Landlords want to preserve their right to have a judgment reviewed

While Bill 16 could remove the right to request a review of a decision to fix rent, 79% of landlords consider it important or very important that this recourse be maintained, confirms a CORPIQ survey.

The bill is still under consideration and includes some 15 measures to improve the Régie du logement's administrative processes in order to reduce pre-hearing delays. Most of these measures received positive support from CORPIQ, in a parliamentary committee in May. However, it has vigorously defended the right to have a judgment reviewed.

Unless there is a substantive or procedural defect, it would become impossible to request a review of a judgment on the rent or the terms of the lease. This would particularly penalize owners, who are sometimes confronted with absurd decisions. One need only think of the divergent jurisprudential trends concerning animals, cannabis use or any other condition of the lease. Without the right to apply for review, landlords would be powerless against an unacceptable decision.

No explanation has yet been provided by the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to justify the removal of this right.

It is possible that the Régie du logement asked for this removal in order to reduce the number of cases that must be reheard by its Review Board, where it must then assign two or three commissioners. However, only about 100 cases go for review each year. Moreover, if the Régie is not interested in hearing these reviews, it should not have asked the government in 2008 to transfer them this role. Previously, anyone who wanted to contest a decision rendered in the fixing of rent, with respect to a clause of the lease, had to apply to the Court du Québec.

Parliamentary work on Bill 16 will continue in the coming months.