HUMAN RIGHTS TRIBUNAL OF ONTARIO
B E T W E E N:
Trisha Wright
Applicant
-and-
Dr. Bilic Dentistry Professional Corporation and Ante Bilic
Respondents
INTERIM DECISION
Adjudicator: Josée Bouchard
Indexed as: Wright v. Dr. Bilic Dentistry Professional Corporation
WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS
Trisha Wright, Applicant
Jean-Alexandre De Bousquet, Counsel
Dr. Bilic Dentistry Professional Corporation and Ante Bilic, Respondents
Nadine Côté, Counsel
1This Interim Decision addresses the applicant’s request to amend her Application.
2The applicant filed an Application alleging discrimination with respect to employment because of sex contrary to the Human Rights Code, R.S.O. 1990, c. H. 19, as amended (the “Code”). Specifically, the applicant alleged that her employer discriminated against her because of her pregnancy.
3On September 11, 2017, the applicant sought to amend the Application to add the ground of reprisal in relation to events that occurred from August 2016 to September 2017. The applicant maintains that she began maternity leave on or about August 18, 2016 with the full intention of returning to work for the respondents at the end of her maternity leave. She maintains that she was uncertain about her employment status. As a result, the parties exchanged correspondence. On September 5, 2017 the applicant received a letter from the respondents stating her employment had ceased on November 21, 2016. She maintains that this is reprisal for having filed the Application. The applicant acknowledges that the request comes at a late stage of the proceeding but the new allegations occurred very recently.
4On September 25, 2017 the respondents filed their Response to the request to amend, opposing the request for the following reasons:
a. The applicant’s employment was terminated with notice on June 21, 2016, before the filing of the Application;
b. The request to amend includes post-termination communications in April 2017 between counsel and in September 2017 between the parties that are irrelevant and merely confirming the termination;
c. The request to amend includes privileged settlement communications between counsel in April 2017, which must be struck as privileged;
d. The applicant’s request is untimely and prejudicial to the respondents.
5The hearing in this matter is scheduled for October 16 and 17, 2017.
decision
6In determining requests to amend applications, the Tribunal generally considers the nature of the proposed amendments, the reasons for the amendments, the timing of the request to amend, and the prejudice to the respondent. See, for example, Odell v. TTC, [2001] OHRBID No. 2, Dube v. Canadian Career College, 2008 HRTO 336; Wozenilek v. 7-Eleven Canada Inc., 2009 HRTO 926.
7Having considered the factors set out above, I grant the applicant’s request to amend the Application. Although the request is made extremely late in the process, it contains allegations related to continuing exchanges and incidents between the parties, some of which occurred very recently. Both the applicant and respondents have made extensive submissions in the request to amend and response. The new allegations will not require that the parties call additional witnesses as they relate to the applicant and personal respondent. I find that the respondents are not prejudiced by granting the request to amend even at this late date.
8The parties may make submissions at the hearing about whether some of the communications are privileged settlement communications.
order
9For the reasons set out above, the Tribunal orders as follows:
a. the applicant’s request to amend the Application is granted;
b. the Application is amended to include allegations of reprisal and the information in Schedule A of the Request for an Order During Proceedings filed by the applicant on September 11, 2017;
c. the Response is amended to include the information in Schedule A of the Response to the Request for an Order filed by the respondents on September 25, 2017; and,
d. The parties may make submissions at the hearing about whether some of the communications are privileged settlement communications.
Dated at Toronto, this 28th day of September, 2017.
“Signed by”
Josée Bouchard
Vice-chair