Board Decisions

How do I find out about the decision on my application?

After the hearing, the Member will issue a written decision called an order. The Board will mail a copy of the order to all the parties that were involved in the hearing.

If I do not agree with the decision that is made, is there anything that I can do?

If you think that there is an error in the order, or you were not given the opportunity to participate (e.g. the applicant didn’t make you aware of the application as they were supposed to), you may have some options available to you. Depending on your situation, you might be able to:

file a motion to set aside;
request an amendment because of a clerical error;
request a review because of a serious error; or
appeal the decision to the courts because of a legal error.

If you want to know more about how these processes work, you should contact the Board. If you want to know which of these processes is appropriate for your specific situation, you must get legal advice. You can find a list of website links to other organizations that provide information to landlords and tenants and may offer legal assistance in the Other Help section.

What is an ex parte order and how can it be set aside?

In most cases, the Residential Tenancies Act (the Act) requires an applicant to give the respondent a copy of the application and a copy of the Notice of Hearing. However, in some cases, the Act allows an application to be made ex parte – which means a decision is made without giving any notice of the application to the respondent and without holding a hearing. This means that the respondent will not be aware that an application has been made until after they get a copy of the order from the Board.

An ex parte order can be issued if an application has been made for one of the following three reasons:

the tenant has given a notice to terminate or has agreed to move out, or
an order or a mediated agreement allowed the landlord to file an ex parte application, if the tenant did not follow specified conditions, or
a tenant filed a motion to void an eviction order for non-payment of rent because they made the required payment before the landlord could go to the Sheriff.

If there is a problem with the order, (e.g. the tenant says they did follow the conditions in their mediated agreement), the tenant (for reasons 1 & 2) or the landlord (for reason 3) may file a set aside motion. The set aside motion must be filed within 10 days of the date the ex parte order was issued.

The Board will hold a hearing to consider the motion.

For more detailed information see our brochure on Motion to Set Aside an Ex Parte Order.

The motion to set-aside forms can be found in the Other Forms section of our website.

What can be done if the landlord or tenant refuses to pay money they were ordered to pay by the Board?

Orders issued by the Board are legally binding decisions - they must be obeyed. If one person is ordered to pay the other person money and they do not, then the person who is owed the money can file the order with Small Claims Court to have it enforced.

What can a landlord do if the tenant does not move out of the unit by the date set out in the eviction order?

Orders issued by the Board are legally binding decisions - they must be obeyed. If the tenant is ordered to leave by a specific date and has not, then the landlord can file the eviction order at the Court Enforcement Office, pay the applicable fee, and ask the Sheriff to remove the tenant from the unit.

The Sheriff will usually give the tenant a notice that tells them the date they will come to the unit to evict the tenant. If the tenant has not moved out by that date, the Sheriff will go to the unit and remove the tenant from the unit. The locks on the unit can then be changed.

Only the Sheriff can evict a tenant who does not leave a unit as directed by an eviction order issued by the Board.