The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal () is an administrative tribunal established in 1977 through the Canadian Human Rights Act. It is directly funded by the Parliament of Canada and is independent of the Canadian Human Rights Commission which refers cases to it for adjudication under the act.
The tribunal holds hearings to investigate complaints of discriminatory practices and may order a respondent to a complaint to cease a practice, as well as order a respondent to pay compensation to the complainant.
Decisions of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal are reviewable by Canada's Federal Court. Federal Court decisions can then be appealed to the Federal Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada. The Federal Court can also issue and enforce decisions made by the tribunal if violations continue and imprison an offender for contempt of court if a decision continues to be disregarded. This has happened in the cases of John Ross Taylor in 1981 and Tomasz Winnicki in 2006.
Chairs The following individuals have served as Chair of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal:
Name Position Tenure Notes Anne Mactavish Chair 1998 – November 9, 2003 First recorded Chair J. Grant Sinclair Chair November 9, 2003 – September 10, 2009 Shirish P. Chotalia Chair September 10, 2009 – 2012 Implemented Access to Justice through customized hearing procedures focused on restorative justice; parties reported 94% satisfaction David L. Thomas Chair September 2, 2014 – 2021 Jennifer Khurana Acting Chair September 2, 2021 – March 24, 2022 Previously Vice-Chairperson Jennifer Khurana Chair March 25, 2022 – present Seven year term
Significant Decisions In June 2018, the Supreme Court of Canada found that the tribunal's determination that the Indian Act did not violate the Canadian Human Rights Act was reasonable due to judicial deference.
See also Shiv Chopra Freedom of expression in Canada Human rights in Canada Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act Universal Declaration of Human Rights
References
Access to Justice for Canadians—Customized Procedures
External links Canadian Human Rights Tribunal