Judicial Procedures

Principles of Natural Justice and Procedural Fairness

The Principles of Natural Justice and Procedural Fairness must prevail in Judicial Procedures to uphold the principle that justice must not only be done, but be seen to be done. The principles are explained below:

  1. The Resident has the right to be informed of the allegation(s) of Offense(s).
  2. The Resident is entitled to an opportunity to respond to allegation(s) of Offense(s) at a meeting with Residence Staff and is also entitled to a reasonable notice of the time, place and nature of the meeting.
  3. The Resident is presumed not to be guilty of the alleged Offense(s) until an impartial and unbiased Decision-maker has determined the Offense(s).
  4. The Resident is entitled to reasonable disclosure of evidence of the Incident Report prior to a decision. Fact-finding occurs at a meeting with the Decision-Maker.
  5. At meetings to discuss level three violations, the Resident is entitled to call a reasonable number of witnesses to the meeting to discuss alleged Offense(s). This must be arranged with the decision-maker prior to the meeting.
  6. The Resident is entitled to be advised in writing of the Decision about the alleged Offense(s) and the Sanction(s) applied, (if any).The Decision about guilt or innocence and any associated Sanction(s) should be made within a reasonable time.

Standard of Proof

The information necessary to prove that an offense has occurred is referred to as the standard of proof. Outside of a court of law, the model used by College’s and Universities is called the Balance of Probabilities. The standard of proof has been met if at the conclusion of an investigation, based on all credible information, the Residence Staff believes that the incident reported probably occurred. This means that the information provided in the Incident Report and in the judicial meeting demonstrated that the violation is more likely than not to have occurred. The standard of proof for criminal cases is beyond a reasonable doubt, which does not apply in Residence Judicial Procedures.

Incident Reports and Judicial Meetings

A summary of the Judicial Process is presented in the chart following this section.

Residence Staff will record behaviours, actions or negligence that may be Violations against the RCLS in Incident Reports. When necessary, the Incident Report may also include appendices, such as e-mails, photographs, or Security, Police, or Fire reports. Residence Staff will notify the Resident(s) of the alleged Offense(s) and will notify them of a meeting to discuss the matter.

The purpose of a Judicial Meeting between a Resident and a Residence Staff member is to investigate allegations of violations detailed in an Incident Report. This is the opportunity for Residents to be heard and explain their behaviour to the Residence Staff member. While these meetings must comply with the Principles of Natural Justice and Procedural Fairness and may result in formal sanctions, they are not designed to be highly formal in nature. At the conclusion of the meeting the Residence Staff member will follow-up with the Resident in writing with a Decision Letter, which will outline all necessary decisions about violations, sanctions and any related deadlines. If the Resident fails to attend the Judicial Meeting with the Residence Staff member, the Residence Staff member may choose to proceed and make a decision based upon all evidence available.

Communication Between Resident(s) and Residence Staff

Residence Staff will endeavour to communicate with Residents via several methods to discuss Incident Reports, deliver Decision Letters, and any other important aspects of the judicial process:

  1. An e-mail to their Algonquin e-mail account or the account provided in their application,
  2. A letter placed in a Residents mailbox or under a Residents room door, or
  3. In person. An attempt to contact and communicate with a Resident is deemed to be satisfactory when any two of the above methods have been used by Residence Staff.

Algonquin Residence Judicial Process

Alleged Level 1, 2 & 3 Violations:

  1. Incident Report
    Alleged violations of the RCLS are documented by Residence Staff in an Incident Report.
  2. Judicial Meeting with RLC/RLM (or designate)
    Resident(s) meet with the RLC/RLM to review the Incident Report
  3. Decision Letter
    RLC communicates decision about allegations, violations, and sanctions to Resident(s) in writing.
  4. Incident Referred to RLM/GM (or designate)
    In situations where Resident(s) have violated Behaviour Contracts or when serious Level 3 violations are assessed, the Incident will be referred to the RLM/GM.

Alleged violations of Behaviour Contracts and/or serious Level 3 Violations:

  1. Incident Report
    Alleged violations of the RCLS are documented by Residence Staff in an Incident Report.
  2. Judicial Meeting with RLM/GM (or designate)
    Resident(s) meet with the RLM/GM to review the Incident Report
  3. Decision Letter
    RLM/GM communicates decision about allegations, violations, and sanctions to Resident(s) in writing.

Residence Emergencies

Although the three levels of Violations and the Judicial Procedures are intended to apply to most situations related to behaviour, there are conditions that warrant a heightened level of concern for safety, security, health and wellbeing. These conditions require special authority and guidelines. The following definitions and procedures ensure a swift, effective response to conditions to protect Residents, guests, staff, the community and the Institution. In consultation with the College and its threat assessment and emergency procedures, the General Manager is granted extraordinary authority to respond to Residence Emergencies.

Definition of a Residence Emergency

In consultation with the Institution, the Director of Residence is authorized to determine if Residence Emergency conditions exist, which is defined by any one of the following:

  1. evidence that a Resident, student, or staff has been harmed or appears to be in danger of harm,
  2. evidence that a Resident, student, or staff has harmed or poses a threat to harm another individual or the community,
  3. evidence that a Resident, student, or staff has inflicted self-harm or appears to be in danger of doing so.

Residence Emergency Procedures

In consultation with the College, the General Manager is authorized to:

  1. suspend other rules in order to invoke a swift response to a Residence Emergency
  2. turn the matter immediately over to appropriate authorities
  3. immediately relocate the Resident(s) involved within the Residence or off campus, pending a meeting with the Resident
  4. authorize an Exclusion, which takes effect immediately and without notice, pending a meeting with the Resident. This means that the individual: (i) is prohibited from accessing any service or facility of the Residence; (ii) may be escorted from the Residence and/or the campus
  5. determine Sanction(s) at Levels 1, 2, and 3, following a meeting with the Resident

Appeals

What is an Appeal?

If you are not happy with a decision that has been made on your behalf, you can submit an appeal and your situation will be reviewed by Residence Management.

For more information, take a look at the Appeal Form.

 

More Information:

Violations & Sanctions Overview

The Points
System

RCLS
Violations