LTB Order LTB-L-000631-23

Order under Section 21.2 of the Statutory Powers Procedure Act and the 2023 ONLTB 39854 (CanLII) Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 Citation: T.C.H.C. v. Khayatian, 2023 ONLTB 39854 Date: 2023-05-18 File Number: LTB-L-000631-23-RV2 In the matter of: 10, 16 Flemington Road T. Ontario M6A2N7 Between: T.C.H.C. Landlord And Hamid Khayatian Tenant Review Order T.C.H.C. (the 'Landlord') applied for an order to terminate the tenancy and evict Hamid Khayatian (the 'Tenant') and for an order to have the Tenant pay the rent they owe because the Tenant failed to meet a condition specified in the order issued by the Board on December 5, 2019 with respect to application LTB-L-000631-23 (TNL-20098-19). This application was resolved by order LTB-L-000631-23 issued on February 21, 2023. The Landlord requested a review of the February 21, 2023 order. The review hearing was held on March 27, 2023. Only the Landlord attended the review hearing. The Board granted the Landlord’s review request and held a new (de novo) hearing of the Landlord’s application. The review request and application were resolved by Board review order LTB-L-000631-23-RV, issued on April 18, 2023. On May 17, 2023, the Tenant requested a review of the April 18, 2023 review order. A preliminary review of the review request was completed without a hearing. Determinations: 1. On the basis of the submissions made in the request, I am not satisfied that the Tenant was not reasonably able to participate in the proceeding. 2. The Tenant does not deny receiving the Board’s notice of the March 27, 2023 review hearing. The Tenant writes in the review request that, because his “primary language is Farsi and he has difficulty with the English language”, the Tenant “did not understand the  process of the Board and its technical requirements of remote hearings involving the use of computers and the internet.” Order Page 1 out of 2 2023 ONLTB 39854 (CanLII) 3. A party to a Board application is required to exercise reasonable diligence to become aware of, and to attend, a Board hearing: Q Res IV Operating GP Inc. v. Berezovs’ka, 2017 ONSC 5541 (Div. Ct.) (CanLII) [‘Berezovs’ka’]. In that decision, the Divisional Court ruled, at paragraph 8: Lack of due diligence in dealing with court proceedings is a reason for refusing to set aside an order where a party has failed to appear. In other words, it was not an error in law for the Review Board to find that lack of diligence constituted a reason not to grant the landlord a rehearing. 4. In this present review request, the Tenant does not describe taking any action, upon receiving the notice of hearing, that meets the duty to exercise due diligence. The Tenant explains that English is not his “primary language”, but does not describe asking for help to translate the Board’s notice of hearing, or the parts of the notice the Tenant did not understand. Had the Tenant taken the reasonable step of doing so, he would have noted that being unfamiliar with computer systems is not a barrier to attending and participating in a Board hearing. The notice of hearing, for example, provides a telephone number that parties may dial to join Board proceedings. The notice of hearing also invites parties to request accommodation if it is required for an adequate hearing. 5. Following the Divisional Court’s reasons in Berezovs’ka, I conclude that the Tenant’s request to review the April 18, 2023 review order, and to hold a re-hearing, must be denied. The Tenant received the Board’s notice of the April 18, 2023 review hearing and was afforded an adequate opportunity to be heard on the issues to be determined. The Tenant’s omission to exercise due diligence upon receiving the notice of hearing is not good cause to review the April 18, 2023 order under subsection 209(2) of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006. It is ordered that: 1. The request to review Board review order LTB-L-000631-23-RV,, issued on April 18, 2023, is denied. The order is confirmed and remains unchanged. May 18, 2023 ____________________________  Date Issued Harry Cho Vice Chair, Landlord and Tenant Board 15 Grosvenor Street, Ground Floor T. ON M7A 2G6 2023 ONLTB 39854 (CanLII) If you have any questions about this order, call 416-645-8080 or toll free at 1-888-332-3234. Order Page 2 out of 2