In 2016, Mr. Matthew Green made a complaint under the former Police Services Act (PSA). He alleged that he was racially profiled by a police officer at the Hamilton Police Service. The complaint was dismissed by a hearings officer appointed by Hamilton’s Chief of Police.
In addition, Mr. Green filed an Application (complaint) at the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) alleging discrimination under the Ontario Human Rights Code (Code). In his Application, he sought public interest remedies to address systemic racism within the Hamilton Police Service. The HRTO dismissed the Application under section 45.1 of the Code. The HRTO concluded that the PSA hearings had appropriately dealt with the matter. So, the HRTO would be re-litigating the matter.
A judicial review of this decision was heard at the Divisional Court. In a decision released on November 7, 2025, the Divisional Court set aside the HRTO’s dismissal of this racial discrimination claim against the Hamilton Police. It held that in these circumstances, Mr. Green's human rights application should not have been dismissed because of his complaint under the Police Services Act (PSA).
The OHRC intervened in this judicial review to protect the ability of applicants to access systemic remedies under the Code. The Court held that a disciplinary hearing of a police officer under the PSA is different from a human rights proceeding under the Code, and it would be a “serious affront to basic principles of fairness” for a human rights proceeding to be dismissed because of a PSA disciplinary hearing. The Court highlighted a number of factors, including that the Chief of Police appoints the prosecutor and hearings officer in a PSA proceeding.
The Court sent the matter back to the HRTO to be heard by a different adjudicator. The OHRC was represented by Nina Gandhi and Alisha Krishna.
The PSA has been replaced by the Community Safety and Policing Act (CSPA), which sets out a new process for police complaints. If you are considering filing a complaint under the CSPA as well as an Application to the Human Rights Tribunal, contact the Human Rights Legal Support Centre for advice.