Residential Tenancies Act: Briefing Book - Michael Walker

Residential Tenancies Act, 2007
B R I E F I N G B O O K
Tenant Defence Fund Update
The approved budget for the Tenant Defence Fund was initially set at $300,000 and
equally divided between the Grants Program and the Outreach Program. Since 2003, the
budget has been increased to $325,000 due to an increasing amount of tenant education
and outreach work. The funding proportion between the two sub-programs varied each
year according to the level of applications for the grants and the amount of outreach
work. In 2006, the approved allocation included $125,000 for the Grants Program and
$200,000 for the Outreach Program.
The Tenant Support Grants Program (the Grants Program)
The Grants Program helps tenants cover the legal and administrative costs of preparing
for a dispute or an appeal. The program provides two types of grants for tenant groups:
� Basic grants – up to $1,000 – pay for basic representation and administrative costs
for disputes of AGI applications at the Tribunal.
� Additional grants for any of the following:
o to pay for the fees of professional services (e.g., lawyer, accountant, and
engineer) for more complex AGI cases at the Tribunal, up to $5,000 per
group
o to appeal a Tribunal order concerning an AGI application to the Divisional
Court, up to $10,000 per group
o to request a judicial review of a Tribunal order concerning an AGI
application, up to $10,000 per group, and
o to challenge a landlord application/appeal to the OMB for demolition or
condominium conversion, up to $15,000 per group.
The program criteria for eligibility and administrative requirements are set out in a bylaw
(By-Law 48-2000, amended and codified in City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter
797: www.toronto.ca/legdocs/municode/1184_toc.pdf).
Groups applying for a grant must meet certain requirements regarding tenants’ signatures,
rent levels and proof of the landlord’s AGI or demolition/conversion application. If
approved, the grant payment is released to the group after a Tribunal Order, OMB or
Court decision document is forwarded to the City. In certain situations, advance
payments are permitted. A sample application form for the Tenant Support Grant is
included in this briefing package.
For more information about the program or to download a copy of the application from
for a basic grant, please see: http://www.toronto.ca/housing/about-tenant-defense.htm
Contact for the Grants Program:
Sheryl Pollock, Agency Review Officer, SSHA, at 416-392-0053
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