Canadian privacy & access decisions

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.

• Whether the institution conducted a reasonable search for records
• Whether the institution intentionally deleted records with intent to deny access (s.67.1 ATIA)
• Whether the institution processed the request with regard to the identity of the requester