5819-03939 — Employment and Social Development Canada
The complainant alleged that Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) improperly stated it could not process an access request for emails to and from a named employee, containing specific keywords. ESDC argued the emails were not under its control, despite being on its servers, because they were personal and lacked business value. The Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) investigated whether the records were "under the control" of ESDC, considering factors such as institutional purpose, relation to ESDC's mandate, and integration with other records. The OIC found the emails were entirely personal, had no institutional purpose, and ESDC had no authority to regulate their use or disposition. Therefore, the OIC concluded the emails were not under ESDC's control and not subject to the Access to Information Act. The complaint was deemed not well founded.
- 1Whether the requested emails were "under the control" of Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) as per the Access to Information Act
- 2Whether the contents of the emails related to an institutional matter and involved ESDC's mandate, obligations, functions, and operations
- 3Whether the emails were created to fulfill any ESDC officer's or employee's duties or functions and/or were intended for any employment-related purpose
- 4Whether the emails were created to fulfill a statutory requirement imposed on ESDC
- 5Whether ESDC relied on the emails when preparing government records
- 6Whether ESDC had any authority with regard to the use or disposition of the emails
- 7Whether communicating the contents of the emails required the authorization of an ESDC officer or employee
- 8Whether the emails were integrated with other ESDC records
- Control of records: Records not under institution's control
- Complaint outcome: Complaint not well founded
Complaint not well founded
The OIC determined that the requested emails, despite being physically on ESDC servers, were entirely personal in nature, had no institutional purpose or business value, and were not integrated with ESDC's information holdings. ESDC also lacked authority to regulate their use or disposition. Therefore, the OIC concluded the emails were not "under the control" of ESDC and thus not subject to the Act.
- s.4 ATIA
This summary is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
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