Representing public interest
The Commission regularly participates in human rights cases before the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal and the courts. We litigate cases and represent the public interest, which means we are there to represent the rights of people in Canada.
When the Commission decides to represent the public interest in a case before the Tribunal, we do so in order to bring the systemic issues in a case to the forefront so that individuals do not have to do it on their own. This happens after the Commissioners have examined a case, and have recognized that it has the potential to have far-reaching, systemic impacts on the lives of many people, and possibly on how human rights law in Canada is interpreted.
Recent highlights
Throughout 2023, the Commission participated in legal proceedings before the Tribunal and the federal courts. This included both virtual and in-person Tribunal mediation sessions and hearings. It also included prioritizing the Commission’s full participation in cases alleging race-based discrimination.
Participating in a Tribunal case alleging discrimination dating back decades
In 2023, the Commission fully participated in several weeks of a Tribunal hearing dealing with a complaint brought by Cathy Woodgate and 5 other members of the Lake Babine First Nation. They allege that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) discriminated against them by failing to properly investigate their claims of child abuse while they were students in the late 1960s and 1970s.
Advocating for adequate health care for people in prisons with mental disabilities
In 2023, the Commission continued to fully participate in a case that is now before the Tribunal that deals with a complaint brought by the West Coast Prison Justice Society (WCPJS) on behalf of people in prisons with mental disabilities in the custody of Correctional Service Canada (CSC). WCPJS alleges that CSC discriminates against people in prisons with mental disabilities by failing to provide them with adequate care and treatment. The Commission is seeking to change CSC’s policies and practices to ensure people in prisons with mental health disabilities receive the care and treatment they need.
Defending the human rights of federally sentenced women
The Commission also continued to fully participate in a Tribunal matter about allegations that CSC discriminates against federally sentenced women, specifically those who are Indigenous and/or have mental disabilities. In this case, the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies alleges that CSC discriminates against federally sentenced women by overclassifying them within the security classification system, holding them in segregated, restricted conditions of confinement and failing to provide and/or properly design, adapt or implement correctional services to meet their needs.
Challenging the Tribunal’s dismissal of a complaint alleging discrimination in processing times for parents' and grandparents' applications for permanent residence
This past year, the Commission brought a judicial review of a Tribunal decision related to delays in processing of parents’ and grandparents’ application for permanent residence. In 2023, the Tribunal dismissed a complaint filed by Amir Attaran alleging that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada discriminates based on the grounds of race, and national or ethnic origin, age, and family status. He alleged that the total wait time for the processing of parents’ and grandparents’ applications for permanent residence — also comprising the sponsorship application part — was unduly long when compared with wait times for other categories under the family class. The Commission will appear before the Federal Court to argue that the Tribunal’s decision in this case was both procedurally unfair and unreasonable.
Representing the public interest on discriminatory police services in First Nations communities
In 2023, the Federal Court upheld a 2022 Tribunal ruling, that Public Safety Canada discriminated against members of the Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation based on race and national or ethnic origin in its implementation of the First Nations Policing Program. The ruling upheld what the Tribunal had found — that the federal government provided inferior policing services to the Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation compared with non-First Nations communities.
The Attorney General of Canada has since appealed the decision to the Federal Court of Appeal. The Commission’s Legal Services Branch spent much of 2023 preparing to participate in the appeal, where in early 2024 it will argue that the Federal Court and Tribunal decisions should be upheld.
Standing up against alleged race-based workplace discrimination and harassment
In 2023, the Commission participated in a Tribunal hearing on the merits related to alleged race-based workplace discrimination and harassment within the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). The complaint was brought by a long-time CRA employee, Frantz Saint-Jean, who has agreed to be named. He alleges that CRA discriminated against him based on race, colour and national or ethnic origin. Mr. Saint-Jean was supported by the Center for Research-Action on Race Relations (CRARR). The Commission argued that the evidence supported the allegations of systemic and individual discrimination and harassment, and is waiting for the Tribunal’s decision on the merits of the complaint.