Barbara Kay: Government Cutbacks at Ontario’s Human Rights Tribunal Means Real Victims of Discrimination Are Re-Victimized

Commentary
Tribunal Watch Ontario monitors and provides information, viewpoints, and recommendations about the state of the adjudicative tribunal system in Ontario. In November 2020, Tribunal Watch issued a sternly worded statement of concern regarding the Ford government’s policy of “stripping tribunals of experienced and trained adjudicators, and underfunding operations,” causing escalating delays.
The Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) was singled out for special attention. Before Doug Ford was elected, the HRTO was, from 2008, its inaugural year, until 2018, capable of handling over 3,000 claims a year. Ford’s government reduced adjudicators from 22 to 11; the number of new discrimination cases grew to almost 4,500. Ontario’s human rights enforcement system had become, Tribunal Watch flatly stated, “dysfunctional.”…