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Summary
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Order are as follows: On February 8, 1988, a request was made to the Ministry of the Solicitor General (the "institution") for, "...tous les documents, de quelque nature que ce soit, qui se rapportent et font suite aux échanges qui se sont produits en 1987 et 1988 entre votre ministère, y compris la Sureté de l'Ontario, et le département des services sociaux du comté de Northumberland au sujet dé ma personne. Je veux savoir exactement ce qui fut transmis par ce département à votre ministère, en incluant la Sureté de l'Ontario, et ce qui fut transmis par votre ministère, en incluant la Sureté de l'Ontario, à ce département, en plus de savoir ce qui fut fait par vous suite à cet échange. Je n'ai aucune idée dans quelle banque de renseignements vous pouvez conserver de tels renseignements. Je demande donc à recevoir copie de tous les renseignements personnels me concernant qui sont en possession de votre Ministère et de la Sureté de l'Ontario dans quelque banque de renseignments personnels que ce soit..." (hereinafter referred to as the "records"). (Institution's Translation): "...Copies of all documents whatsoever related to and following up on exchanges concerning myself occurring in 1987 and 1988 between your Ministry (including the Ontario Provincial Police) and the Department of Social Services, Northumberland County. I want to know exactly what was communicated by that department to your Ministry (including the Ontario Provincial Police) and what was communicated by your Ministry (including the Ontario Provincial Police) to that department, as well as what action was subsequently taken by yourselves. I have no idea what information bank is being used to store this information. I am thus asking for copies of all information concerning myself in the possession of your Ministry and the Ontario Provincial Police, from wherever it is being stored..." By letter dated February 22, 1988, the institution advised the requester that it could not provide access to the records requested, as the records did not exist. By letter dated February 26, 1988, the requester again wrote to the institution, stating in part: "...Vous ne pouvez pas me dire que "ce document n'existant pas (sic), nous ne pouvons pas vous y donner accès" alors que je sais pertinament que "...(la)...", directrice du département des services sociaux du comté de Northumberland, ou d'autres personnes, ou bien, et d'autres personnes de ce département ou de l'administration de ce comté ont eu des échanges avec votre ministère et avec la Surété de l'Ontario entre au moins juin 1987 et maintenant. Veuillez aller vérifier auprès des bureaux de votre ministère à Cobourg et à la direction régionale, ainsi que partout ailleurs à votre ministère, et auprè des bureaux de la Sureté de l'Ontario à Cobourg et à Brighton, ainsi que partout ailleurs à la Sureté , en particulier en demandant à "...(un)...", policier de la Sureté à Brighton. Je n'ai aucune idée dans quelle catégorie de fichier vous pouvez conserver de tels renseignements puisque j'en ignore même la nature, c'est donc à vous, le coordonnateur, d'en faire la recherche. Je crois vois avoir donner suffisamant d'indices pour ce faire..." (Institution's Translation): "...You cannot tell me that "since this document does not exist (sic), we cannot give you access to it", when I know for a fact that "...(the)...", Director of the Social Services Department, Northumberland County or others in that department or within the county administration have exchanged correspondence with your Ministry and the Ontario Provincial Police from at least June 1987 to the present. Please check with your Ministry offices in Cobourg and with the Regional Branch, as well as everywhere else in your Ministry. Check as well with the Ontario Provincial Police Offices in Cobourg, Brighton and everywhere else. You might particularly check with "...(name)...", a police officer with the Brighton Ontario Provincial Police. I have no idea what type of file this information might be kept in, since I have no idea what it includes. Thus, it's up to you as the Co-ordinator, to look into it. I feel I have provided you with enough information to do so." The institution treated the February 26 letter as a new request "because it provided more information and it was specific". By letter dated March 31, 1988, the institution advised the requester that records did not exist for his second request for access. On March 3, 1988, the requester wrote to me appealing the February 22, 1988 decision of the head. A second letter was received from the appellant dated April 7, 1988 wherein he appealed the head's decisions of February 22, 1988 and March 31, 1988. By letter dated April 6, 1988, I gave notice of the appeal to the institution. Attempts by an Appeals Officer to settle this matter were unsuccessful. By letter dated July 18, 1988, I sent notice to the institution and the appellant that I was conducting an inquiry to review the decision of the head and enclosing a copy of the Appeals Officer's Report prepared by my office. Both parties were invited to provide written representations to me. Written representations were received from the institution. To the date of this Order, no representations have been received from the appellant. At issue in this appeal is whether the institution has taken all reasonable steps to locate records that respond to the appellant's request. Before dealing with the specifics of this case, I think that it would be useful to review the statutory provisions relating to a request for personal information. Subsection 47(1) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, 1987 provides a right of access to personal information as follows: 47.-(1) Every individual has a right of access to, (a) any personal information about the individual contained in a personal information bank in the custody or under the control of an institution; and (b) any other personal information about the individual in the custody or under the control of an institution with respect to which the individual is able to provide sufficiently specific information to render it reasonably retrievable by the institution. Subsection 48(1) of the Act , sets out the nature and form that a request for personal information must take: 48.-(1) An individual seeking access to personal information about the individual shall make a request therefor in writing to the institution that the individual believes has custody or control of the personal information and shall identify the personal information bank or otherwise identify the location of the personal information. Subsection 48(2) provides that the requirements of subsection 24(2) of the Act apply to a request for personal information. Subsection 24(2) reads as follows: "If the request does not sufficiently describ
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