Date:
20121203
Docket: T-1026-10
T-1027-10
T-1028-10
T-1030-10
T-1031-10
Citation: 2012
FC 1409
Vancouver, British Columbia,
December 3, 2012
PRESENT: The Honourable Mr.
Justice Campbell
T-1026-10
BETWEEN:
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NAGINDER SINGH
MANGAT
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Applicant
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and
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ATTORNEY
GENERAL OF CANADA
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Respondent
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T-1027-10
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BETWEEN:
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AMARJIT MANGAT
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Applicant
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and
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ATTORNEY
GENERAL OF CANADA
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Respondent
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T-1028-10
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BETWEEN:
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CHARANJIT
SINGH KHAIRA
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Applicant
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and
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ATTORNEY
GENERAL OF CANADA
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Respondent
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T-1030-10
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BETWEEN:
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AJIT SINGH
HOTHI
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Applicant
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and
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ATTORNEY
GENERAL OF CANADA
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Respondent
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T-1031-10
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BETWEEN:
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DELIP SINGH
SEKHON
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Applicant
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and
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ATTORNEY
GENERAL OF CANADA
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Respondent
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REASONS FOR ORDER AND
ORDER
[1]
In
the present Application, the Applicant challenges a decision of the Canadian
Employment Insurance Commission (Commission) refusing to write-off the
Applicant’s debt for having received an overpayment of employment insurance (EI)
benefits. The provision central to the decision under review is s. 56 of the Employment
Insurance Regulations, SOR/96-332 (Regulations) as quoted in the
Annex to these reasons together with other relevant provisions. The provision
allows for an overpayment to be written off if certain conditions exist. The
key condition precedent that must exist for the purposes of the present
Application is that “the overpayment does not arise from an error made by the
debtor or as a result of a false or misleading declaration or representation
made by the debtor, whether the debtor knew it to be false or misleading
or not.” For convenience, in these reasons such conduct found on the part
of the Applicant is referred to as “error”.
[2]
The
issue for determination is the correct interpretation of the condition. The question
is this: does the statutory condition allow for reasons for making an
error to be taken into consideration by the Commission in reaching a write-off
decision? For the reasons which follow, I find that the answer is “no”.
I. The
Context
[3]
The
circumstances which led to the overpayment of EI and the Applicant’s request
for a write-off arose from the Applicant’s employment in 1997 by
S&S Harvesting Ltd. (S&S Harvesting), a British Columbia labour
contracting firm providing workers to various farming operations.
[4]
In
the fall of 1997, the Applicant was laid-off by S&S Harvesting due to a
shortage of work and subsequently filed a claim for EI benefits. The Record of
Employment (ROE) prepared by S&S Harvesting reported the Applicant’s hours
of work, the dates of work, and the insurable earnings calculated accordingly.
The Applicant also submitted a separate and signed application form, which
included dates of work corresponding to the dates stated in the ROE.
[5]
Subsequent
to the Applicant’s lay-off, S&S Harvesting was investigated by the
Commission and the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency. That investigation led to
the recalculation of EI claims of the farm workers employed by S&S
Harvesting as well as the imposition of penalties pursuant to s. 38 of the Employment
Insurance Act S.C. 1996, c.23 (the Act) for knowingly making false
or misleading representations in the application for benefits and violations pursuant
to s. 7.1 of the Act.
[6]
The
insurability ruling was appealed to the Tax Court, which heard the Applicant’s
appeal along with that of approximately 75 other farm workers during a trial
that lasted 107 days. The decision of the Tax Court is relevant because the
Court made findings of fact pertinent to the subsequent application for
write-offs, in particular, the dates of work and insurable hours for each of the
farm workers, including the Applicant.
[7]
With
respect to the penalties and the violations imposed under the Act, the
Applicant appealed to the Board of Referees (Board) pursuant to s. 114 of the Act.
In reaching a decision, the Board properly conducted a full investigation
of the circumstances leading to the overpayment of EI benefits, including the
Applicant’s knowledge as to the accuracy of the information provided in the
application for benefits, and concluded that the Applicant did not knowingly
provide false or misleading information in claiming EI benefits. Thus, the
Board allowed the Applicant’s appeal against the penalty imposed for making false
or misleading statements and the violation of s. 7.1 of the Act.
[8]
Following
the favourable outcome before the Board, the Applicant, along with other
affected farm workers, applied to the Commission for a write-off of the
overpayment pursuant to s. 56(2) of the Regulations. The
Applicant’s application was based on the submission that the overpayment
resulted from errors made by S&S Harvesting in calculating the insurable
hours and earnings as represented in the ROE, and, therefore, the error made in
the application for benefits was the error of the employer and not that of the
Applicant.
