Recent Articles
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The Public Interest Override Doesn’t Apply to Excluded Records
A recent decision of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario has attracted significant media attention. A requestor was seeking access to the monthly number of internal disciplinary measures applied to members of the Sault Ste. Marie Police Services Board.
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Reflections
It has always been my dream to start a software company. I left my in-house legal counsel role to start working on the FOI Assist software in September 2018, just over five years ago. My first step was launching the FOI Assist Knowledge Base, where I figured I could help FOI professionals by answering the…
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Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario limiting appeals
Tom Cardoso and Robyn Doolittle of The Globe and Mail are reporting this week that the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (IPCO) is now imposing limits on the number of concurrent appeals from individual appellants. The story relates the experience of Jason Plotz, a “frequent filer of freedom of information requests” who was informed…
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Career Opportunity at Chatham-Kent
The Municipality of Chatham-Kent has an opening for a permanent full-time Manager, Privacy & Information in its Municipal Governance division. Having worked closely with the Privacy & Information team at Chatham-Kent, I could not recommend this position more highly. The job posting highlights that this is a permanent full-time position, offering significant benefits including mandatory…
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IPCO Launches Public Consultation on Appeal Procedures
The Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (IPCO) has launched a public consultation on proposed revisions to the Code of Procedure for appeals under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) and the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA). According to the official announcement: If you or your…
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FOI Tactics for Thriving
It was a pleasure to speak at the Freedom of Information Police Network (FOIPN) Fall Conference this week in Oakville. Thank you to the FOIPN conference committee for putting on such a wonderful event!
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Accept Freedom of Information Requests Online with FOI Assist
Would your institution like to accept freedom of information requests online? The FOI Assist software now makes it easy to do. Read today’s FOI Assist Knowledge Base article to learn more.
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Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario Employees Vote to Unionize
In an interesting development last week, staff of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (IPCO) voted to unionize with AMAPCEO, the Association of Management, Administrative and Professional Crown Employees of Ontario.
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Alternative Fee Systems for Publicly Available Information
A recent decision from the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario makes it clear that in some cases, institutions can replace the standard FOI fee structure with a different fee structure better suited to the type of records requested.
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AMCTO 2023: What a great time!
Thank you David Arbuckle, Manjit Badh, Kathleen Barrett, Alexander Court, Jacquelyn Folville, Alex Gibson, Mark Hollerton, the AMCTO Conference Committee, and the entire AMCTO team for making this year’s event such a stunning success! FOI Assist is very proud to be a sponsor of the AMCTO 2023 Conference and we look forward to supporting AMCTO…
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“Fixing a Broken Access to Information System” on The Agenda
TVO’s The Agenda hosted Brooks Fallis, physician; Ontario Information and Privacy Commissioner Patricia Kosseim; and Robyn Doolittle and Tom Cardoso, the investigative reporters behind The Globe and Mail’s Freedom of Information series Secret Canada yesterday to discuss the state of Canada’s Freedom of Information (FOI) system.
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“Inside Canada’s Broken Freedom of Information System”
Today’s Globe and Mail article presents an opportunity to assess your own Freedom of Information program. Is your institution generally able to respond to requests within 30 days? Are your FOI staff forced to rush through files, potentially leading to errors, missed deadlines, and needless appeals?
FOI Assist Knowledge Base 