Specified Exceptions to Disclosure

Sections 16 to 29 of the Act outlines a number of instances or exceptions to disclosure, where NAIT records would not be made public.

There are two types of exceptions under the Act: mandatory, where the harm that can result from disclosure of information is such that a decision to refuse is provided for in the Act, and discretionary, where it is NAIT's decision whether or not to disclose based on a harms test.

Mandatory exceptions

The following are considered mandatory exceptions, where a public body must refuse to disclose.

• Disclosure harmful to business interests of a third party (Section 16(1))
• Disclosure harmful to personal privacy (Section 17)
• Cabinet and Treasury Board confidences (Section 22)
• The information is about a third party and is in a tax record (Section 16(2))
• The information is in a law enforcement record and its disclosure would be an offence under an Act of Canada (Section 20(4))
• The information is subject to legal privilege and relates to a person other than a public body (Section 27(2))

Discretionary exceptions

The following are considered discretionary exceptions, where a public body may refuse to disclose.

• Disclosure harmful to individual or public safety (Section 18)
• Confidential evaluations (Section 19)
• Disclosure harmful to law enforcement (Section 20)
• Disclosure harmful to intergovernmental relations (Section 21)
• Local public body confidences (Section 23)
• Advice from officials (Section 24)
• Disclosure harmful to economic or other interests of a public body (Section 25)
• Testing procedures, tests and audits (Section 26)
• Privileged information (Section 27)
• Disclosure harmful to the conservation of heritage sites, etc. (Section 28)
• Information that is or will be available to the public (Section 29)