Can a landlord influence the person deciding my rental dispute?

The situation

I am currently living in a small apartment in Ontario and have been dealing with a very difficult landlord for about six months. Last week, on October 12th, my landlord filed a formal application to evict me because he claims I haven't paid a portion of my monthly rent, even though I have a pay cheque stub showing the full amount was transferred. We have a hearing scheduled for next month to settle this. However, while I was waiting in the hallway at the hearing centre yesterday, I overheard one of the people sitting on the decision-making panel talking to my landlord. They seemed very friendly, and my landlord mentioned his other rental properties in the same neighbourhood. I am worried that this person might have a personal interest in the local housing market or might even own property nearby, which could make the whole process unfair for me. I have already tried asking the landlord directly if he knows the board members, but he just laughed it off and said it was nonsense. I want to know if those people making the final decision are required to tell the office if they own any rental buildings or work with housing co-operatives so that I can make sure there isn't a secret bias against me.

Detailed Analysis

In Ontario, the people making decisions about your rental dispute are subject to specific transparency rules. Under the Residential Tenancies Act, the members of the Board have a legal duty to disclose potential conflicts of interest. Specifically, the law states that "the members of the Board shall file with the Board a written declaration of any interests they have in residential rental property or in a non-profit housing co-operative"^[1]. This means that if a person on the panel owns rental buildings or works with housing co-operatives, they are required to report that information to the Board^[1].

Furthermore, these members are "required to comply with any conflict of interest guidelines or rules of conduct established by the Chair"^[1]. This rule is designed to ensure that the decision-making process remains fair and that personal financial interests in the local housing market do not influence the outcome of your hearing.

Regarding your specific situation, while you overheard a friendly conversation between your landlord and a panel member, the law does not explicitly state whether a casual conversation constitutes a violation or if a specific relationship must exist. It is also unclear if the person you saw was a formal member of the Board or an employee. Because the law does not settle whether a verbal interaction in a hallway automatically triggers a disqualification, you may need to seek clarification from the Board regarding their specific rules of conduct.

State, provincial, or local laws may add further rules regarding administrative fairness and judicial conduct.

Statutory Citations

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