VIA Rail Canada Inc. (Re), 2020 OIC 15
The complainant requested information regarding a High Frequency Rail Proposal from VIA Rail Canada. VIA Rail withheld the information citing several exemptions under the Access to Information Act. The Office of the Information Commissioner found that VIA Rail failed to prove the exemptions applied and did not perform a proper severance analysis to release non-exempt portions of the records. Consequently, the complaint was found to be well founded.
- Whether VIA Rail Canada properly applied exemptions under sections 18 and 21 of the ATIA.
- Whether VIA Rail Canada conducted an adequate severance exercise.
- Whether VIA Rail Canada exercised due diligence in responding to the access request.
Complaint well founded — severance and discretion ordered
VIA Rail Canada failed to demonstrate that the withheld information met the criteria for the claimed exemptions under sections 18 and 21 of the ATIA, and it did not conduct a severance exercise to disclose non-exempt information.
AI-generated summary for reference only. Always verify against the official decision ↗
The Information Commissioner recommended that VIA Rail Canada conduct a severance exercise, release all non-exempt information, and exercise discretion with regard to the remaining information.
- s.18 ATIA
- s.21 ATIA
This is an informational summary only and does not constitute legal advice.