Writ of Mandamus Toronto

A writ of mandamus is a legal remedy that orders a government department (i.e. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, or 'IRCC') to perform a certain duty required by law, and is most commonly used these days in the Canadian immigration context where an application for permanent residence, or for a study or work permit, has been delayed past the posted IRCC processing times without reasonable cause for the delay.

• Your permanent resident, citizenship, work permit, study permit, or temporary resident visa ('TRV') delay has passed the posted processing times published by IRCC.
• There is no additional, reasonable justification on your file for the delay (such as a lack of documentation, or an ongoing security clearance or criminality check).
• Other normal, administrative follow-up channels have been exhausted (such as web forms, contacting the IRCC call centre, etc.).

A lawyer can further analyze your situation and advise if your case/filing meets the Federal Court legal threshold to grant the writ.

A writ of mandamus is only available as a legal remedy in cases where the government has non-discretionary, or mandatory, duties to fulfill – for example, when the decision being sought is that an immigration application (permanent residence, work permit, study permit, etc.) be finalized due to an undue or unexplained delay in the processing of same, or that a refused application be re-opened/reconsidered because it has been left unprocessed for too long. It may also be a remedy where excessive delay has led to an unfair result in a spousal sponsorship application being refused or a parent/grandparent sponsorship not being processed within published timelines.

Technically, you do not need a lawyer to bring a writ of mandamus application, but the process in the Federal Court is heavily reliant upon proper legal briefing and due process, and most Applicants do use representation in these types of Toronto-specific immigration court proceedings to maximize their chance of success and minimize the chance of the matter being dismissed for a technical failure or defect.

A typical Toronto writ of mandamus case will resolve within four (4) to eight (8) months, but many are resolved well before then, if the government decides to act on the delay prior to a hearing or decision being scheduled. It is a point of some controversy but it is true that a significant number of these do settle at the time of legal proceedings being commenced, as a delayed file will be prioritized for processing by the IRCC at that particular time.

• A copy of the complete file/submission/application in question with the date submitted.
• Copies of all correspondence to/from IRRC (email and letters).
• Any and all copies of web forms or other communications with government departments (including responses received).
• A notation of the date of the delay in your matter and the corresponding posted processing times published by IRCC.

• The Federal Court filing fee (presently at $50 for a Notice of Application and up to $500 for the total cost of briefing and the making of a decision by the Court)
• Legal Fees (this varies depending upon the complexity of the matter, the number of appearances and extent of evidence but typically will be significantly more than web forms or phone calls to IRCC but often significantly less than a full hearing and/or an appeal and related motion/other proceeding in the courts).

No, this should never be the case if handled properly by legal counsel as the remedy is limited strictly to asking/forcing decision-makers to make a determination not to influencing their actual decision on the merits. Government officials, judges and court staff are expressly forbidden by the Canadian Federal Court system from imposing any penalty or negative consequences on applicants for relief (seeking applicants) based on their appearance before a tribunal or exercise of a legal remedy.

If you are unsuccessful in your writ of mandamus application, there are a few options available, including seeking another type of remedy for your situation (another re-application to IRCC, or an administrative appeal to the Immigration Division), or having your writ stay open for a period of indefinite time while further evidence about the delay is collected or until such time as a further status correspondence is received from the government, etc. There may also be new grounds for further filings for consideration by a Judge following the main hearing.

In short, the Courts will look at the posted processing times in the circumstances, the correspondence back and forth with your file officer handling the matter and given as a reason for the delay (if any), the efforts you made to follow up, and the length of the delay for which relief is being sought compared with other similar cases. If the delay in question is justified, the remedy will not be granted.

Not technically, but when ordered a writ of mandamus requires that a government department make a decision on a file within a certain time frame dictated by the Court, thus making it effectively not a 'faster' application but a legally-mandated end to a long-standing delay.

The status of your matter can be viewed at any time via the Federal Court docket website, as well you will receive regular status/progress updates from your legal counsel acting for you on the application and also be informed by way of communication from IRCC when the matter is again opened and being reviewed in Toronto (in the event a new decision is issued by the government).

• Subject: Person whose case has been delayed (Writ of Mandamus) vs. Person who is challenging the decision on its merits (Appeal/Motion etc.)
• Focus: Prospective (on the future and whether a decision can be had) (Writ of Mandamus) vs. Retrospective (on the past and whether a decision can be overturned) (Appeal/Motion etc.)
• Speed: Often settles quickly (Writ of Mandamus) vs. Often take much longer to resolve (Appeal/Motion etc.)

• Web form and call centre follow-up (at their regular timelines and fee, if applicable)
• An inquiry or intervention by your Member of Parliament (MP's office)
• Filing a formal complaint to IRCC through the Client Service Portal/system

• Review your file/history/delay
• Prepare all court material necessary for filing/evidence
• Advise you on the progress of the matter and what to expect at each stage
• Work to expedite settlement/conciliation of your matter rather than a full hearing in the vast majority of cases