Important to Remember: The Human Rights Commission supports and helps navigate the parties through the hearing process. We can explain what happens during the hearing and answer general legal questions. We can also help you understand how to format a witness statement and/or get a summons for a witness to attend the hearing. The Commission’s lawyer cannot give you legal advice or tell you how to prove your case. This means that they cannot tell you what evidence is relevant, what legal arguments to make, who to call as a witness or what questions to ask them.
Make a Plan
The best way to prepare for a hearing is to make a plan:
- read all the information you have about this complaint.
- think about how you would explain your story to another person who does not know what happened.
- write down your story in point form and in the order it happened.
- list the facts you have to prove your case and the documents or witnesses (evidence) you have to support your position.
- prepare a list of questions that witnesses need to answer and the purpose of each question. If the Adjudicator does not ask these questions, make sure you raise it when given the opportunity.
- think about what you are asking the Adjudicator to do and why.
How to Prove your Complaint
If you are the Complainant (the person making the complaint), read here:
- that you were unfairly treated (discriminated against or harassed)
- that you have one of the protected personal characteristics (prohibited grounds)
- that there is some connection between the discriminatory treatment and one of the prohibited grounds
- that you suffered a loss or a disadvantage as a result of the discrimination or harassment
- the type of remedy/compensation you are looking for
The Complainant does not need to prove that discrimination was the sole, or even the primary, factor in the unfair treatment that gave rise to the complaint. It is enough if one of the reasons for the treatment was discriminatory. You do not need to prove that the Respondent intended to discriminate or harass you.
For example:
I was fired by ABC Company after I told them I was pregnant. I am asking for money for lost income and general damages for pain and suffering.
Allegation: I was fired because I am pregnant
Evidence: I told my manager I was pregnant on September 27. We had a meeting on September 29th to discuss possible accommodations at work. My manager told me that they had safety concerns about me working while pregnant and they did not want me taking too much time off work in the future. The meeting got heated and I was fired
Allegation: I lost $5,000 in income
Evidence: My pay stubs show that I earned $2,500 per month. I tried to find another job, but it took me two months (I have copies of all the applications I sent and notes of the interviews I had).
Allegation: I suffered injury to my dignity, feelings and self-respect.
Evidence: I was very upset about getting fired and that ABC Company didn’t think I could do a good job while pregnant. My husband and friends saw me upset. I wrote about my feelings in a journal
If you are the Respondent (the person responding to the complaint), read here:
You get a chance to show the Complainant’s version of what happened is not correct. It is possible to have another reason for what happened or a legal defense to the complaint.
You also get to explain why the Complainant is not entitled to receive the remedy/compensation they are asking for.
For example:
I own ABC Company and am responding to a complaint that alleges I discriminated against an employee on the ground of sex (pregnancy). She says that she was fired as soon as we found out she was pregnant and that we did not try to accommodate her.
Allegation: Employee was fired because of her pregnancy
Defence: She quit
Evidence: We had a meeting on September 29th to discuss possible accommodations at work. Our employees have physically demanding jobs and are exposed to noxious chemicals. We got into an argument at the meeting and the employee told me she was “leaving and never coming back” and then she walked out. Another employee who works in the next office will say that he heard the entire argument
Defence: A large part of the job is to handle noxious chemicals. I run a small company and there was no one else who could do the work. I tried to accommodate the employee but had no other work to give her.
Evidence: I only have one other employee in this area, and handling noxious chemicals is half the job. I think the employee would agree with this. I will say that I suggested she take a leave until she could get a medical note to say she can work with noxious chemicals. I will say that I couldn’t think of any other option that would work, and then she quit during our argument.
For more general information on hearings, click here