Guide to FOIP-Chapter 2

Office of the Saskatchewan Information and Privacy Commissioner. Guide to FOIP, Chapter 2, Administration of FOIP. Updated 7 March 2023. 49 Good faith means that state of mind denoting honesty of purpose, freedom from intention to defraud, and, generally speaking, means being faithful to one’s duty or obligation. Good faith is an intangible quality encompassing honest belief, the absence of malice and the absence of design to defraud or take advantage of something.86 Subsection 66(1)(c) of FOIP also confers immunity from suit for failure to give any notice required under FOIP, if reasonable care was taken to give the notice. Reasonable care means the degree of care that a prudent and competent person engaged in the same endeavor would exercise under similar circumstances.87 Subsection 66(2) of FOIP provides that reasonable care is deemed to have taken place if the notice required to be sent to an applicant is sent to the address of the applicant given on the access to information form.88 An injured party will usually find it extremely difficult to mount a successful case against the government or its agents in the face of these provisions.89 Subsection 66(3) of FOIP provides that the Information and Privacy Commissioner and staff of the Commissioner are also protected from civil liability when acting in good faith pursuant to any authority granted under FOIP or The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Regulations.90 Section 67: Immunity from Prosecution Immunity from prosecution 67 No person is liable to prosecution for an offence against any Act or regulation by reason of that person’s compliance with a requirement of the commissioner pursuant to this Act. As the provision below states, no person is liable to prosecution for an offence against any Act or regulation where the person was following a requirement of the Commissioner under FOIP. 86 British Columbia Government Services, FOIPPA Policy Definitions at https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/services-for-government/policiesprocedures/foippa-manual/policy-definitions. Accessed April 23, 2020. 87 Garner, Bryan A., 2019. Black’s Law Dictionary, 11th Edition. St. Paul, Minn.: West Group at p. 263. 88 The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, S.S. 1990-91, c. F-22.01 at s. 66(2). 89 McNairn and Woodbury, Government Information: Access and Privacy, (2009), Carswell: Toronto at p. 6-34. 90 The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, S.S. 1990-91, c. F-22.01 at s. 66(3).

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