5825-00289 — National Defence
The complainant alleged that the Department of National Defence (DND) failed to respond to an access request within the 30-day period required by the Access to Information Act. The request was for a specific document dated November 8, 2018. The investigation found that DND did not respond by the deadline and was therefore deemed to have refused access. The delay was caused by a subordinate office (CFINTCOM) taking an unacceptably long time to retrieve the requested records. The Information Commissioner ordered DND to provide a complete response within 36 business days.
- Failure to respond within the 30-day time limit
- DND deemed to have refused access under subsection 10(3)
- Unacceptable delay in record retrieval by subordinate office
- Order for complete response within 36 business days
Complaint well founded — disclosure ordered
The Department of National Defence did not respond to the access request within the mandatory 30-day period, nor did it extend the period or transfer the request. This failure resulted in the department being deemed to have refused access. The Information Commissioner found the delay caused by the subordinate office's slowness in retrieving the records to be unacceptable and ordered a complete response within a specific timeframe.
AI-generated summary for reference only. Always verify against the official decision ↗
The Minister of National Defence was ordered to provide a complete response to the access request no later than 36 business days following the date of the final report.
- s.7 ATIA
- s.9 ATIA
- s.10(3) ATIA
- s.30(1)(a) ATIA
This is an informational summary and not legal advice.