5819-04644 — Canada School of Public Service
The complainant alleged that the Canada School of Public Service (CSPS) failed to conduct a reasonable search for emails of a specified senior executive, improperly considered the requester's identity, and intentionally deleted records. The OIC's investigation found that CSPS did not conduct a reasonable search, as evidenced by delays in initiating the search, the deletion of the executive's email account, and the subsequent discovery of additional records after OIC intervention. The Commissioner concluded that CSPS mishandled the request, including keeping it on hold without lawful authority and failing to retain responsive records. However, the OIC found no evidence of an intent to deny access or that the requester's identity influenced processing. The complaint was found to be well founded regarding the unreasonable search.
- 1Whether the institution conducted a reasonable search for records
- 2Whether the institution intentionally deleted records with intent to deny access (s.67.1 ATIA)
- 3Whether the institution processed the request with regard to the identity of the requester
- Adequacy of search: Search found unreasonable
- Requester's identity: No evidence of improper consideration
- Intentional deletion of records: No evidence of intent to deny access
- Handling of request: Request mishandled by institution
- Retention of records: Institution failed to retain responsive records
Complaint well founded regarding unreasonable search
The Canada School of Public Service failed to initiate a timely search, allowed the relevant email account to be deleted, and only located additional responsive records after the OIC's intervention, demonstrating an unreasonable search. While mishandling occurred, there was no evidence of intent to deny access or consideration of the requester's identity.
The Information Commissioner concluded that the CSPS did not initially conduct a reasonable search and stated that the President of the CSPS must take immediate action to ensure these issues are isolated and not indicative of larger systemic access issues.
- s.30(1)(a) ATIA
- s.30(1)(f) ATIA
- s.67.1 ATIA
This summary is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
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