analysis under sections 40 and 41 of the Act; investigations conducted under section 43 of the Act, and/or for referrals to the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal made under section 49 of the Act;
Commission
means the Canadian Human Rights Commission and its staff;
Commissioner
means a member of the Commission appointed under Part II of the Act;
complaint
means a complaint filed under Part III of the Act;
Complainant
means the individual or group of individuals who file a Complaint;
Complaint Form
is a form containing the details of one or more allegations of discrimination or harassment;
complaint process
means the process used by the Commission, at its discretion, to deal with inquiries and complaints, including mediation, conciliation, complaint assessment, and the Commission’s decision-making process;
conciliation
means the process used to try to bring about a settlement of a complaint, led by a conciliator referred to in section 47 of the Act;
conciliator
means the person appointed pursuant to section 47 of the Act to lead the process to try to bring about a settlement of a complaint;
deadname
is a term used by some two-spirit, transgender, or gender diverse individuals to refer to their former name (sometimes the same as their given name at birth) which they no longer use.
exceptional circumstances
means something unexpected happens and it prevents a party from meeting a Commission deadline or other request. The circumstances are generally outside of the control of the party. That is, the circumstances are reasonably unforeseen and unavoidable. Medical or family emergencies, accidents, serious illness, or environmental emergencies, such as fire or flood are examples of exceptional circumstances. There may be other circumstances that qualify as exceptional.
form
means “Complaint Form”, “Response Form”, “Reply Form” and any other document the Commission prescribes for use in the complaint process.
former name
is a name by which a person was formerly known and which they no longer use. For example, it could be a given name, legal name, deadname, or nickname.
Human Rights Officer
means the individual assigned by the Commission to deal with a complaint or inquiry;
inquiry
means the initial contact made by a member of the public with the Commission regarding specific circumstances or facts. This includes contact regarding Complaint Forms that have not yet been accepted by the Commission;
mediation
is a confidential and voluntary process the objective of which is to settle all or part of a complaint;
mediator
means any individual assigned by the Commission to conduct a mediation on behalf of the Commission;
party
means either the Complainant or the Respondent and “parties” means all the Complainants and the Respondent to a complaint;
preliminary issues
means issues under sections 40 or 41 of the Act that may prevent the Commission from dealing with a complaint or that allow the Commission not to deal with a complaint. See Preliminary Issues Information Sheet
referral to Assessment
means that a complaint has been placed in the queue for assessment by a Human Rights Officer;
reply
means the Complainant’s reply to any preliminary issues, and the Complainant’s reply to the Respondent’s response to the allegations in the complaint. The reply is to be provided using the Reply Form on the Commission’s website.
report
means a report that will be presented to one or more Commissioners for a decision about a complaint;
representative
means a lawyer or other individual who is authorized to represent a party in the complaint process;
Respondent
means the party against whom a complaint has been made;
response
means the Respondent’s response to the complaint, and includes whether the Respondent is willing to participate in Commission mediation, any preliminary issues the Respondent wants to raise or respond to, and the Respondent’s response to the allegations in the complaint. The response is to be provided using the Response Form on the Commission’s website. In most cases, the Respondent must provide a response.
submission
means a document submitted to the Commission by either party in response to a report or to the other party’s submission to a report.

4. Purpose

4.1 The purpose of these Rules is to maintain a workable and administratively effective complaint process while ensuring that the process for dealing with complaints is procedurally fair.

5. Interpretation and application

5.1 These Rules are to be interpreted liberally and in a manner consistent with the provisions and objectives of the Act.

5.2 These Rules apply to the Commission’s human rights complaints process.

5.3 The Commission assists parties to resolve these human rights disputes in matters under the jurisdiction of the Act using the most appropriate dispute resolution process in the circumstances of each case.

5.4 In dealing with complaints, the Commission may, at its sole discretion and with notice to parties:

  1. lengthen or shorten any time limit in these Rules;
  2. allow any forms filed with the Commission to be amended;
  3. waive the application of all or any part of these Rules where it appears just to do so.