II. The
Write-Off Decision
[9]
In
reaching a decision on the Applicant’s application for benefits, the Commission
considered the Board’s findings, but, nevertheless, determined that the
Applicant was responsible for an error stated in the claim for benefits:
The
Board of Referees decided that the client did not knowingly make a false
statement. Under EIR 56(1)(e), the false or misleading statement does not need
to be knowingly made it can simply be an error on the part of the debtor. In
this case, the client reported that his first day of work was the same as the
date listed on the Record of Employment. If he had listed that the date
differed from the Record of Employment the Commission would have verified the
information with the employer at the beginning and the claim might not have
been established. There is an obligation on the part of the client to provide
the correct dates of employment. The client was made aware at the time the application
was made that the information was “subject to verification” and that the
information was being collected in order to determine his eligibility for
benefits. Relying on others to fill out the application does not negate the
fact that the client is signing off on the application stating that all the
information is correct.
As a result, the Commission
rejected the Applicant’s submission.
III. The
Issues
[10]
It
is agreed that three factors are required to be considered with respect to a
write-off decision: is there an error in an Applicant’s application for
benefits; if there is an error, did the Applicant make the error; and did
the error in the Applicant’s application give rise to the overpayment of
benefits?
A. Is error attributable to the
Applicant?
[11]
There
is no debate that the Applicant’s application form for benefits contains an
error with respect to the duration of the Applicant’s employment with
S&S Harvesting. Counsel for the Applicant argues that it is not the
Applicant that is responsible for the error; it is not contested that the
employer provided the dates of employment to the Applicant and, thus, the
responsibility for the error lies solely with the employer.
[12]
Counsel
for the Applicant also argues that in reaching the decision on the write-off
issue, the Commission did not take the substance of the Board’s findings
into consideration, resulting in findings contradictory to those reached
by the Board on the issue of the Applicant’s knowledge and intention in making
the error. In support of this argument the decision in Campbell v Canada
(Attorney General), 2002 FCT 811 (FCTD) is cited, where at paragraph 13, Justice
Tremblay-Lamer addressed the significance of the Board’s findings:
In
the exercise of its discretion, can the Commission make a different finding of
fact than the Board of Referees? I do not think so. The jurisprudence has
established that the Board of Referees, which functions as a quasi-judicial
body, is in a better position than the Commission, which does not function as a
quasi-judicial body, to make findings of fact. The Board of Referee's findings
are owed deference, not those of the Commission.
I dismiss this argument. The
Commission did not make a finding of fact that is contradictory to
a finding made by the Board, it made a finding of relevance; it is
irrelevant that the Board found that the Applicant did not knowingly give
inaccurate information in his application for benefits.
[13]
In
response to Counsel for the Applicant’s attribution of error arguments, Counsel
for the Respondent argues that, given the wording of the statutory provision
under consideration, regardless of the circumstances underlying the making of
the error by the Applicant, the clear intention of Parliament was to place full
responsibility on the Applicant for any errors or misrepresentations in the
application for benefits.
[14]
With
respect to the correct interpretation of the condition precedent found in s.
56, no aid to interpretation has been advanced which militates against a
literal interpretation, and no authority has been advanced for the proposition
that the Commission is required to take reasons for making an error into
consideration. As a result, I find that the literal interpretation of the
provision applies, and therefore, the Applicant is responsible for the error.
B.
Did the error in the Applicant’s application give rise to the overpayment of
benefits?
[15]
Counsel
for the Applicant argues that even in the event of error on the part of the
Applicant, insurance benefits are not calculated on the basis of the dates of
employment that an employee provides, but rather on the ROE that the employer
provides, and thus, the responsibility for the overpayment arises only from the
employer’s actions for which the Applicant has no responsibility. Counsel for
the Respondent gives a practical reply to this argument.
[16]
It
is agreed that, normally, benefits are calculated on the basis of the ROE
provided by the employer where there is no discrepancy between the ROE and the
statements made by an employee in an application for benefits and, therefore,
no investigation takes place. But in the present case an investigation was
conducted, and, as a result, Counsel for the Respondent argues that, had the
Applicant provided the correct information in his application forms, the matter
would have been investigated at the outset and the overpayment of benefits to
the Applicant would not have arisen. Thus, as far as the Respondent is
concerned, the Applicant’s failure to correct the employer’s error gave rise to
the overpayment of the benefits. I agree with this argument.
IV. Conclusion
[17]
As
a result, I find no reviewable error in the decision under review.
ORDER
THIS
COURT ORDERS that the present Application is dismissed.
As the Respondent makes no request for costs, I make no award as to costs.
“Douglas R. Campbell”