HUMAN RIGHTS TRIBUNAL OF ONTARIO
B E T W E E N:
Abby Wambach and Players on National Teams Participating in the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Listed on Schedule “A”
Applicants
-and-
Canadian Soccer Association and
Fédération Internationale de Football Association
Respondents
RECONSIDERATION DECISION
Adjudicator: Jo-Anne Pickel
Indexed as: Wambach v. Canadian Soccer Association
WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS
Abby Wambach and Players on National Teams Participating in the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Listed on Schedule "A", Applicants
David Wright, Counsel
1This Reconsideration Decision addresses the applicants’ Request that the Tribunal reconsider its Interim Decision 2014 HRTO 1635, in which it denied the applicants’ Request to Expedite Proceedings.
2Under Rule 26.1 of the Tribunal’s Rules of Procedure, reconsideration is only available from a final decision. A final decision is “one that disposes of some or all of the central issues in the complaint as between the parties”: Sigrist and Carson v. London District Catholic School Board et al., 2008 HRTO 34 at para. 41. The decision on whether a proceeding will be expedited is a procedural decision. It relates to when deadlines will be set and when the hearing will be scheduled. As determined by the Tribunal in many cases, a refusal to expedite proceedings is not a final decision within the meaning of Rule 26.1 and as such is not subject to reconsideration. See for example Weerawardane v. 2152458 Ontario Ltd., 2008 HRTO 66 at para. 4; Quintieri v. Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board, 2009 HRTO 1313 at para. 2; and Fish v. National Steel Car Ltd., 2012 HRTO 358 at paras. 6 and 10.
3For these reasons, the applicants’ Request for Reconsideration is denied. Moreover, in my view, the new information and arguments provided by the applicants do not support a different conclusion than the one reached in the Interim Decision. In particular, the respondents’ alleged actions surrounding the 2013 survey of players does not affect my view that the applicants failed to proceed expeditiously in filing this Application. In addition, the issue of whether the respondents were amenable to mediation was not a factor relied upon in refusing the applicants’ Request to Expedite.
ORDER
4The applicants’ Request for Reconsideration is denied.
Dated at Toronto, this 8th day of December, 2014.
“Signed by”
Jo-Anne Pickel
Vice-chair
Schedule A
Jackie Acevedo
Katherine Alvarado
Nadine Angerer
Verónica Boquete
Fabiana Da Silva Simões
Abby Erceg
Caitlin Foord
So-Yun Ji
Samantha Kerr
Alexandra Morgan
Yuki Ogimi
Heather O’Reilly
Diana Saenz
Abby Wambach
Hannah Wilkinson