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This postponement policy will:
This policy is effective April 1, 2009.
Section 82 (8) of the Canada Pension Plan.
The OCRT values an appeals system which follows the principles of procedural fairness; a system which must balance the importance of parties being prepared for a hearing with the Tribunal's duty to provide a timely hearing and resolution of the issue being appealed. Delays from postponements and adjournments impact the Tribunal's ability to provide timely hearings. While the reasons for postponements and adjournments vary, the postponements and adjournments often lead to increased administrative costs and unfair delays for other appeals.
All postponement requests will be considered by the OCRT. The OCRT requires that parties and their representatives act in accordance with the principles and guidelines outlined in this policy.
Postponement requests will be assessed by weighing fairness and efficiency for all parties, and the OCRT.
Parties must make an effort to request the postponement at the earliest possible opportunity. The OCRT also expects parties to fully explain their reasons for seeking a postponement.
Appellants and Added-Parties are informed at the beginning of the appeals process of their right to retain representation; this provides a reasonable opportunity to retain representation. When considering postponement requests, the OCRT will consider the amount of time and notice already provided to retain representation.
If Legal Counsel cannot attend on scheduled hearing date, it is his/her duty to make efforts to arrange for a replacement. If a replacement is not available, Counsel is expected to provide details before a postponement will be considered. These details should include an expected date of readiness to proceed to a hearing should the postponement occur.
Due to the large volume of appeals received by the OCRT, scheduling of hearings may be done with or without consultation with the parties or their representatives to determine availability.
In situations where the parties have been contacted and have confirmed their availability, the OCRT expects the parties to proceed to the hearing as scheduled. Parties who have not been consulted and are unavailable to attend on the scheduled hearing date are expected to notify the OCRT as soon as possible.
When requesting a postponement, parties should be aware that appeals that have been postponed can take a number of months to reschedule. This causes a delay not only to the person requesting the postponement but also to other parties awaiting a hearing date.
The OCRT may replace a postponed hearing with another appeal if sufficient notice is provided. To ensure fairness to other appeals, the OCRT expects parties to attempt to submit postponement requests at least 30 days before the hearing.
The OCRT may request the views of other parties to an appeal before making a decision to grant or deny a postponement request.
Consent of the parties is among a variety of factors that the OCRT considers when deciding to grant or deny a postponement request. Parties should not assume that consent to the request will lead to a granted request.
In exceptional circumstances, the OCRT will generally grant a postponement request from any party to the appeal as well as representatives and key witnesses.
Exceptional circumstances include:
The OCRT will respond to all requests within two business days of receiving the request. Should this not be possible, the OCRT will notify the person requesting the postponement.
When considering a request to postpone, the OCRT may assess some or all of the following:
The OCRT must be advised by telephone or in writing of a postponement request. The request must include the following:
The OCRT must be advised immediately by telephone of a postponement request. The request must include the following:
Requests made the same day of the hearing will be forwarded to the Review Tribunal. Parties are expected to attend the hearing and be prepared to proceed. The Review Tribunal will make a determination whether to adjourn at the hearing.
The OCRT's decision to grant or deny a postponement request will be communicated to the person requesting the postponement by telephone and then followed up in writing to all parties except as noted below.
If the request is granted, all parties will receive notice of a new hearing date when set.