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P-665

Document		P-665


File #		P-9300024 and P-9300171


Institution/HIC		Ministry of the Solicitor General and Correctional Services


Summary		ORDER BACKGROUND: The Ministry of Correctional Services (now the Ministry of the Solicitor General and Correctional Services) (the Ministry) received two separate requests under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (the Act ) from a union representative on behalf of a Corrections Officer who had been dismissed from her job. In the first application (which resulted in Appeal Number P-9300024), the requester sought access to (1) the Corrections Officer's Performance, Planning and Review (PPR) file, (2) her personnel file and (3) any other reports, correspondence or documents relating to her dismissal. In the second request (which produced Appeal Number P-9300171), the union official asked to receive (1) the report of a Ministry inspector who investigated the incident, (2) any relevant staff or manager's reports and (3) any other reports, investigations, facts or relevant files pertaining to the dismissal. In its decision letter regarding Appeal Number P-9300024, the Ministry indicated that it had responded to the first two components of the request and that only the third part (reports or investigations relating to the dismissal) was still outstanding. The Ministry then located three occurrence reports which were responsive to the request and granted the requester access to her own statement. The Ministry, however, withheld the remaining two occurrence reports in full based on the exemption contained in section 49(b) of the Act (invasion of privacy). With respect to Appeal Number P-9300171, the Ministry indicated that the inspector's report had not been prepared at the time that the application was made and, hence, that such a document fell outside the scope of the request. The Ministry then identified two occurrence reports that responded to the request but denied access to these documents under sections 49(b) and 14(2)(d) of the Act . The requester appealed the Ministry's decisions to withhold the four occurrence reports from disclosure. The mediation of these appeals was not successful and notice that an inquiry was being conducted to review the Ministry's decision was sent to the appellant, the Ministry and to three Corrections Officers who authored the various occurrence reports. Representations were received from the appellant, the Ministry and two of the Corrections Officers. In its representations, the Ministry withdrew its reliance upon section 14(2)(d) of the Act . As indicated previously, the records at issue in these appeals consist of four occurrence reports. The two reports dated November 19, 1992 relate to Appeal Number P-9300024 while the reports dated December 29 and 30, 1992, respectively, pertain to Appeal Number P-9300171. ISSUES: The issues arising in these appeals are: A. Whether the information contained in the occurrence reports qualifies as "personal information" as defined in section 2(1) of the Act . B. Whether the discretionary exemption provided by section 49(b) of the Act applies to the personal information contained in the occurrence reports. SUBMISSIONS/CONCLUSIONS: ISSUE A: Whether the information contained in the records qualifies as "personal information" as defined in section 2(1) of the Act . "Personal information" is defined in section 2(1) of the Act , in part, to mean "recorded information about an identifiable individual". I have reviewed the four occurrence reports and find that each record contains personal information about the appellant and other identifiable individuals. ISSUE B: Whether the discretionary exemption provided by section 49(b) of the Act applies to the personal information contained in the occurrence reports. Under Issue A, I found that the four occurrence reports contain the personal information of the appellant and other named individuals. Section 47(1) of the Act gives individuals a general right of access to their own personal information held by a Ministry. Section 49 provides a number of exceptions to this general right of access, one of which is found in section 49(b) of the Act . Under this section, where a record contains the personal information of both the appellant and other individuals and the Ministry determines that the disclosure of the information would constitute an unjustified invasion of another individual's personal privacy, the Ministry has the discretion to deny the requester access to the information. Sections 21(2), (3) and (4) of the Act provide guidance in determining whether the disclosure of personal information would constitute an unjustified invasion of personal privacy. I have carefully reviewed the contents of the occurrence reports and find that neither sections 21(3) nor (4) apply to the personal information at issue. If none of the presumptions in section 21(3) of the Act are applicable, the Ministry must consider the relevance of the factors listed in section 21(2) of the Act as well as all other circumstances that apply in the case. In its submissions, the Ministry states that sections 21(2)(e) and (h) apply to the facts of these appeals. The appellant, on the other hand, contends that both sections 21(2)(d) and (e) are factors which weigh in favour of disclosing the records. These provisions collectively state that: A head, in determining whether a disclosure of personal information constitutes an unjustified invasion of personal privacy, shall consider all the relevant circumstances, including whether, (d) the personal information is relevant to a fair determination of rights affecting the person who made the request; (e) the individual to whom the information relates will be exposed unfairly to pecuniary or other harm; (h) the personal information has been supplied by the individual to whom the information relates in confidence; For the purposes of these appeals, it will be sufficient for me to consider the application of sections 21(2)(d) and (e) to the personal information found in the records. Unfair Exposure to Harm - Section 21(2)(e) By way of background, the Ministry indicates that, on November 12, 1992, a verbal confrontation occurred between the Corrections Officer who has made the access request (the appellant) and a fellow employee (Corrections


Legislation		FIPPA 21(2)(d) 21(2)(e) 49(b)


Subject Index		occurrence pecuniary or other harm


Signed by		Irwin Glasberg


Published		Apr 27, 1994


Type		Order


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