NFU-O will challenge tribunal decision in court

Friday, June 21, 2013

by SUSAN MANN

The National Farmers Union – Ontario is off to court to challenge an agricultural tribunal’s ruling denying the organization accreditation as a general farm organization.

The group decided to take the matter to Ontario Divisional Court after the Ontario Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Appeal Tribunal refused to review its original decision handed down December 2012. The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food supported NFU-O’s request for a review of the decision.

John Sutherland, NFU-O president, says taking the matter to divisional court “made the most sense to council. We believe there has been an error made by the tribunal in law so then we go to the people who are very much involved in law and that is to the divisional court.”

The court has several options, including confirming the tribunal’s decision was the right one, finding the tribunal was wrong and ordering it to accredit NFU-O or ordering a new accreditation hearing, he says.

The organization hasn’t yet filed any documents with the court but it would like to have a hearing sooner rather than later. Sutherland says Agricorp needs to know whether NFU-O is accredited or not before November or December because that’s when it prints the farm business registration application forms.

“There are some deadlines set by others that we would like to meet,” he says.

In Ontario, it is mandatory for farmers acquiring farm registration to belong and pay membership dues to an accredited general farm organization. The process is also linked to farmers’ eligibility to enroll in business risk management programs. In turn, farm organizations must go through an accreditation process to collect the membership dues, which form a major portion of their funding. BF