Ontario’s Top Court Confirms that Employees May Sometimes be Required to Attend Medical Examination by Doctor of Employer’s Choosing

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“The motion for leave to appeal is dismissed with costs fixed at $1,000.” With those thirteen simple words, Ontario’s top court has confirmed that employees in Ontario may sometimes be required to submit to an invasive medical examination - by a doctor of their employer’s choosing - as part of the duty to accommodate and return to work process.

On August 25, 2017, the Court of Appeal for Ontario released its endorsement on a motion for leave [read: “permission”] to appeal the decision of the Ontario Divisional Court in Bottiglia v Ottawa Catholic School Board, 2017 ONSC 2517 (CanLII).

This is a big deal for Ontario employment and human rights law.

Divisional Court Rules that Employees May Sometimes be Required to Attend Medical Examination by Doctor of Employer’s Choosing

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Is an employee required to submit to an independent medical examination, an “IME”, by a doctor of his employer’s choosing as part of the employee’s duty to participate in the human rights accommodation process? In a decision released May 19, 2017, by the Ontario Divisional Court, Bottiglia v Ottawa Catholic School Board, 2017 ONSC 2517, the answer was “sometimes.”