Canadian privacy & access decisions

The complainant alleged that the Department of Justice Canada improperly withheld a "Final report: Mandatory Minimum Penalties. Recommendations to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada. Expert Panel on Sentencing Reform" under sections 14 and 21(1)(a) of the Access to Information Act. The Department argued that disclosure would harm federal-provincial affairs and that the report constituted advice or recommendations from internal-like advisors. The Commissioner found no reasonable expectation of harm to federal-provincial affairs, noting the report was six years old, drafted by volunteers, and did not detail active negotiations or provincial positions. Furthermore, the Commissioner determined that the report was prepared by external consultants, not employees or ministerial staff, thus falling under an exception to the advice and recommendations exemption. Consequently, the Commissioner ordered the Department to disclose the records in their entirety, and the Department agreed to comply.

• Whether s.14 ATIA (federal-provincial affairs) was properly applied to the records
• Whether disclosure of the report could reasonably be expected to harm the conduct of federal-provincial affairs
• Whether s.21(1)(a) ATIA (advice or recommendations) was properly applied to the records
• Whether the report was prepared by consultants or advisers who were not directors, officers, or employees of an institution or members of a minister's staff, as per s.21(2)(b) ATIA

The complainant alleged that the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) improperly refused to process an access request for records related to three companies. BDC argued that the requester had not confirmed their right of access and that any responsive records would ultimately be withheld due to statutory confidentiality obligations. The Information Commissioner found that the request met the requirements of section 6 of the Access to Information Act, as it was in writing, made to the correct institution, and provided sufficient detail. The Commissioner also determined that the complainant, a corporation located in Canada, had met the right of access under section 4 of the Act. BDC's demand for proof of identification and board resolutions was deemed an improper prerequisite to processing the request. The Commissioner concluded that BDC was obligated to process the request and issue a proper response under sections 7 and 10 of the Act. The complaint was found to be well founded, and BDC was ordered to accept and process the request.

• Whether the access request met the requirements of section 6 of the ATIA
• Whether the complainant, a corporation, met the right of access under section 4 of the ATIA
• Whether BDC's demand for proof of identification and board resolutions was a valid prerequisite to processing the request
• Whether BDC's refusal to process the request based on anticipated exemptions was appropriate