Federal (Canada) privacy & access decisions

The complainant alleged that the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) improperly withheld information related to mortgage loans inadvertently insured or sold by Laurentian Bank of Canada under its securitization program. CMHC initially claimed multiple exemptions, but during the investigation, it released some information and maintained exemptions only under subsection 20(1) (third-party information). The Information Commissioner found that CMHC and Laurentian Bank did not demonstrate that all the requirements for the applied exemptions were met for certain third-party information. Specifically, some information was not financial, commercial, or technical in nature, or was CMHC's own work product rather than information supplied by Laurentian Bank. The Commissioner ordered CMHC to disclose this information. CMHC subsequently notified the Commissioner that it would not fully comply with the order and intended to apply to the Federal Court for a review. The complaint was found to be well founded.

• Whether s.18(a) ATIA (government financial, commercial, scientific or technical information) applied
• Whether s.18(b) ATIA (competitive position of government institutions, negotiations by government institutions) applied
• Whether s.19(1) ATIA (personal information) applied
• Whether s.20(1)(b) ATIA (confidential third-party financial, commercial, scientific or technical information) applied to all withheld information
• Whether the information was financial, commercial, scientific or technical for s.20(1)(b) ATIA
• Whether the information was confidential for s.20(1)(b) ATIA
• Whether the information was supplied by a third party for s.20(1)(b) ATIA
• Whether the third party consistently treated the information as confidential for s.20(1)(b) ATIA
• Whether s.20(1)(c) ATIA (financial impact on a third party) applied to all withheld information
• Whether disclosure could result in material financial loss or gain to the third party for s.20(1)(c) ATIA
• Whether there was a reasonable expectation of harm to the third party's competitive position for s.20(1)(c) ATIA
• Whether s.20(1)(d) ATIA (negotiations by a third party) applied to all withheld information
• Whether disclosure could interfere with the third party's contractual or other negotiations for s.20(1)(d) ATIA

The complainant alleged that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) improperly withheld information under several exemptions and failed to conduct a reasonable search for records related to the Special Joint Committee on the Declaration of Emergency. During the investigation, the complainant narrowed the exemption allegations to paragraphs 21(1)(a) and (b) for specific pages. The Commissioner found that the RCMP appropriately applied paragraphs 21(1)(a) and (b) to the information on pages 34, 36, and a portion of page 393, and reasonably exercised its discretion. However, the Commissioner concluded that the RCMP did not conduct a reasonable search for records, as it conceded that not all record holders were tasked and not all relevant search terms were used. The complaint was found to be well-founded due to the unreasonable search. The Commissioner ordered the RCMP to conduct a new search and provide a new response, disclosing any newly found records unless a valid exemption applies.

• Whether s.17 (safety of individuals) was properly applied to withhold information
• Whether s.15(1) (national security) was properly applied to withhold information
• Whether s.19(1) (personal information) was properly applied to withhold information
• Whether s.16(2)(c) (facilitating the commission of an offence) was properly applied to withhold information
• Whether s.21(1)(a) (advice or recommendations) was properly applied to withhold information on pages 34, 36, and 393
• Whether the institution reasonably exercised its discretion under s.21(1)(a)
• Whether s.21(1)(b) (accounts of consultations or deliberations) was properly applied to withhold information on page 393
• Whether the institution reasonably exercised its discretion under s.21(1)(b)
• Whether the institution conducted a reasonable search for records