5.5 These Rules apply to all complaints received after these Rules come into effect. The Rules also apply to complaints entering the next stage in the Commission’s complaint process after these Rules come into effect.

5.6 The Commission may, at its sole discretion, exercise any of its powers under these Rules on its own initiative or at the request of a party.

5.7 Where a procedural matter arises that is not covered by these Rules, the Commission may nevertheless deal with it in such manner as it deems appropriate in the circumstances.

6. Accommodation

6.1 The Commission strives to create and maintain an inclusive, barrier-free human rights complaints process. This means recognizing the individual needs of the people that access our complaint process. Please refer to the Commission’s Accommodation Policy to learn more about how to make an accommodation request. Please request accommodation as soon as you become aware of your need.

6.2 The Commission may waive or alter the application of any of these Rules in order to provide a necessary accommodation to a party or their representative.

6.3 All documents submitted must be provided in accordance with the accessibility needs identified in the notification letter or any other communication received from the Commission.

7. Format of documents

7.1 General

  1. The Commission’s usual complaint process is electronic. This means whenever possible the parties should submit any documents (including Complaint, Response and Reply Forms) intended for use in the complaint process by email or online.
  2. The parties shall use the appropriate forms from the Commission to provide any information that is requested by the Commission. Information that is submitted not using Commission forms, where available, will not be considered unless approval was previously granted.
  3. The Commission will request personal pronouns from the parties and use them if provided.
  4. Where a form or document requires a signature, or agreement, the Commission will accept a party’s electronic signature or a legible copy of the party’s signature. If a party is filing a form or document electronically, their electronic signature represents their legal signature.
  5. All documents submitted must be relevant to the complaint.

7.2 Paper Versions

  1. Any paper forms or documents intended for use in the complaint process shall be printed, typewritten, or reproduced legibly in a form acceptable to the Commission.
  2. If submitting paper documents or forms for use in the complaint process, only those without staples, paper clips, tabs or other tools to separate documents will be accepted.
  3. In a paper Complaint Form, response, reply, or submission, where text is printed on both sides of the paper it shall be counted as two pages.

7.3 The Complaint

For the purposes of section 40(1) of the Act, a complaint in a form acceptable to the Commission shall contain:

  1. the name of the Complainant;
  2. the name of the Complainant’s representative, if the Complainant has a representative;
  3. the name of the Respondent;
  4. the name of the victim or victims of discrimination, if the complaint is filed by a third person and the victims are identified by name in the complaint form; a statement that the Complainant or the individual or individuals on whose behalf the complaint has been filed have reasonable grounds for believing that they are or have been the victim(s) of discrimination on the basis of one or more enumerated grounds;
  5. a description of the events giving rise to the complaint, including dates and locations, the prohibited grounds of discrimination alleged to have been breached, and the alleged discriminatory practice;
  6. a declaration that the information provided is true to the best of the Complainant’s knowledge or belief;
  7. the Complainant’s signed consent, whether by hand or electronically, to have the Commission assess the complaint; and
  8. the Complainant’s signed consent, whether by hand or electronically, to the release to the Commission by the Respondent and third parties of all information and documents in the Respondent’s or third party’s possession which relate to the complaint, such as, but not limited to, personal records and medical documents.

Note that the use of legal names is not required. Current names, by which one is known, may be used.

7.4 A Complaint Form that contains:

  1. personal or private information that may cause harm if disclosed, such as a person’s former name, social insurance number, health information, personal characteristics, or other confidential information not relevant to the complaint, or,
  2. references or hyperlinks to other documents, websites or attachments,

is not in a form acceptable to the Commission for the purposes of section 40(1) of the Act.

As a result, the Commission will ask the Complainant to black out or remove such information, references or attachments from the Complaint Form prior to the acceptance of the complaint by the Commission, or, in exceptional circumstances, seek consent to do the redaction.

The only exception is when a Complainant’s or victim’s former name is included and the Complainant or the representative confirms to the Commission that they want the former name kept in the Complaint Form, and that they understand that the Complaint Form will be available to the public if the complaint is referred to the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal for a hearing.

