Bill C-564: An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act (time limit)

C-564 Second Session, Forty-first Parliament, 62 Elizabeth II, 2013 HOUSE OF COMMONS OF CANADA BILL C-564 An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act (time limit) first reading, December 10, 2013 Mr. Garneau 412009 SUMMARY This enactment amends the Canadian Human Rights Act to extend the time limit for filing a complaint with the Canadian Human Rights Commission from one year to two years. It also requires the Commission to consider a complaint that is filed after the two-year period allowed if it is of the opinion that the complainant was prevented from filing it within that time period. Available on the Parliament of Canada Web Site at the following address:http://www.parl.gc.ca 2nd Session, 41st Parliament, 62 Elizabeth II, 2013 house of commons of canada BILL C-564 An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act (time limit) R.S., c. H-6 Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows: 1. Paragraph 41(1)(e) of the Canadian Human Rights Act is replaced by the following: (e) the complaint is based on acts or omissions the last of which occurred more than two years before receipt of the complaint; or (f) the complaint is based on acts or omissions the last of which occurred before such longer period of time than the period referred to in paragraph (e) as the Commission considers appropriate in the circumstances. 2. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 41: Filing of complaint after expiration of time period 41.1 (1) The Commission shall deal with a complaint filed after the two-year period mentioned in paragraph 41(1)(e) if it determines that the complainant was prevented from filing the complaint by reason of a good and sufficient cause. Factors to be considered (2) The Commission shall, in determining whether the complainant was prevented from filing a complaint, consider all relevant factors, legal or factual, including whether (a) the complainant underwent medical treatment concurrent to or following the acts or omissions that form the subject matter of the complaint; (b) the complainant claims to have suffered a psychological, physical or financial burden as a result of the acts or omissions that form the subject matter of the complaint; (c) the complainant has borne a financial burden as a result of addressing the subject matter of the complaint in other forums; (d) threats or attempts at coercion were made in order to prevent the complainant from pursuing the complaint; (e) the complainant claims to have felt a bona fide fear of retaliation for pursuing the complaint; (f) the complainant’s family composition or marital status changed in the period following the acts or omissions that form the subject matter of the complaint; (g) the complainant suffered extreme distress as a result of the acts or omissions that form the subject matter of the complaint; (h) the complainant was absent from Canada for a reason other than incarceration outside Canada; (i) there was a delay in discovering the acts or omissions that form the subject matter of the complaint, or the scope and scale of those acts or omissions; or (j) the complainant experienced a period of physical or mental incapacity. Published under authority of the Speaker of the House of Commons