Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board Updates!

[Canadalandlords]

MEMORANDUM

TO: Ontario Landlords Association Members and Tenant Board Stakeholders

FROM: Dawn Sullivan, Acting Associate Chair

DATE: March 8, 2022

RE: Landlord and Tenant Board Updates

We would like to share some recent staffing, rule and other changes at the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB), as well as an update on the Tribunals Ontario Portal.

Acting Associate Chair

Dawn Sullivan will be the Acting Associate Chair of the LTB on an interim basis. As previously announced, Karen Restoule is no longer with Tribunals Ontario.

For almost two decades, Dawn has served as an adjudicator through appointments with current and former constituent tribunals of Tribunals Ontario. For 10 years, she was an adjudicator with the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board. She was also an adjudicator with the Ontario Parole Board.

Most recently, Dawn was both a Member and Vice-Chair at the LTB. As Vice-Chair, Dawn applied her in-depth knowledge of administrative justice and familiarity with the LTB to provide strong leadership support to the Associate Chair. Dawn will leverage this experience to step into the interim role as Acting Associate Chair and ensure a seamless transition.

Acting Registrar

Lindiwe Bridgewater joined the LTB as the Acting Registrar on February 28, 2022. Lindiwe has 25 years of experience in the Ontario Public Service, including the last 13 years in strategic leadership and management roles where she led modernization efforts

Lynn Dicaire will be taking on the role of Manager for Operational Program Development with Tribunals Ontario, where she will be providing support on key initiatives within Tribunals Ontario.

Tribunals Ontario Portal Update

As you know, the Tribunals Ontario Portal has been operational since December 2021. While most users continue to successfully file applications using the portal, some users have experienced technical issues while using the system. As with any new system, some technical challenges are to be expected and our team has been working to resolve them on a priority basis.

We are pleased to report that the issue users were experiencing with the Personal Identification Numbers (PINs), as outlined in our January 13, 2022 memo, has been resolved. Going forward for new applications, applicants will receive a PIN when their representative files an application on their behalf. We are working to address the applications where applicants were not provided with a PIN. We will provide an update in due course.

In addition, the issue users experienced with L2 applications, which we advised you of by memo on January 27, 2022 (attached), has also been resolved. Applicants who filed an L2 application affected by this issue will be receiving a letter from the LTB asking that they complete a new L2 application using our PDF forms and upload it to their Tribunals Ontario Portal file. As we said before, this will not have an impact on the affected application’s place in the queue with respect to hearing dates and legislative deadlines, and any supplementary filings such as the Request to Extend or Shorten Time will also be unaffected. The original filing date will be preserved.

We remain committed and continue to work on improving the user experience and functionality and anticipate additional features will be available on the portal later this spring. In the meantime, we welcome your ongoing feedback and want to hear about your experiences. Please send your written feedback to LTB@ontario.ca with the subject line “Tribunals Ontario Portal Feedback”.

Rule Changes and New Consent to Disclosure Form

Several LTB Rules of Procedure have been amended to support the changes implemented with the Tribunals Ontario Portal. The amended Rules are now posted on our website and include:

Rule 2.1: fee waiver requests may be submitted through the portal by Legal Representatives on behalf of their clients
Rule 3.1(i) and 3.9: parties may serve each other with documents through the portal with written consent
Rule 4.1: parties may submit documents to the LTB through the portal; when documents can be given to the LTB by email or fax
Rule 4.2: documents submitted to the LTB through the portal may be electronically signed
Rule 13.5: confidentiality of settlement discussions during Online Dispute Resolution.

In accordance with new Rule 3.1(i), we have also developed a new form – Consent to Disclosure through the Tribunals Ontario Portal - for parties to confirm with the LTB that they agree to give each other all file-related documents, evidence and submissions by uploading them directly into the portal. Once completed, parties should upload the form on the portal at the same time they upload their evidence.

Feedback on these minor changes is welcome at LTB@ontario.ca.

Practice Direction on Representation and Interpretation Guideline 2

The Practice Direction on Representation before Social Justice Tribunals Ontario has been revised and is now the Practice Direction on Representation before the Landlord and Tenant Board. Changes include: additional guidance respecting unlicensed representatives in LTB proceedings; clarification of the role of support persons during LTB hearings; and clarification of the responsibilities of licensed representatives.

Interpretation Guideline 21: Landlords, Tenants, Occupants and Residential Tenancies has also been revised. Additional guidance has been provided respecting the definition of “landlord” and the role of property managers. A number of changes have been made throughout the document to plain language and make it easier to understand, and additional references to relevant LTB and Divisional Court decisions have been added

Given the revisions made to Interpretation Guideline 21 and the Practice Direction on Representation before the Landlord and Tenant Board, Interpretation Guideline 20: Parties, Agents and Representatives is no longer necessary and has been revoked.

Sincerely,

Dawn Sullivan Lindiwe Bridgewater

Acting Associate Chair Acting Registrar