7.5 The narrative part of a Complaint Form shall not exceed 3 pages in length or in the case of the Commission’s online Complaint Form, 10,000 characters.

7.6 Response and Reply

  1. A Response or Reply Form shall not exceed 20 pages in length.
  2. Documents requested in part 4 of the Reply Form are not included in this limit.
  3. Any part of a response or reply that is not legible will not be considered.
  4. A Respondent or Complainant who wishes to submit additional pages as part of their response or reply must request and get approval from the Commission before their deadline. In their request for approval, the party must explain the relevance of additional pages they want to provide in excess of the 20-page limit.
  5. The Commission will not consider any additional pages submitted without prior approval.
  6. Additional pages approved for one party may also be granted to the other party.
  7. The citation for any legal decisions referred to in a response or reply must be provided. It is not necessary to reproduce full legal decisions at any point in the Commission process.

7.7 Submissions to an Assessment Report

  1. A submission to a report shall not exceed 10 pages in length, including attachments.
  2. Any part of a submission that is not legible will not be considered.
  3. A Complainant or Respondent who wishes to submit additional pages as part of their submission must request and get approval from the Commission before their deadline to do so. In their request for approval, the party must explain the relevance of additional pages they want to provide in excess of the 10-page limit.
  4. The Commission will not consider any additional pages submitted without prior approval.
  5. Additional pages approved for one party may also be granted to the other party.
  6. The citation for any legal decisions referred to in a response or reply must be provided. It is not necessary to reproduce full legal decisions at any point in the Commission process.

7.8 Submissions to other Reports and Notices of Intent

  1. Where a report is prepared following the mediation or conciliation of a complaint, or where a report is disclosed simultaneously with the notification of the complaint, a party shall be entitled to make a submission on the report not exceeding 5 pages in length, including attachments.
  2. A submission to a Notice of Intent may not exceed 10 pages in length.
  3. A response to a party’s submission to a Notice of Intent may not exceed 5 pages in length.
  4. Any other limit as specified in a notification must be respected.
  5. Any part of a submission that is not legible will not be considered.
  6. A Complainant or Respondent that wishes to submit additional pages as part of their submission must request and get approval from the Commission before their deadline to do so. In their request for approval, the party must explain the relevance of additional pages they want to provide in excess of the 5-page limit.
  7. Any pages submitted that are in excess of the approved page limit will not be considered.
  8. Additional pages approved for one party may also be granted to the other party.
  9. In cases where the Commission places submissions longer than five pages before the Commissioners for consideration, the Commission shall provide notice to the other parties and grant the opportunity to the other parties to file submissions of equal length.

8. FILING OF COMPLAINTS AND OTHER FORMS OR DOCUMENTS

8.1 A complaint is not filed with the Commission until it is in a form acceptable to the Commission in accordance with section 40(1) of the Act and paragraphs 7.3, 7.4, 9.2 and 9.3 of these Rules.

8.2 Complaint Forms and other forms, submissions or documents can be delivered to the Commission by:

  1. using the Commission’s online Complaint Form
  2. email to complaint.plainte@chrc-ccdp.gc.ca,
  3. courier or regular mail to Canadian Human Rights Commission, 8th Floor, 344 Slater Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 1E1;
  4. facsimile to 613-996-9661; or
  5. other means as directed by the Commission. Please note, we do not accept walk-ins.

8.3 A Complaint Form or other forms, submissions or documents that are delivered by facsimile must include the following information:

  1. the name, address, telephone and/or facsimile numbers of the person transmitting the document;
  2. the date and time of the transmission; and,
  3. the total number of pages being transmitted.

8.4 In all situations where the Commission provides the email address for the other party, parties must email a copy of their forms, submissions or other documents to the other partys email address at the same time these are sent to the Commission.

