Alberta Human Rights Commission

The Alberta Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is a quasi-judicial human rights commission in Alberta, Canada, created by the provincial government.

The Commission was established under and tasked with administering the Alberta Human Rights Act (AHRA). Its mandate is to reduce discrimination in Alberta "through the resolution and settlement of complaints of discrimination, and through human rights tribunal and court hearings." In relation to complaint resolution and settlement, the primary purpose of the tribunals is adjudicative.

It is headed by the Chief of the Commission and Tribunals, who is tasked with informing Alberta's Minister of Justice of human rights issues, as well as providing guidance to Commission members regarding such functions as their tribunal hearings, and to the Commission director regarding the overall objective of the Commission. Both the Chief and Commission members are appointed by Order in Council.

The AHRC differs from the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC), which deals with complaints relating to treatment by the federal government or a federally-regulated business.

Organization
The functions of the Commission are laid out in the Alberta Human Rights Act. In particular, section 16(1) states that the function of the Commission is: (a) to forward the principle that all persons are equal in dignity, rights and responsibilities without regard to race, religious beliefs, colour, gender, gender identity, gender expression, physical disability, mental disability, age, ancestry, place of origin, marital status, source of income, family status or sexual orientation,

(b) to promote awareness and appreciation of and respect for the multicultural heritage of Alberta society,

(c) to promote an environment in which all Albertans can participate in and contribute to the cultural, social, economic and political life of Alberta,

(d) to encourage all sectors of Alberta society to provide equality of opportunity,

(e) to research, develop and conduct educational programs designed to eliminate discriminatory practices related to race, religious beliefs, colour, gender, gender identity, gender expression, physical disability, mental disability, age, ancestry, place of origin, marital status, source of income, family status or sexual orientation,

(f) to promote an understanding of, acceptance of an compliance with this Act,

(g) to encourage and coordinate both public and private human rights programs and activities, and

(h) to advise the Minister on matters related to this Act.

Members and leadership
The Commission is headed by the Chief of the Commission and Tribunals, who is tasked with informing Alberta's Minister of Justice of human rights issues, as well as providing guidance to Members of the Commission regarding such functions as their tribunal hearings, and to the Director of the Commission regarding the overall objective of the Commission. Section 15 of the Alberta Human Rights Act provides that the Chief and members of the Commission are appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council.

The current Chief of the Commission and Tribunals is Kathryn Oviatt, K.C., who was appointed in November 2022. Prior to October 2009, the position was simply referred to as the Chief Commissioner. Previous chiefs include:


 * Dr. Evaristus A. Oshionebo – September 2022 – November 2022
 * Collin May – July 2022 – September 2022
 * Kathryn Oviatt, K.C. – January 2022 – July 2022
 * Michael Gottheil – August 2018 – January 2022
 * William D. McFetridge (acting) – August 2017 – August 2018
 * Robert A. Philp – July 1, 2014 – June 30, 2017
 * David Blair Mason – 2009–2014
 * Brenda F. Scragg (acting) – 2008–2009
 * Charlach Mackintosh – 1994–2008
 * Jack O'Neil – 1993–1994
 * Fil B. Fraser – 1989–1992
 * Stan Scudder – 1986–1989
 * Marlene Antonio – 1981–1986
 * Bob Lundrigan – 1979–1981
 * Max Wyman – 1973–1979

, Members of the Commission are:


 * Nduka Ahanonu
 * Sandra Badejo
 * Faraz Bawa
 * Doris Bonora, K.C.
 * Cynthia Dickins, K.C.
 * Jessica Gill
 * Teresa Haykowsky
 * Duncan Marsden, K.C.
 * Ali Memon
 * D. Jean Munn, K.C.
 * Evaristus Oshionebo
 * Erika Ringseis
 * Karen Scott
 * Wilma Shim
 * Salimah Walji-Shivji, K.C.
 * Nathalie Whyte

Indigenous Advisory Circle
The Alberta Human Rights Commission established an Indigenous Advisory Circle in August 2021 to assist the Commission with the implementation of its Indigenous Human Rights Strategy. The Circle provides advice and guidance on best practices, community engagement, and priority actions.

The Circle is composed of 12 Indigenous individuals from across the province. Members are chosen through an open competition process. In selecting Circle members, the Commission strives to include people with diverse experience and expertise (including women, 2SLGBTQ+ individuals, and persons with disabilities) from multiple cultural backgrounds. The Commission also strives to ensure the Circle includes both urban and rural perspectives.

Tribunal
The quasi-judicial Tribunal office is the independent adjudicative arm of the Alberta Human Rights Commission. Members of the Commission (who serve on human rights tribunals) are neither employees of the Government of Alberta or the Commission; they are private citizens appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council.

Mihaly v The Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta
Since 1999, Ladislav Mihaly, who trained as an engineer in Czechoslovakia in the 1970s, has sought accreditation as an engineer in Alberta, but the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA) said that he did not meet its requirements. He refused to submit to any of the technical examinations but did take a required ethics examination—and failed it, twice. Almost a quarter of Alberta's engineers are immigrants who submitted to the same examinations that Mihaly refused or failed. In 2008, he took his case to the Alberta Human Rights Commission, which ruled in February 2014 that APEGA must pay Mihaly $10,000, provide him with a personal mentor and form a committee to re-evaluate his credentials. APEGA successfully appealed the decision.

Lund v Boissoin
On July 18, 2002, Dr. Darren Lund, a professor at the University of Calgary, filed a complaint with the Alberta Human Rights Commission against Reverend Stephen Boissoin and the Concerned Christian Coalition.

Boisson had letter published in the Red Deer Advocate that stated, "Where homosexuality flourishes, all manner of wickedness abounds" and "Homosexual rights activists and those that defend them, are just as immoral as the pedophiles, drug dealers and pimps that plague our communities." Lund's complaint alleged that Boisson's letter constituted discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, as prohibited by Alberta's Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Act.

A one-member Alberta Human Rights Panel accepted Lund's arguments that the letter was "likely to expose homosexuals to hatred and/or contempt." The Canadian Civil Liberties Association intervened in the case, condemning the views expressed in the letter but arguing they should not be subject to legal sanction.

On May 30, 2008, the Alberta Human Rights Panel ordered Boissoin and the Concerned Christian Coalition to refrain from publishing future disparaging remarks about homosexuals and provide Lund with a written apology and in $5,000 damages.

On December 3, 2009, the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta overturned the decision of the Alberta Human Rights Panel. The Court found that the contents of the letter did not violate the Alberta Human Rights Act, and that the remedies that had been imposed were either unlawful or unconstitutional. The Court also identified "troubling aspects of the process leading to the decision of the Panel," including the inclusion of the Concerned Christian Coalition as a respondent. In October 2012, the Court of Appeal of Alberta upheld the decision and agreed with the lower court that Boissoin's letter was "a polemic on a matter of public interest and does not qualify as reaching the extreme limits... to expose persons to hatred or contempt," within the meaning of the Alberta Human Rights Act.