The Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) continues to be plagued with lengthy delays, frustrating landlords, co‑ops, tenants, and everyone involved in the process. We do see them making efforts to improve things. One of these recent developments, launched on July 2, is Navigate Tribunals Ontario (NTO).

If you’re a landlord or a tenant, you can go to a new site which, by asking you a series of questions about your situation, will provide you with information about what you might be able to do to resolve things. During your navigation, you may receive info-sheets with more information about the topic you are exploring to help you decide what to do next. The system even provides you with a summary report at the end of your session, showing the pathway you chose and relevant resources.

In September, NTO will include information about co‑op housing, care homes, and mobile home tenancies. Over the next three years the Ministry of the Attorney General tells us they will expand website to include more tribunals, boards, and commissions.

Check out the NTO through this link: https://navigatetribunalsontario.ca. For more on this, take a look at the Press Release here.

Later this year, Tribunals Ontario will launch a new case management system – the Tribunals Ontario Portal (TOP). TOP will allow LTB parties to file applications and upload documents and log in to view their case file. TOP will also give landlords and tenants the chance to work together to resolve their dispute, or request help from an LTB mediator, all online.

We know the LTB is making strides with the use of technology.  Remote hearings are required during COVID but I’m told are with us permanently now.  For our clients, Zoom hearings is a financial positive development since they don’t have to pay us to sit all day at a hearing or have their staff cooling their heels in a hearing waiting room to testify. Indeed, it’s good for our other clients too since we can do other work all while keeping an eye on what’s going on in the virtual hearing space.

Zoom, NTO, TOP, and other alphabet soup to come – these are all terrific paths to justice providing you have access to reliable technology, good English language skills, and a level of comfort working remotely.  We hope the LTB is spending equal time considering how to ensure the most vulnerable are not further marginalized. And we hope they are redoubling efforts to clear the considerable backlog in a way that is fair to parties.

Filed in: Co-operative Law, Housing

Tags: Applications under the Co-operative, By-law reviews and updates to comply with the Ontario Not for Profit Corporations Act, Charitable applications and registrations, Civil litigation, Co-operative housing, Duty to accommodate, Employment, Eviction, HRTO applications, Human rights, Landlord, Landlord and Tenant Board, Landlord and Tenant Board applications, LTB, Not for profit governance, Small Claims Court, Tenant, Wills and estates