Appeal to the Federal Court of Appeal
My claim was denied at the Appeal Division. What can I do?
The first thing you should do is to evaluate whether pursuing your claim has a merit or not. The court process can be costly and long. You need to see objectively why your application has been denied. At this stage, the focus is not proving that you lost your ability to work due to your disability. Rather, the focus is whether the law was applied properly and fairly when the member at the SST made the decision.
It is a complex process to navigate, not to mention all the legalese you will encounter in the process. Stefan Juzkiw and our team at Juzkiw Law can help you assess the merit of your claim and advise what would be the best action to take.
If you decide to appeal, you can appeal the SST decision to the Federal Court. This process is called a Judicial Review.
As you did at the Appeal Division stage, you first need to get permission to appeal, which is called ‘leave to appeal’. If leave is granted, you will have a hearing in front of a judge, not a tribunal member. If your request for appeal is not granted, the decision from the Appeal Division stays.
After a hearing, court judge can make a final decision on your case or return the case to the tribunal for a new hearing.
When should I apply for Judicial Review?
You should file the Notice of Application for Leave to Appeal within 30 days from when you received the decision from the SST. The Notice of Application should state the grounds for the application and the list of supporting documents. This process will resemble the drafting of a legal document versus simply filling out a form.
What should I prepare for the court hearing?
- Once leave is granted, the process towards your hearing starts.
- A court hearing is different from a tribunal hearing. Stricter rules of procedure will apply. If you are representing yourself, you are responsible for learning those rules. The rules include filling out proper forms and filling them within the deadline, properly serving other parties, filing proof of service at the court, and more. There are tight deadlines for each stage, and you must comply with them. You may need to go the court to file documents and get them certified by the registry.
- At the hearing, you have to show that the decision maker made a profound legal or/and factual error. Please note that the Attorney General of Canada will also participate in the hearing as a respondent.
- Due to these complexities, it is very rare that applicants represent themselves at Judicial Reviews. If you are looking for a representative or seeking advice on your application, contact us online or call 416-290-5055.