Accessibility commissioner suing Ottawa, staff for $2.3 million following claims he mistreated staff
Michael Gottheil seeking damages for constructive dismissal, breach of charter rights and mental suffering
After facing an external investigation into claims he mistreated staff, Canada's first accessibility commissioner is suing the federal government and unnamed employees for more than $2.3 million in damages.
According to his statement of claim, filed last week, Michael Gottheil was ordered by the justice minister to undergo "certain training and take courses" in response to an 18-month workplace investigation.
But Gottheil — who is blind and hard of hearing due to Usher Syndrome — couldn't complete the courses because the testing wasn't made accessible, the statement of claim says.
The inaccessible training is part of a larger pattern of discrimination that Gottheil has faced since taking on his role in 2022, the statement of claim alleges.
Gottheil's statement claims the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC) tasked with supporting his work repeatedly gave him inaccessible documents and his requests for accommodations were "regularly ignored or met with frustration."
"The Plaintiff's accessibility needs as a person with a disability were consistently not met, despite the Plaintiff having clearly set out the accommodations he required," says the statement of claim, filed with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
This is "particularly egregious," the statement of claim says, because of his position and the fact the CHRC is supposed to be "protecting Canadians from such acts."
Gottheil has been on medical leave since the end of August. He is seeking more than $1.6 million in damages from the federal government for constructive dismissal, breach of charter rights and mental suffering.
He is also seeking $600,000 in special damages from unnamed employees at the CHRC; he alleges they maliciously made claims against him and caused damage to his reputation.
The allegations have not been tested in court and a statement of defence has not been filed.
Gottheil's job is to ensure more than 1,000 government bodies and federally-regulated private entities follow Canada's accessibility laws. But his lawsuit claims he's faced resistance and a lack of resources.
Gottheil denies allegations
CBC News has reported that a year after then-justice minister David Lametti appointed Gottheil to the new role, the government ordered Ottawa firm Quintet Consulting to investigate how he treated staff.
Several CHRC employees sent a letter in March 2023 to the federal Department of Justice saying they first raised concerns about Gottheil with the CHRC in November 2022.
Calling Gottheil's office a "psychologically unsafe and difficult work environment," the letter says three senior employees left the office, and two others were considering leaving, in connection with Gottheil's "toxic impact" on the workplace.
In his statement of claim, Gottheil "emphatically denies" those allegations and calls them "defamatory."
He also alleges the media leak that publicized the employees' letter and other documents violated the confidentiality requirement of the investigation.
Government won't release results of investigation
The government has refused to disclose to CBC News what that investigation found, citing privacy concerns.
The Department of Justice has said only that Justice Minister Arif Virani directed Gottheil and the CHRC to address the recommendations made in the investigation's final report.
Gottheil's statement of claim alleges that the investigation concluded "many" of the workplace claims against him were "unfounded."
The investigator also did not conclude "that he made personal remarks or derogatory comments," Gottheil's statement of claim says.
His statement of claim says that "many of the comments" in the final report about how his behaviour "was perceived" were "clearly related" to Gottheil's disabilities.
"He sometimes speaks loudly and will not always be aware of when other speakers have finished or of facial expressions or social cues," the statement of claim says. "This can affect the Plaintiff's behaviour in meetings and the perception of that behaviour, particularly when other participants are not properly informed or trained on these matters."
Gottheil's lawsuit said a letter issued following the final report said Virani expected the CHRC to address Gottheil's concerns about accommodation of his disabilities.
'Protective measures'
From early December 2022 to June 2024, "protective measures" were put in place in Gottheil's office, the statement of claim says. CBC News has reported that the measures dictated that meetings were to be conducted virtually, rather than in person.
Gottheil's statement of claim calls those measures "very harmful and humiliating" and says they left him unable to carry out his mandate.
CBC News asked former CHRC chief commissioner Marie-Claude Landry for comment on the allegations in the statement of claim.
"I am disappointed with how Mr. Gottheil has mischaracterized me and the people at the Commission who work with and for him," Landry said in an email. "This organization and the people who work there are caring and compassionate."
Landry said she looks forward to "providing my side of the story and correcting the record," but said it would be "inappropriate to comment further as this matter is before the courts."
The Department of Justice said it's reviewing Gottheil's statement of claim, adding it's "premature to comment on the allegations or those next steps."
The CHRC also said it wasn't able to comment on the matter because it's before the courts.
Through his lawyer Peter Engelmann, Gottheil declined CBC News' request for an interview, citing the "legal process underway."
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