Logan-Maiato v. Western University, 2017 HRTO 1186

HUMAN RIGHTS TRIBUNAL OF ONTARIO

B E T W E E N:

Kayla Logan-Maiato

Applicant

-and-

Western University

Respondent

INTERIM DECISION

Adjudicator: Dawn J. Kershaw

Date: September 12, 2017

Citation: 2017 HRTO 1186

Indexed as: Logan-Maiato v. Western University

1This Application alleges discrimination contrary to the Human Rights Code, R.S.O. 1990, c. H.19, as amended (the “Code”).

2A hearing is scheduled in the Application for October 2 and 3, 2017.

3The Tribunal issued an Interim Decision, 2017 HRTO 1067, on August 16, 2017, and among other orders it denied the applicant’s request for an adjournment of the hearing.

4On August 23, 2017 the applicant filed another adjournment request. She provides no additional reasons for her request, and provides no medical information to support it. She states she has a hospital letter, dated August 23, 2017 that states she was not treated. She further states she is not physically or mentally capable of providing documentation or being prepared to do a hearing in October.

Decision on Rescheduling

5As pointed out in 2017 HRTO 1067, the Tribunal’s Practice Direction on Scheduling of Hearings and Mediations, Rescheduling Requests, and Requests for Adjournments states:

Scheduling and Rescheduling Hearings

The HRTO's approach to scheduling and rescheduling hearings is designed to give the parties a fair opportunity to obtain suitable dates.

When a hearing is scheduled, the HRTO will issue a Confirmation of Hearing setting the date(s) for the hearing, as well as the location and start time. If rescheduling is required, the parties are encouraged to agree on mutually available dates that are within 12 weeks of the original hearing date(s). If the parties are able to agree on alternative dates, one party must advise the HRTO Registrar in writing within 14 days of the Notice of Confirmation of Hearing. The HRTO will make every effort to schedule the hearing for dates provided by the parties.

Requests for Adjournments

The HRTO discourages requests for adjournments outside the 14-day period to request rescheduling of a mediation or hearing, described above. Requests for adjournments, particularly at the last minute, are a significant impediment to fair and timely access to justice. Therefore, the HRTO will only grant adjournments in extraordinary circumstances such as illness of a party, witness or representative.

6The applicant still has not pointed to any extraordinary circumstances that would support her request to adjourn the hearing. In my view, there is no basis to adjourn the hearing at this point. The hearing will proceed on October 2 and 3, 2017 as scheduled.

Disclosure of Documents and Witness Statements

7The hearing was scheduled by Notice of Hearing sent to the parties on May 8, 2017, approximately six months before the scheduled hearing dates. The applicant was granted an extension of time to provide her arguably relevant documents under Rule 16.1.

8The parties also were granted an extension of time to deliver and file the documents on which they intend to rely under Rules 16.2 and 16.3, and to file their witness statements under Rule 17, until Tuesday, September 5, 2017. While there was no reason to amend this deadline, the deadline has now passed, and the new deadline is set out in the next paragraph.

9The parties should be aware there are consequences for not complying with the deadline for document and witness statement disclosure as follows:

If the applicant has not complied with these directions by September 18, 2017, or communicated with the Tribunal at all, the Application may be dismissed as abandoned.

If the respondent does not provide the above-noted materials by September 18, 2017, the Tribunal may take any or all of the steps set out in Rule 5 of the Tribunal’s Rules of Procedure, including not permitting the respondents to call any witnesses or present any documentary evidence at the hearing

10The Tribunal’s Rules of Procedure are available at www.sjto.gov.on.ca/hrto/ under “Law, Rules, Decisions”.

11The parties may also benefit from reviewing the Tribunal’s “Guide to Preparing for a Hearing before the HRTO”, available at www.sjto.gov.on.ca/hrto/ under “Forms & Filing”.