Meeting Date: January 26, 2018
Time: 9:30 a.m.
Email: tlab@toronto.ca
Location: York Civic Centre, 2700 Eglinton Ave. W., Toronto, ON, M6M 1V1
Room: Council Chamber
Chair: Ian Lord
Contact: Hsing Yi Chao
Phone: 416-392-4697
None declared
Motion to adopt Minutes from December 13, 2017 moved by Panel Member S. Makuch, seconded by Panel Member L. McPherson (Carried).
The Toronto Local Appeal Body Panel discussed the Memorandum issued by Ian Lord, Chair, and agreed to the following course of action.
In instances where any of the following is demonstrated by a Member:
The Toronto Local Appeal Body adopted the following course of action:
Former Panel Member S. Ruddock is in the process of completing her decisions.
City Council to receive recommendations on the new Panel Member Dino Lombardi.
Chair of the Toronto Local Appeal Body received correspondence from Panel Member S. Gopikrishna advising that due to unforeseen circumstances he will be returning mid-February to resume his TLAB duties. Any case files belonging to Panel Member S. Gopikrishna scheduled for early February will be reassigned until his return.
The Toronto Local Appeal Body held discussions on three potential actions to be taken in the event of a delay in the producing a decision.
The Panel discussed the proposed course of action detailed by the Ian Lord, Chair of the Toronto Local Appeal Body in the Memorandum dated January 15, 2018. Panel Member T. Yao opposed the proposal of requiring a Panel Member to attend in camera at a business meeting before fellow Panel Members to explain the circumstances as performance management of an independent decision maker is delicate, nuanced and sophisticated and should be conducted through leadership and example, not by public or private shaming.
Panel Member S. Makuch indicated that the delay in the issuing decisions can be costly to the public and suggests that a private discussion be conducted by the Chair of the Toronto Local Appeal Body with the offending Member be the initial step in addressing the concern.
Hsing Yi Chao, Supervisor, Court Services, provided the Panel with an administrative update on case file statistics as of January 25, 2018. There are currently 323 case files at the Toronto Local Appeal Body. Panel Members have heard 81 cases and issued 56 decisions.
Toronto Local Appeal Body to receive an address from Ian Lord, Chair of the Toronto Local Appeal Body with respect to decision review, timeliness and accountability
January 15, 2018 – Memorandum from Ian Lord
January 26, 2018 – Update by Administrative Staff
The Toronto Local Appeal Body adopted a framework for the Public Deputation meetings scheduled for April 2018.
The Toronto Local Appeal Body established the following framework for the Public Deputation meetings:
Panel members discussed a list of persons and/or organizations to be invited to the deputations. Invitations will be sent via email to law firms, planning associations and schools. Accordingly, the advertisement will be posted on the Toronto Local Appeal Body website which will provide information to the public.
Panel members discussed the formatting of the public deputation invitation notice. Members suggested that a draft be submitted and circulated for feedback.
The contents of the invitation notice should be brief and include the date, time and location. The draft document should also have a link attached where the public has the ability to register and provide their written submissions. The notice will serve to inform the public that their written submissions will be considered on the date in question. Panel Members will inform the public on the day that there will be a time for oral submissions on a first come basis.
Panel members discussed all communication methods for ensuring the invitation notices gets widely disseminated to the public. Panel Member S. Makuch suggested there be a notice displayed at the Toronto Local Appeal Body office advertising the deputations for the general public. Panel Chair I. Lord suggested that there be a link on the Toronto Local Appeal Body website.
Panel Members established the structure of the deputations to ensure that all registered parties, including general public walk-ins have sufficient amount of time to depute. There will be two sessions for the public to participate in, an afternoon (2 to 5:30 p.m.) and evening session (6:30 to 8:30 p.m.) There will be a time frame enacted for the public to submit their written suggestions prior to the deputations. There will be a time limit imposed on the date of the deputations for the public to speak to their issues. Each presenter will be given five minutes. Extensions will be provided upon approval by the Panel. Members established that in regards to submissions, if a suggestion is not succinct they can ask specific questions for clarification.
With regards to the City’s position, Chair I. Lord, suggested a separate meeting with City Legal to discuss their position on any potential suggested changes to the Rules of Practice and Procedure. The Panel discussed and agreed that if the City moves forward with a position statement, that they should follow the same set of instructions provided to the general public and submit their suggestions before the due date.
After the deputations have been completed there will be a two week period where the Panel Members will discuss and review all of the submissions. A public meeting will follow on April 19 for the Panel to discuss and review submissions and to provide instructions to Legal Counsel. All comments, feedback and revisions will be circulate between the Panel Members and their legal team for a draft rules revision.
The Panel members discussed and established that the order of the speakers will be at the discretion of the panel. For individuals who sign up on the deputation date, staff will provide that list to the Panel and each person will be called to depute on a first come basis.
Panel Members discussed and establish that each Member be responsible for reviewing and taking the lead on specific sections in the Rules. Each member will identify the issues and provide suggestions.
Hsing Yi Chao, Supervisor, Court Services, informed Panel Members that all minutes associated with public meetings must be adopted by the Panel Members before posting. Draft minutes of the April 18 meeting will encompass written submissions from the public and a summary of what was presented orally. Hsing Yi Chao suggested to the Panel that should the meeting be recorded, the recording could serve as minutes and be made available soon after the April 18, 2018 public meeting.
Toronto Local Appeal Body to establish the framework of the Public Deputation meetings scheduled for April 2018. Topics to be discussed will include:
The Toronto Local Appeal Body received and adopted the draft Notice of Electronic Hearing.
The Toronto Local Appeal body discussed the draft Electronic Hearing Notices. Questions were raised as to whether there will be new stipulations on parties submitting documents. Hsing Yi Chao, Supervisor, Court Services, detailed that the language was tailored to reflect electronic hearings. The only changes were to reflect “in-person” hearing as “electronic” hearing, all other content remains the same.
(January 2018) Draft Notice of Electronic Hearing
It is recommended that the draft Notice of Electronic Hearing be adopted by the Panel.
Forwarding, for approval, the Notice of Electronic Hearing to the Toronto Local Appeal Body.
January 2018 – Draft Notice of Electronic Hearing
The Toronto Local Appeal Body received information on the New Payroll Process.
Hsing Yi Chao, Supervisor, Court Services, provided an update, explanation and Panel Member requirements in relation to the new payroll process
A presentation by Hsing Yi Chao, Supervisor, Court Services, to the Toronto Local Appeal Body detailing the new payroll process including a debrief and explanation of the new due date structures.
The Toronto Local Appeal Body received an update from Chair, I. Lord on the Annual Report to be submitted to Council. A draft will be completed by the end of February. The Chair indicated that he would accept any input from Panel Members.
Ian Lord, Chair of the Toronto Local Appeal Body, to discuss the annual report with the Panel Members and to receive input, articles and advice from the Panel.
| Session Date | Session Type | Start Time | End Time | Public or Closed Session |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 26, 2018 | Morning | 9:31 a.m. | 12:07 p.m. | Public |
Members were present for some or all of the time period indicated.
| Date and Time |
Quorum | Panel Members |
|---|---|---|
| January 26, 2018
9:31 a.m. to 12:07 p.m. (Public Session) |
Present | Present: Ian Lord (Chair), Gillian Burton, Stanley Makuch, Laurie McPherson,Ted Yao
Sabnavis Gopikrishna (Absent) |