Laurentian agrees to lift stay on Freedom of Information requests on May 1 with reservations – CBC.ca

Sudbury's Laurentian University has agreed to start processing Freedom of Information requests again starting on May 1, but will seek direction from a judge if it receives one or more applications it deems will take time and resources away from its restructuring efforts.

The information is contained in a consent order, supported by the Information and Privacy Commisioner(IPC), filed on-line last week.

Earlier this month the Information Privacy Commissionerrequested Laurentian meet its obligation to respond to Freedom of Information requests, which was put on hold shortly after the university filed for insolvency in February 2021.

At that time, Laurentian asked that it not be required to answer Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) requests, because it said it did not have the resources available to handle them.

The university argued it could not allocate the human resources needed to respond to FIPPA requests.

A judge agreed with that argument and issued a stay on such requests.

In an email sent to the office of the IPC on March 23, 2022, Laurentian's legal counsel said it would be "agreeable" to lift the stay for three existing requests it had not yet answered

Two of the requests predate the stay order, and the university's insolvency, and a third was during the stay.

Laurentian said it received a fourth request just before the stay, but it determined it would not qualify as a Freedom of Information request.

"In January 2022, Laurentian advised the IPC that it received a fourth FOI (Freedom of Information) request that would be subject to the stay," the March 23 email said.

"Upon further review, Laurentian concluded that this request is not an information request under FIPPA. Rather, it is an academic issue between that individual and Laurentian."

While Laurentian will answer its existing requests, it says it mayseek "further direction or relief" for any future FOI requests it receives thereafter.

Laurentian "reserves its right to return to the Court for the purpose of seeking further direction or relief in the event that the Applicant receives one or more FOI Requests that would require the Applicant to expend significant efforts or take steps within a timeframe that would result in the Applicant being unable to focus its limited resources on the advancement of the CCAA proceedings."

Earlier this month, the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) said Freedom of Information requests are critical for staff to negotiate their collective agreements, which rely on sound financial information.

"Often, this information can be obtained from the university or college employer by virtue of the governing labour laws," the association wrote in a factum on the matter.

"It is not uncommon, however, for academic staff associations and unions to have to resort to freedom of information requests to obtain specific information to support their bargaining and labour relations."

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Laurentian agrees to lift stay on Freedom of Information requests on May 1 with reservations - CBC.ca