Christine Crawford v. St. Georges Housing Co-operative, 2009 HRTO 836

HUMAN RIGHTS TRIBUNAL OF ONTARIO

B E T W E E N:

Christine Crawford

Applicant

-and-

St. Georges Housing Co-operative

Respondent

Interim decision

Adjudicator: Michael Gottheil

Date: June 12, 2009

Citation: 2009 HRTO 836

Indexed as: Crawford v. St. Georges Housing Cooperative

1This is an Application filed under section 34 of Part IV of the Human Rights Code, R.S.O. 1990, c. H.19, as amended (the “Code”), alleging discrimination in housing on the ground of disability. A hearing in this matter is scheduled for July 2, 2009 in Ottawa. The purpose of this Interim Decision is to address a Request by the applicant to adjourn the scheduled hearing date.

2By correspondence dated June 1, 2009 the legal clinic representing the applicant wrote the Tribunal asking that the hearing be adjourned and rescheduled, on the basis that the file had been reassigned to different counsel, and new clinic counsel was not available on the scheduled date for the hearing.

3In Vallentyne v. Royal Canadian Legion, 2009 HRTO 534, the Tribunal denied a request for an adjournment where a party had retained new counsel, and counsel was unavailable of the scheduled hearing date. After referring to the Tribunal’s Information Bulletin on Scheduling of Hearings and Mediations, Rescheduling Requests, and Requests for Adjournments, the Tribunal stated, at paragraph 6:

The decision of a party to retain counsel after a hearing is scheduled is not the type of circumstance that would justify a request for an adjournment. Absent exceptional circumstances, a party must find counsel who is available on the date already scheduled. Moreover, in this case the applicant will be prejudiced as she has already made arrangements for her attendance and that of her witnesses at the hearing. Accordingly, the request for an adjournment is denied.

See also: Maciel v. Fashion Coiffures, 2009 HRTO 719.

4The request for adjournment and rescheduling is denied.