  1. If no email address for the other party is provided, the Commission will deliver any form, submission or document to the other party.
  2. The Commission shall deliver any form, submission or document to a party’s or representative’s last known email address and this shall be deemed effective delivery.
  3. In situations involving a paper-based process, the Commission shall deliver any form, submission or document to a party’s or representative’s last known mailing address and this shall be deemed effective delivery.

9. Amending complaints

9.1 Complainants are expected to include all relevant allegations and submit a complete Complaint Form when filing their complaint. In exceptional circumstances, a Complainant will be permitted to amend their accepted complaint.

9.2 Subject to the principles of procedural fairness, complaints may be amended to add new allegations only in circumstances where the facts upon which the new allegations are based on are:

  • related to the original complaint; and,
  • were not known, or could not reasonably have been known, to the Complainant at the time they filed their original complaint.

9.3 The Complainant must make their request to amend their complaint as soon as possible, after they become aware of the facts upon which the request is based.

9.4 Subject to the provisions under section 2.4, the amended Complaint Form cannot exceed the number of pages permitted for an original Complaint Form under section 7 of these Rules.

10. Timelines

10.1 For all purposes in these Rules, time periods are calculated by counting consecutive calendar days including days on which the Commission is closed. Where the time limit for doing something expires or falls on a day on which the Commission is closed, it may be done on the next day the Commission is open.

10.2 The date of delivery of a Complaint Form or other form or document, including a written submission, refers to:

  1. when it is sent using the Commission’s online Complaint Form, the day on which it was sent;
  2. when it is sent by courier, the day on which the Commission received it;
  3. when it is sent by facsimile or email, the day on which it was sent;
  4. when it is sent by regular mail from an urban area, 6 days after the date of the postmark, or from a northern or remote area, 14 days after the date of the postmark, or, if received earlier, the day on which the Commission actually received it.

The date of delivery of a Complaint Form or other form or document that has been updated or revised is the date on which the Commission receives the final updated or revised version.

10.3 At its discretion, the Commission may require that the parties participate in the complaint process by providing verbal and/or written submissions and may set timelines for such participation.

10.4 Where a response is requested, a Respondent shall deliver its response to the Commission and the Complainant within 60 calendar days of receiving the notification of the complaint.

10.5 Where a reply is requested, a Complainant shall deliver their reply to the Commission and the Respondent within 60 calendar days of receiving the response or an email from the Commission notifying them that no response was received.

10.6 Unless otherwise specified, where a submission in response to a report is requested, a party shall deliver its submission to the Commission and the other party within 14 calendar days of receiving the report.

10.7 Where requested by the Commission, a submission made in response to the submission of another party shall be delivered to the Commission and the other party within 14 days of receipt of the submission from the other party.

10.8 Parties and representatives are expected to respond in a timely manner to requests for forms, documents or other information by the Commission.

10.9 Where a party fails to comply with any deadline under these Rules or fails to comply with any direction of the Commission, the Commission may take any step it considers appropriate in dealing with an inquiry or complaint, including dealing with the complaint without further notice to that party.

10.10 Extension Requests

  1. A party may make a request to the Commission for an extension of any period of time provided by these Rules. The Commission will decide whether to grant or refuse an extension.
  2. The party making a request for an extension shall provide an explanation for the extension request, and suggest a new deadline that can be met.
  3. The Commission will generally not grant an extension of time to file a Response to a complaint or a Reply after the time limit in these Rules unless the party requesting an extension demonstrates exceptional circumstances justifying why it is not possible to file a proper Response or Reply within the time limit.
  4. When making a request for an extension the party shall request the extension as soon as they become aware of the need for an extension and always before the original deadline, unless doing so is impossible due to circumstances beyond the control of the party making the request. Examples of circumstances beyond the control of the party include medical or family emergencies or environmental events such as flood or fire.
  5. The Commission may request documents or further information to support the request for the extension.
  6. The Commission will set the new deadline in consideration of the information provided and inform both parties of its decision on the requested extension, including the new deadline if the extension is granted.
  7. If the Commission grants an extension to one party, the other party may be given the same extension.
  8. If the Commission has not responded to the extension request by the deadline, the party must provide what it has available at the deadline.

