Making Things Right: Seeking Redress for Complainants

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Making Things Right Seeking Redress for
Complainants

• Pauline Champoux-Lesage
• Quebec Ombudsman

First Annual Conference Forum of Canadian
Ombudsman Ottawa - April 1, 2003
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Parliamentary Ombudsman Outline of Role and
Powers

• Responsibilities
• recourse for citizens
• guardian of good governance
• non-litigious recourse

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Parliamentary Ombudsman Outline of Role and
Powers (continued)

• Characteristics
• independence
• impartiality

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Parliamentary Ombudsman Outline of Role and
Powers (continued)

• Powers
• investigation
• recommendation
• initiation (proprio motu)

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Multiple Requests

• Redress
• Correction
• Redress for complainant only
• Redress for complainant and others in similar
  situation
• Correction to prevent similar future situations
• Immediate remedy

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Actions

• Study complaints
• Investigate
• Protect citizens in dealings with an agency or
  government
• Make recommendations to redress wrongs or
  improve the situation

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Sources of Prejudice

• Illegality
• Irregularity
• Inequity
• Error of fact

Basis for all redress sought
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To Request and Obtain Redress

• There must be harm done
• Attributable to a public body
• Public body must admit responsibility

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Illegality

• We live under the rule of law
• Non observance to the Law
• Abuse of power
• Respect decisions or court orders

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Irregularity

• Against rules of conduct established by a public
  body for its employees
• Does not uphold its commitments as set forth in
  its Service to Citizens Statement or in the
  governments declaration of principle

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InequityEquity

• Correction of overly-strict rules
• Remedies weaknesses
• Interpretation if unclear
• Equity ? equal treatment

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Error of fact

• Failure to take into account
• document
• object
• file element

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Rules and Principles

• Redress sought
• on case-by-case basis
• Correction sought
• weaknesses or inconsistencies in legislation or
  program

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Rules and Principles (continued)

• Examples
• illegality
• compensation granted
• irregularity
• visits made
• tax credit granted

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Rules and Principles (continued)

• Examples (continued)
• inequity
• social welfare benefits paid to citizen
• error of fact
• social insurance number not taken into account

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Qualify Redress Sought

• Public Protector Act corrective legislation
  numerous complaints of delays
• multiple causes and effects
• Unfair demands or reduced benefits
• Incomplete information

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File a Request...

• Right proportionate to nature and severity of
  prejudice
• Reasonable make sense

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File a Request (continued)

• Timely momentum (timing)
• possible adverse effects
• Feasibility
• applicable
• financially sound

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Types of Redress

• Give access to a service or program
• Refund excess taxes
• Reduction or waiver of sums owed
• Subsidy, permit, authorization
• Reduction, elimination of delay

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Types of Redress (continued)

• Compensation for breach of right
• Equity compensation
• Request to analyse the file anew
• Provide explanation, relevant information
• Apologies

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Results

• Redress / correction obtained
• Redress / correction refused
• Impossible redress / correction
• Different redress / correction

Needs thorough follow-up
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Other Principles

• Use imagination, innovation
• Within reasonable timeframe
• Target problems sources and causes

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Systemic Corrections

• Repeated complaints
• Important failings causing prejudice
• Analysis of corrective legislation