Duty To Respond – FOI Assist

Question from a Journalist

I recently received a question from a journalist who was wondering whether a particular organization who received financial support from the Province of Ontario had an obligation to respond to FOI requests for general records.

Do I have to respond to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request?

When your organization receives a request for information, do you have an obligation under Freedom of Information (FOI) laws to answer the inquiry? To know whether your organization has to respond to a request for information, there are two questions that need to be answered. The first question is whether your organization has a legalContinue reading “Do I have to respond to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request?”

Is my organization legally obligated to respond to FOI requests?

Generally, individuals and private companies do not have a legal obligation to respond to requests for information from the public at large. In contrast, government institutions generally do have an obligation to respond to requests for information that satisfy certain formal requirements. For organizations in Ontario, there are three FOI statutes that may apply: TheContinue reading “Is my organization legally obligated to respond to FOI requests?”