11. Raising Preliminary Issues

11.1 Respondents wishing to object to a complaint for a reason under sections 40 or 41 of the Act must do so as part of their response to the complaint within 60 calendar days of receiving notice from the Commission that a complaint has been filed against the Respondent.

11.2 Exceptions to the requirement cited in 11.1 may be allowed only in situations where the facts giving rise to the objection could not have been known at the time that the response was submitted.

11.3 When a Respondent raises an objection under sections 40 or 41 of the Act, the Commission may consider the objection at the same time that it considers the merits of the complaint. When this occurs, only one report will be submitted to a Commissioner for decision.

12. Responsibilities of parties

12.1

  1. It is the responsibility of parties and representatives to ensure that their contact information with the Commission remains up to date. The Commission shall deliver any documents to a party’s or representative’s last known email address and this shall be deemed effective delivery.
  2. In situations involving a paper-based process, the Commission shall deliver any documents to a party’s or representative’s last known mailing address and this shall be deemed effective delivery.

12.2

  1. The Commission usually communicates by email from complaint.plainte@chrc-ccdp.gc.ca. It is the responsibility of the parties to make sure that their email system recognizes the Commission’s email address and the email address of the other party. The parties are responsible for checking their email junk and spam folders to ensure that emails from the Commission or the other party are not overlooked. Missed emails will not be considered as a basis for extending deadlines or reconsidering Commission decisions.
  2. With the exception of complaints alleging sexual harassment, where an email address is provided to the Commission for the purposes of processing a complaint, the email address owner will be deemed to have given consent for the Commission to share that email address with the other party to the complaint.
  3. With the exception of complaints alleging sexual harassment, it is the responsibility of the email address owner to request that the Commission not share their email address with the other party and explain the reason why. Acceptable reasons include situations where a court order prohibits contact with the other party or there is a reasonable likelihood that psychological harm will result.
  4. The Commission may request documents or further information to support the request for the exception.

12.3 In all situations where the Commission provides the email address for the other party, the parties are responsible for providing a copy of their response or reply and any submissions or documents to the other party at the same time that it is sent to the Commission.

12.4 The parties have an obligation to preserve any material related to a complaint, until the conclusion of the Commission’s complaints process. This includes information in electronic formats and names and telephone numbers of witnesses.

12.5 Official Languages

  1. The parties, their representatives and witnesses are entitled to communicate and receive available services from the Commission in the official language of their choice.
  2. Should a party, their representative or a witness to a complaint require accommodation to receive services in a language covered by the Accessible Canada Act or the Indigenous Languages Act, they should contact complaint.plainte@chrc-ccdp.gc.ca

12.6

  1. All forms, submissions and other documents shall be filed with the Commission in either official language.
  2. A response or submission shall be provided in the official language of the complaint.

12.7 Where an original document is not in English or in French but has been translated into either English or French, the Commission may consider the translated version. A translator’s declaration shall accompany the translated document. A translator’s declaration must include the translator’s name, the original language of the document translated, and a statement signed by the translator that the translation is accurate.

12.8 Where a party is no longer represented by a representative, the party shall promptly notify the Commission.

12.9

  1. A Complainant may request to withdraw their complaint at any time by providing a signed Withdrawal Form, or signed request in writing or by email.
  2. Once a complaint has been withdrawn, a Complainant cannot reactivate the complaint or submit a new complaint on the same matters.

12.10 Where the parties choose to participate in mediation they shall sign and date the Commission’s Agreement to Mediate.

12.11 The parties and their representatives, have a responsibility to cooperate with the Commission at all stages of the complaint process.

