When Should You Request to Expedite a Hearing?

With the backlog at the Landlord and Tenant Board, all landlords would like an expedited hearing to allow them to evict their tenant quicker at the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board.

The Landlord and Tenant Board receives a lot of requests for an expedited hearing from people who clearly do not qualify.

You should only file a Request to Shorten Time, the form needed to expidite a hearing, if you meet the eligibility requirements set out in Landlord and Tenant Board Rule 16.4

“The following factors may be considered in deciding requests to extend or shorten any time requirement under the RTA or these Rules:

1. the length of the delay, and the reason for it;
2. any prejudice a party may experience;
3. whether any potential prejudice may be remedied;
4. whether the request is made in good faith; and,
5. any other relevant factors.”

Many landlords cannot prove the potential prejudice they would suffer if the application is not expidited.

Landlord and Tenant Board Rule 16.6 states:

A Request to Shorten Time should be used with caution.  If denied, you cannot make the request again unless there is a significant change in circumstances. Your circumstances may change, and the Request to Shorten Time could be made later.