Following the Tribunal’s review of feedback received during the public consultation on changes to its Rules of Practice and Procedure, the Tribunal’s revised Rules will come into effect on December 2, 2024.

The Tribunal would like to thank everyone who took the time to provide valuable feedback on the revisions.

After carefully reviewing suggestions from stakeholders, the OLT has implemented the following additional changes:

• Updating the definition of “holiday” in Rule 1.2 to include the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation;
• Replacing “his or her” in Rule 22.8 with the singular gender-neutral pronoun “their”;
• Modifying the proposed revision to Rule 25.3 such that Requests for Review are to be copied to all other parties rather than being “served on all other parties to the original hearing event”;
• Clarifying Rule 25.7 such that if the Chair elects to order a review motion to determine the merits of a Request for Review, the Chair does not personally consider the “convincing and compelling” threshold, which would instead be assessed by the Member/Panel assigned to the motion under Rule 25.8;
• Adding language in Rule 26.19 to clarify that expropriation costs under Rule 26 are separate and apart from costs on the basis of conduct under Rule 23; and
• Removing the proposed Rule 26.27 to avoid confusion among the bar over the factors set out in the Rule for consideration in awarding expropriation costs.

In all other respects the Rules as originally posted for consultation remain the same. The revisions will enhance the way land-related appeals are managed in Ontario, making services more efficient and accessible.

The Tribunal has also reviewed feedback about the newly launched e-file portal, and is collaborating with stakeholders to ensure that this integrated platform simplifies the appeal filing process for both appellants and approval authorities. As previously announced, Rule 5.4 introduces a mandatory requirement for municipalities and other approval authorities to forward appeals through this e-file portal.

The Tribunal is committed to continually improving processes to better serve the people of Ontario and providing timely, fair, and principled resolutions for the matters that come before it.

More Information

• Updated Rules of Practice and Procedure
• Backgrounder on the Ontario Land Tribunal E-file Portal
• Access to E-file Portal

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Media.olt@ontario.ca

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