Legislation and regulations

The HRTO is established under the Human Rights Code. Applications claiming discrimination or harassment contrary to the Human Rights Code may be filed with the HRTO. The opportunity to mediate disputes is offered to all parties.

The Statutory Powers Procedure Act provides a general framework for the conduct of hearings before Ontario’s administrative tribunals.

Regulation 290/98 under the Human Rights Code describes business practices landlords can use to select prospective residential tenants. Tariff A of the Rules of Civil Procedure sets the fees which must be paid when summoning a witness.

Prejudgment and postjudgment interest rates are governed by s. 127 of the Courts of Justice Act. If an adjudicator orders someone to pay you money and orders either prejudgment or postjudgment on that money, these tables helps you calculate any interest you are owed.

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Rules

There are two parts to the rules that govern the procedures of the HRTO.

Part I is the SJTO Common Rules and Part II is HRTO Rules of Procedure . Both parts should be read together.

Effective June 1, 2025 – Updated Rule 1.16-20 in the Rules of Procedure

Filing Documents with the Tribunal

1.16 When filing any document with the Tribunal, except for documents filed with an Application (Form 1), a Response (Form 2) or a Reply (Form 3), a party or any other person must include the following information:

1. name of the Applicant and Respondent in the Application;
2. name of the person filing the document and, if applicable, his/her representative’s name;
3. mailing address, telephone number and email address of the person filing the document or his/her representative; and
4. Application file number, if available.

1.17 Documents may be filed with the Tribunal by:

1. Removed;
2. courier or regular, registered or certified mail to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario at its mailing address;
3. email – HRTO.Registrar@ontario.ca, with attachments not greater than 35mb in one email;
4. as directed by the Tribunal.

1.18 Notwithstanding Rule 1.17, Applications filed by the Commission or by the Legal Support Centre must be filed electronically in accordance with the Practice Directions of the Tribunal.

1.19 Documents received after 5 p.m. by email will be deemed to have been received on the next business day.

1.19.1 When filing paper documents by courier or regular, registered or certified mail, a party must file a second unbound copy of any bound document.

1.20 A party filing any document, other than an Application (Form 1) or a Response (Form 2) under ss. 34(1) or 34(5) of the Code, including by email, must deliver a copy of the document to all other parties to the Application and must verify that s/he has done so by filing a Statement of Delivery in Form 23 or by confirming the delivery to the other parties on the cover letter or email.

Updated Rule 15 in the Rules of Procedure

Rule 15 Mediation

1.15.1 For applications filed with the Tribunal prior to June 1, 2025, a mediation shall be scheduled in every application where the parties have agreed to participate in mediation.

1.15.1 For applications filed with the Tribunal on or after June 1, 2025, a mediation shall be scheduled in every application filed with the Tribunal.

1.a.15.1 Where the Tribunal directs a party, intervenor or affected person to attend mediation, that party’s attendance shall be mandatory.

1.12 The Tribunal may determine that intervenors or affected persons should receive notice of the mediation and should be entitled to participate.

2.12 A party or a person with authority to settle on the party’s behalf must be present at the mediation.

3.12 Parties, intervenors and affected persons and their representatives in attendance at mediation must agree to abide by the confidentiality agreement before the mediation commences.

4.12 All matters disclosed during mediation are confidential and may not be raised before the Tribunal or in other proceedings, except with the permission of the person who gave the information.

5.12 Where an applicant is directed to attend mediation and fails to attend, the Tribunal may:

1. dismiss the Application;
2. take any other action it considers appropriate.

6.12 Where a respondent, intervenor or affected person is directed to attend mediation and fails to attend, the Tribunal may:

1. proceed in the respondent, intervenor or affected person’s absence;
2. If the Application does not settle:
   1. determine that the respondent, intervenor or affected person is not entitled to further notice of the proceedings;
   2. determine that the respondent, intervenor or affected person is not entitled to participate further in the proceedings, including by presenting evidence or making submissions to the Tribunal; and/or
   3. take any other action it considers appropriate.

7.12 Where the terms of any settlement are in writing and signed by the parties the parties may request that the Tribunal dispose of the matter in accordance with their agreement by filing a confirmation of settlement using Form 25 (Confirmation of Settlement). Parties may also ask the Tribunal to issue a consent order in accordance with s. 45.9 of the Code.

8.12 Where the parties settle the Application during the mediation but do not file a Form 25 before the mediation concludes, the parties have 14 days from the date of the mediation to either file a Form 25 or confirm their intention to proceed with the Application. If neither of these steps are taken by the deadline noted, the Tribunal may administratively close the file without further notice to the parties.

9.12 On the request of a party, the Tribunal may reopen an Application that has been administratively closed under this Rule. The request must be made in writing within 30 days of receipt of the administrative closure letter, copied on all other parties, and include the reasons for the request and any supporting documents. The request will be reviewed and a decision will be made by an adjudicator.

10.12 Where the parties do not settle the Application during the mediation, the application will proceed through the Tribunal process.

11.12 Exemptions to mandatory mediation shall be considered by the Tribunal upon submission of a completed Form 10 (Request for an Order During Proceedings), copied to all other parties, no less than 7 days before the scheduled mediation.

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Practice directions

Practice directions support the rules of procedure and provide guidance about what the HRTO expects of the parties and what the parties can expect of the HRTO. They help parties to understand the rules.

• Practice Direction on Jurisdiction
• Practice Direction on Hearing Formats
• Practice Direction on Representation before Social Justice Tribunals Ontario
• Practice Direction on Litigation Guardians before Social Justice Tribunals Ontario
• Practice Direction on Establishing a Regular Contact Person for an Organization
• Practice Direction on Filing Applications on Behalf of Another Person
• Practice Direction on Communicating with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario
• Practice Direction on Electronic Filing by Licensed Representatives
• Practice Direction on Hearings
• Practice Direction on Naming Respondents
• Practice Direction on Reconsideration
• Practice Direction on Recording Hearings
• Practice Direction on Requests for Language Interpretation
• Practice Direction on Requests to Expedite an Application and Requests for an Interim Remedy
• NEW Practice Direction on Rescheduling and Adjournment Requests
• NEW Practice Direction on Extension Requests
• Practice Direction on Scheduling of Hearings and Mediations, Rescheduling Requests, and Requests for Adjournments
• Practice Direction on Summary Hearing Requests
• Practice Direction on Intervention by a Bargaining Agent and Form 28
• Practice Direction on Anonymization of HRTO Decisions

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Decisions

To read decisions of the HRTO, visit the Canadian Legal Information Institute (CanLII). CanLII is a non-profit organization that makes Canadian law accessible for free on the Internet.

Before the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario was established, decisions under the Human Rights Code were made by Boards of Inquiry. Those decisions, issued from 1963–2002, can be accessed online.

For process-related information about decisions, including what to do if you disagree with your HRTO decision, see Application and hearing process.