12.12 Respectful Conduct

  1. The Commission will not tolerate violent or harassing behavior. The parties shall, in all their dealings and communication with the Commission, act in a courteous and civil manner. Failure to do so will result in appropriate action by the Commission including but not limited to the immediate termination of the meeting or discussion, and a requirement that all future communications from or to the party be in writing. Please refer to the Commission’s Right to Respect Policy for more information about the Commission’s expectations during our complaint process.
  2. Revealing the existence of a former name, or health or personal characteristic can place a person at risk of harassment, violence, and trauma. As a result, the Commission will ask the party to black out or remove such information, references or attachments from all documents or, in exceptional circumstances, seek consent to do the redaction.
  3. Parties are required to use the name, gender and pronouns that individuals use to identify themselves in all communication with the Commission and the other parties, including in all forms and submissions.
  4. Regardless of grounds alleged in the complaint, before a party discloses a relevant document which contains another party’s former name and associated pronouns, the name and pronouns are to be blacked out and the document must have a covering note indicating the redactions are related to use of the party’s former name.
  5. All documents submitted must be provided in accordance with the accommodations identified in the notification letter or any other communication received from the Commission.

13. Interviews

13.1 At the discretion of the Commission, interviews may be conducted by telephone, in writing, by other electronic means, or exceptionally, in person.

13.2 All witness interviews shall be conducted in private. This means that the parties’ representatives or legal counsel cannot participate in, or be present for a witness interview, except when a witness is being interviewed to clarify a Respondent’s policy or practice, and/or when the witness is also named as a Respondent (there is a separate complaint) and requests that their employer’s representative or legal counsel be present. A witness may be accompanied by another non-party representative and/or support person of their choosing.

14. Settlement of complaints

14.1 An offer to settle a complaint may be made by any party at any stage of the complaint process by signing, dating and delivering or emailing a written offer to settle to all other parties and to the Commission, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties and the Commission in the course of the Commission’s alternative dispute resolution process.

14.2 Acceptance of an offer to settle shall be made in writing or by email and communicated to the party making the offer at the address set out in the offer.

14.3 It is not the responsibility of the Commission to communicate offers to settle or an acceptance of an offer to settle made between the parties whether the offer to settle or acceptance thereof is made in the course of alternative dispute resolution or otherwise.

14.4 The Commission may consider an offer to settle when considering a report in respect of the complaint. An offer to settle a complaint referred to in this paragraph must remain open for acceptance for thirty (30) days after the Commission’s final decision in respect of the complaint.

14.5 Where a settlement of a complaint is referred to the Commission pursuant to section 48(1) of the Act, the terms of settlement shall be in writing, entitled Minutes of Settlement.

14.6 Settlements may be referred to the Commission at any time after the filing of a complaint and before the commencement of a hearing before the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.

14.7 Parties must submit a complete original or electronic copy of the Minutes of Settlement to the Commission with the following added after the signature lines:

These Minutes of Settlement were approved by the Canadian Human Rights Commission at ________________________________
this _________ day of ____________________ 20___ pursuant to subsection 48 (1)
of the Canadian Human Rights Act.

_______________________________________
(Name of Commissioner)
Canadian Human Rights Commission

14.8 A settlement approved by the Commission under section 48 of the Act may, for the purpose of enforcement, be made an order of the Federal Court on application to that Court by the Commission or a party to the settlement.

14.9 Where parties settle a complaint outside the complaint process, the parties shall advise the Commission as soon as possible.

15. Commission decisions

15.1 The Commission shall inform the parties and their representatives of its decisions by providing them with written notice.

15.2 Where the Respondent is the Government of Canada, the Commission shall deliver notification of the decision to the deputy minister, deputy head or head of agency of the part of the federal public administration named in the complaint. Where the complaint does not name a department or agency of the federal public service, notification of the decision shall be delivered to the department or agency of the federal public service most effected by the decision. In the case of the Canadian Forces, notification of the decision shall be delivered to the Chief of Defence Staff.

15.3 Where the Respondent is a corporation (including Crown corporations), notification of the decision shall be delivered to the chief executive officer of the corporation and to their representative.

15.4 Where the Respondent is a partnership, notification of the decision shall be delivered to any one of the partners.

15.5 Where the Respondent is another type of organization, notification of the decision shall be delivered to the executive director of the organization.

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