TRANSLATION
IN THE MATTER OF THE UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE ACT
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IN THE MATTER of a claim by
Stéphane Roger
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IN THE MATTER of an appeal to an Umpire by the claimant
from a decision by the Board of Referees given on
August 19, 1997 in Laval, Quebec
ROULEAU, UMPIRE
This is an appeal of a Board of Referees' decision rendered on August 19, 1997 and forwarded to the claimant on August 20. The Commission received the claimant's appeal on November 18, 1997, after the 60-day period provided for under section 82 of the Unemployment Insurance Act had expired.
Section 82 reads as follows:
82. An appeal from a decision of a board of referees must be brought within sixty days after
(a) the day the decision is communicated to the claimant, or
(b) the earlier of the day that decision is communicated to the claimant and the day that decision is communicated to the employer, if the decision is communicated to both the claimant and the employer,
or such longer period as the umpire may in any case for special reasons allow.
The jurisprudence does allow for an extension for humanitarian reasons or reasons beyond the claimant's control. Ignorance of the appeal process, forgetting or negligence do not constitute "special reasons".
In his letter of appeal, the claimant explained that there had been a misunderstanding with his lawyer, as he wanted to appeal both decisions rendered by the Board of Referees on August 19. The documentary evidence on file showed that the claimant's representative only appealed one of the decisions rendered on August 20. The representative, Me Guerette, indicated in a letter dated February 19, 1998 that the appeal filed on August 27, 1997 applied to both decisions rendered by the Board of Referees on August 20.
Because of the short (additional) time involved in this case, I am extending the appeal period and I agree that this appeal shall proceed on its merits before an Umpire.
P. ROULEAU
UMPIRE
OTTAWA, Ontario
April 3, 1998