Transportation Appeal Tribunal on the way

Legislation has been introduced in the House of Commons to create the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada (TATC), an independent, quasi-judicial body, staffed with transportation experts, that would act as a review mechanism for administrative and enforcement actions taken under various transportation acts governing the marine, rail and aviation sectors.

The TATC would essentially be an expansion of the Civil Aviation Tribunal which performs review and appeal functions for the aviation sector.

“The new Tribunal will replace the Civil Aviation Tribunal and give the marine and rail sectors the same impartial and effective review procedures currently available to the aviation sector. The Civil Aviation Tribunal has been recognized as a model for the enforcement of the Aeronautics Act,” said Transport Minister David Collenette.

As an independent body, the TATC will be an impartial arbiter of the government’s enforcement decisions, and would replace current internal review processes in which enforcement decisions made by inspectors are subject to review by senior officials or by the Minister.