L'Association des anciens
de la Gendarmerie royale du Canada

 

Many out there have read my analysis between the VRAB Act and its governing act The Federal Court Act which supports the fact that the present VRAB system is hostile towards injured Military/RCMP.  Colonel Stogran was correct in saying the VRAB have adopted an Insurance company mentality i.e. deny deny deny and if cornered throw the injured vet a few shekels not amounting to much.  My analysis backs ColonelStogran’s public comment. 

 

The VRAB Act was designed to wear down an injured military/RCMP serving member or veteran in order to save as much money as possible. The abusive VRAB system causes further pain and suffering emotionally and physically by the injured veteran especially those suffering from an occupational Stress Injury such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and in fact is an aggravating factor in his or her recovery. Needless further pain and suffering.

 

There is one more aspect to the abusive VRAB system and that is financially.  Those injured veterans who had the tenacity to fight on after the numerous denied appeals and reconsideration hearings before the VRAB are given a final option which the VRAB know a lot of injured Veterans both Military and RCMP can not afford to do. The VRAB count on that and that is why there are approx. 77 published Judicial Reviews listed on the Federal Court Act web site.  That’s it.

 

So the VAC lawyer representing you before the unaccountable VRAB advises the injured vet that he or she has 30 days to hire a lawyer ($$$$) at his or her own expense and file the paper work to the Federal Courts for a Judicial Review by a Federal Court Judge.  I have had contact with injured Military and RCMP veterans who took this route paying money they can not afford to a lawyer, spending as much as $30,000.00 dollars in obtaining a favourable Judicial Review supporting the injured veterans claim while at the same time being very critical of the VRAB’s mistakes in their adjudication.  

 

The powers of the Federal Courts are explained in my attached analysis but there is one thing I overlooked and want to bring it to everyone’s attention which really is the icing on the cake of abuse.

 

 

VRAB ACT states

 

Additional powers, duties and functions

16. The Board shall exercise such powers and shall perform such duties and functions as are conferred or imposed on it by or pursuant to any other Act of Parliament or any order of the Governor in Council.

 

Well folks that is the Federal Court Act and the Charter of Rights.

 

So the folks at the VRAB know that section 16 is very clear that they are bound to follow the Federal Court Act.  Wonder if the rookie VRAB  Board members  got a copy when they did their one week Quasi Judicial  judge course.

 

Why did injured Military and RCMP service personnel and veterans have to go to the Federal courts to get justice in the form of a Judicial Review in the first place???

 

 

 

Well folks this is the ultimate abuse by the VRAB because of Section 18.3 of the Federal Court Act which CLEARLY STATES and I quote;

 

Reference by

federal tribunal

 

18.3 (1) A federal board, commission or

other tribunal may at any stage of its proceedings

refer any question or issue of law, of jurisdiction

or of practice and procedure to the Federal

Court for hearing and determination.

 

What this means is simply if the “Quasi Judicial” VRAB patronage club had a question of law , jurisdiction or practice or procedure during an appeal that is before a VRAB Board, the Board  can go ask the experienced Federal Courts for their assistance, their by dealing with the injured Vets injury claim at theVRAB level of adjudication .

 

 So why are injured Vets being put in the position to fork out money they can not afford, to get a favourable Judicial Review in order to set things strait legally so the VRAB can make the right decision.

  

It gets better.

 

When there is a Judicial Review before the Federal Courts the VRAB are represented by the lawyers employed by the Attorney General of Canada and yes our tax dollars are paying for the federal lawyer representing the VRAB while the injured Veteran has had to borrow money, get a second mortgage in order to PAY for his or her own lawyer.  That is one big rock to push up a hill and I know of injured veterans that have been to the Federal Courts for Judicial Reviews twice.

 

 The Canadian Government, by allowing the VRAB to continue the way it has, has created  an us against them mentality while forgetting that is supposed to keep the faith and properly  take care of injured Veterans that have sacrificed for Canada in order to protect our way of life. And what of the life of the injured veteran and his or her family?

 

This is really what gets to me is that the Attorney General can step in “ at any stage of the proceedings of a federal board, commission or other tribunal” and “refer any question or issue of the constitutional validity, applicability or operability of an Act of Parliament or of regulations made under an Act of Parliament to the Federal Court for hearing and determination”. 

 

Remember the Charter of Rights?

 

The following is my analysis of the VRAB Act and its governing act The Federal Court Act.

  

Section 18.3(2) of the Federal Court Act is very clear and I quote;

 

 

 

Reference by

Attorney

General of

Canada

 

(2) The Attorney General of Canada may, at

any stage of the proceedings of a federal board,

commission or other tribunal, other than a service

tribunal within the meaning of the National

Defence Act, refer any question or issue of

the constitutional validity, applicability or operability

of an Act of Parliament or of regulations

made under an Act of Parliament to the Federal

 

Court for hearing and determination.

1990, c. 8, s. 5; 2002, c. 8, s. 28.

 

If the Attorney General of Canada’s lawyers are aware of the VRAB Boards not so good adjudication practices which by the way are constantly being criticized within the Judicial Review decisions of the Federal Courts, why has the Attorney General’s office not stepped in and assisted the VRAB in making the right decisions in the first place???

 

Why are injured veterans legitimate claims being denied by the VRAB and left with the expensive option of going to the Federal courts when both the VRAB and the Attorney General of Canada (who represent the VRAB in federal court) can obtain the proper guidance in regards to issues of law etc at the VRAB appeal level?

 

The Bureau of Pension Advocates, the lawyers representing injured veterans pose arguments at an appeal hearing as to why the VRABBoard is wrong in their decision.  If Bureau of Pension Advocates make a valid argument and the “Quasi Judicial” Board is unsure why have they not followed the direction they can take outlined in the Section 18 of the Federal Court Act? 

 

The reason they do not is the same reason the VRAB  do not exercise Section 38(1)  of the VRAB Act  titled Medical Opinion i.e. “The Board may obtain independent medical advice for the purposes of any proceeding under this Act”. Simply if they spoke to qualified doctors they the VRAB Board would have to accept their qualified learned opinion and grant the injured veteran the disability compensation. 

 

Forcing injured suffering veterans to go to the Federal Courts for a Judicial Review is the ultimate slap in the face to the Military and RCMP who have sacrifice for this country.  Leaving the last option for an injured vet to hire a lawyer to go to Federal Court is nothing more than the biggest hurdle forcing injured Veterans to give up. That is why there is so few Judicial Review i.e. approx 77 to date and the VRAB count on this .  How many injured Veterans have gone through the VRAB system?

 

Those that have needlessly had to pay legal expenses for a Federal Court Judicial Review should be reimbursed these needless legal costs and provided compensation for the mental, physical and financial hardship they and their families had to face in order to attempt to get justice and fair treatment by the VRAB which is not happening.

 

-The VRAB are not accountable to anyone.

 

-The VRAB do not publish their decisions and as public servants paid by public funds have a responsibility to be transparent and do so like the Federal Courts. If they want to play in the legal game that affects injured veterans and their families lives, the VRAB have to be accountable and transparent.

 

-If the VRAB are not agreeing with the Federal Courts direction, the VRAB Board members have to publish their reasons and provide said reasons to the same Federal Court Judge that dealt with the Judicial Review.  (Boy would that be interesting)

 

-Does the Federal Government have a conscience?

 

Eric Rebiere (Former Cst. RCMP 37515)

Charter Member Canadian Veterans Advocacy