Ontario Human Rights Tribunal dismisses 93% of complaints with no hearing, watchdog says

A watchdog group says 93 per cent of Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario decisions consist of dismissing claims on technical grounds without a hearing – even after some applicants seeking redress for alleged racism, sexual harassment or discrimination against the disabled have waited years for justice.Tribunal Watch Ontario says the numbers show the province’s Human Rights Tribunal has dramatically increased the number of dismissals it issues on “jurisdictional or procedural” grounds, up from two-thirds of cases in 2017-18 under the previous Liberal government.The group blames new procedures brought in under the Progressive Conservative government of Premier Doug Ford that require what Tribunal Watch says is “onerous” paperwork, including written legal submissions on complex issues – even though most applicants have no legal counsel.