Library and Archives Canada (Re), 2021 OIC 34
The complainant alleged that Library and Archives Canada (LAC) did not conduct a reasonable search for an index of all military personnel who served in World War II. The investigation found that LAC does not possess such a complete index, as the relevant records are paper-based and were not digitized into a searchable database. While LAC can retrieve information on specific individuals, it cannot provide a comprehensive list as requested. Therefore, the complaint was found not to be well founded.
- Reasonableness of the search conducted by the institution
- Existence of the requested records within the institution's control
Complaint not well founded
The Information Commissioner found that the institution did not conduct an unreasonable search because the requested index did not exist in the form sought by the complainant and the institution's records were not in a format that would allow for its creation.
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