5819-05773 — Public Services and Procurement Canada
The complainant alleged that Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) improperly withheld records concerning the negotiation of a 1991 lease under section 23 of the Access to Information Act, citing solicitor-client and litigation privilege. PSPC applied these exemptions broadly to 96,781 pages of records. The Information Commissioner found that while some information qualified for solicitor-client privilege, PSPC failed to demonstrate that any information met the criteria for litigation privilege. Furthermore, PSPC did not reasonably exercise its discretion in withholding information and failed to perform severance as required by section 25.
- Application of section 23 (solicitor-client and litigation privilege)
- Application of section 25 (severance)
- Reasonableness of the institution's exercise of discretion
- Burden of proof on the institution to justify exemptions
Complaint well founded — disclosure ordered
The Commissioner found that PSPC improperly withheld information by applying exemptions too broadly, failing to demonstrate the applicability of litigation privilege, and neglecting its duty to sever information that did not meet exemption criteria and to reasonably exercise its discretion in withholding records.
AI-generated summary for reference only. Always verify against the official decision ↗
PSPC was ordered to disclose specific categories of records, all other records not meeting solicitor-client privilege, and records withheld under litigation privilege. PSPC must also reconsider its discretion for information meeting solicitor-client privilege.
- s.23 ATIA
- s.25 ATIA
- s.30(1)(a) ATIA
This is an informational summary and not legal advice.