Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner. Guide to LA FOIP, CHAPTER 2, Administration of LA FOIP. Updated 2 March 2023. 26 • The power to compel a local authority to produce records in its possession or control and examine them [s. 43(1)(a) of LA FOIP]. • The power to enter and inspect any premises occupied by a local authority [s. 43(1)(b) of LA FOIP]. • The power to summon and enforce the appearance of persons before the Commissioner and compel them to: o Give oral or written evidence on oath or affirmation; and o To produce any documents or things [s. 43(2) of LA FOIP]. In Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan decision, University of Saskatchewan v Saskatchewan (Information and Privacy Commissioner), (2018), the Honourable Chief Justice Richards confirmed the Commissioner’s power to compel production of records: In the end, therefore, I see nothing in the statutory context in which s. 43(1) of LA FOIPA is found to suggest it should be given anything other than its ordinary and grammatical meaning. As a result, I conclude that s. 43(1) empowers the Commissioner to require the production of records subject to, or said to be subject to, solicitor-client privilege. The Chambers judge made no error in his conclusion on this front.34 Section 43.1: Power to Authorize a Local Authority to Disregard Applications or Requests Power to authorize a local authority to disregard applications or requests 43.1(1) The head may apply to the commissioner to disregard one or more applications pursuant to section 6 or requests pursuant to section 31. (2) In determining whether to grant an application or request mentioned in subsection (1), the commissioner shall consider whether the application or request: (a) would unreasonably interfere with the operations of the local authority because of the repetitious or systematic nature of the application or request; (b) would amount to an abuse of the right of access or right of correction because of the repetitious or systematic nature of the application or request; or (c) is frivolous or vexatious, not in good faith or concerns a trivial matter. 34 University of Saskatchewan v Saskatchewan (Information and Privacy Commissioner), 2018 SKCA 34 (CanLII) at [47].
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