Nadeem Ebrahimi v. Durham District School Board, 2012 HRTO 875

HUMAN RIGHTS TRIBUNAL OF ONTARIO

B E T W E E N:

Nadeem Ebrahimi by his next friend Najeem Ebrahimi

Applicant

-and-

Durham District School Board and J. Clarke Richardson High School

Respondents

RECONSIDERATION DECISION

Adjudicator: Ken Bhattacharjee Date: May 2, 2012 Citation: 2012 HRTO 875 Indexed as: Ebrahimi v. Durham District School Board

WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS

Nadeem Ebrahimi, Applicant ) Najeem Ebrahimi, Representative

1On December 28, 2011, the Tribunal issued a Decision, 2011 HRTO 2319, which dismissed the Application following a hearing on the basis that the applicant’s allegations of discrimination had no reasonable prospect of success, and he did not establish on a balance of probabilities that the respondents subjected him to a threat of reprisal for claiming his rights under the Human Rights Code, R.S.O. 1990, c. H.19, as amended (the “Code”).

2On January 27, 2012, the applicant filed a Request for Reconsideration of the Tribunal’s Decision.

3Section 45.7(1) of the Code provides that any party to a proceeding before the Tribunal may request that the Tribunal reconsider a final decision in accordance with the Tribunal rules.

4Rule 26.5 of the Tribunal’s Rules of Procedure states that reconsideration will not be granted unless the Tribunal is satisfied that:

a) there are new facts or evidence that could potentially be determinative of the case and that could not reasonably have been obtained earlier; or

b) the party seeking reconsideration was entitled to but, through no fault of its own, did not receive notice of the proceeding or a hearing; or

c) the decision or order which is the subject of the reconsideration request is in conflict with established jurisprudence or Tribunal procedure and the proposed reconsideration involves a matter of general or public importance; or

d) other factors exist that, in the opinion of the Tribunal, outweigh the public interest in the finality of Tribunal decisions.

5The Tribunal has also issued a Practice Direction on Reconsideration to provide guidance to the community on the nature of the reconsideration process. The Practice Direction states, in part:

Decisions of the Tribunal are generally considered final and are not subject to appeal. However, parties may request that the Tribunal reconsider a final decision it has made. Reconsideration is a discretionary remedy; there is no right to have a decision reconsidered by the Tribunal. Generally, the Tribunal will only reconsider a decision where it finds that there are compelling and extraordinary circumstances for doing so and where these circumstances outweigh the public interest in finality of orders and decisions.

Reconsideration is not an appeal.

6In his Request for Reconsideration, the applicant indicated that the Tribunal’s Decision should be reconsidered in accordance with Rule 26.5 c) and d). However, in his submissions in support of his Request, the applicant did not explain how his Request falls within the criteria set out in Rule 26.5 c) and d). Instead, he essentially repeated some of the same arguments that he made in his oral submissions during the hearing and his written submissions after the hearing.

7Reconsideration is not available simply because a party disagrees with the Tribunal’s Decision, and it is not an opportunity for a party to reargue the case.

8The Request for Reconsideration is dismissed.