On May 18, 2016, FIPA and the BC Civil Liberties Association filed a complaint with the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of BC relating to their investigation  into “the disclosure of details of active freedom of information requests on the Open Information website.” We point to a number of issues with the BC government’s seemingly out-of-the-blue announcement that […]

For 25 years, FIPA has been an instrumental part of BC’s civil society. Apply now to join our team as our Event Coordinator. Here are the details on the position, and how to apply: Position: Event Coordinator Position Type: Part-time (two days per week); six-month contract Salary: $19.23/hour ($40,000/year pro-rated) Location: Vancouver, BC About us: […]

FIPA urges the BC government to quickly implement key recommendations VANCOUVER, May 11, 2016 – The BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association (FIPA) is pleased to see that the Special Committee’s Review of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) has issued strong recommendations in a number of key areas, calling for […]

Join FIPA staff, board, members, and others in the information and privacy community at FIPA’s 2016 Annual General Meeting. This year’s AGM will take place at 7:00 PM on Thursday, June 2nd, at the YWCA Hotel (details below), and will feature a talk by Shannon Daub about the Election Act‘s chilling effect on social movements.   Shannon is Communications Director of the Canadian Centre […]

As part of its Justice Forum Series, the DOXA Documentary Film Festival is putting on a screening and panel discussion of Friedrich Moser’s A Good American—which tells the story of William Binney, an ex-NSA intelligence official turned whistleblower—and FIPA has a pair of tickets to give away. Want to attend? To win the tickets, all […]

In response to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s call for input on online reputation and privacy, FIPA’s submission discusses some of the considerations we must make when we discuss the mitigation of online reputational risks, and the rights and interests we must seek to balance. Download submission.

On March 23, 2016, FIPA filed an intervention in response to BC Information and Privacy Commissioner’s inquiry into the Vancouver Police Department’s refusal to disclose records relating to their use of IMSI-catchers (“Stingrays”), in response to an FOI request from Pivot Legal Society. You can read the submission in full here. We argued that: “…the Applicant [Pivot] is entitled […]

George Gretes charged after failing to tell truth to Information and Privacy Commissioner under oath VANCOUVER, March 11, 2016 – The BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association (FIPA) is glad to see that George Gretes—a former Ministerial Assistant in the BC Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure who wilfully deleted emails responsive to a Freedom […]

Download the full February 2016 Bulletin, or use the links below to read individual articles online. In this issue: The results are in! Poll shows BC favours a strong FOI system Will Trudeau get rid of Ottawa’s information black hole? Our challenge to BC’s Election Act in the Supreme Court of Canada Much ado about unverified claims […]

The Supreme Court of Canada will be hearing an important appeal coming out of Alberta regarding freedom of information rights, and FIPA has applied to take part in the hearing as an intervenor. The case began when the University of Calgary responded to a Freedom of Information request by refusing to release various records on […]

FIPA has been fighting against free speech restrictions in BC’s Election Act for years, and that battle will culminate in our upcoming appeal in the Supreme Court of Canada. This is an important case for freedom of speech during BC elections – and for setting the standard the government must meet in order to impose […]

It may be hard to believe, but Canada’s Access to Information Act (ATIA) contains a black hole where requested information can disappear without a trace. And that black hole is being fed more and more government information. In her annual report for 2015, Information Commissioner Suzanne Legault reported a surge in the use of section […]