File a Complaint

When a completed complaint form is submitted, the Registrar acknowledges receipt and notifies the member. A copy of the complaint is provided to the member.

The Registrar assigns a file number and notifies the Complaints Committee. The Committee conducts a conflict check and, once cleared, forms a Panel to review the complaint. 

The Panel reviews the complaint in full. It may dismiss the complaint or refer it for investigation.  

If referred, the complaint is assigned to a third-party investigator. The member may respond to the allegations, and the complainant may be asked to provide additional information. The investigator’s report is submitted to the Panel. 

The Panel reviews the investigation report and may seek legal advice if needed. It may dismiss the complaint, issue a caution, take other appropriate action, or refer the matter to the Discipline Committee.

A referral to the Discipline Committee initiates a formal pre-hearing and hearing process. The member is entitled to procedural fairness, including documentary disclosure and other pre-hearing steps such as conferences, resolution discussions, expert evidence, and witness preparation. 

The final stage is a public hearing, except in special circumstances. The parties are OPPI and the member. The complainant is not a party but may be called as a witness. 

Members of OPPI (except Student members, Pre-Candidate members and Public Subscribers) are governed by The Professional Code of Practice. The Complaints and Discipline provisions are outlined here and may be amended from time to time. The Discipline Committee itself has issued Rules of Practice and Procedure. These rules govern the committee’s administration.

In addition to the rules document, please see below related forms:

• OPPI Form 2B – Pre-Hearing Conference Report of the Presiding Officer
• OPPI Form 1A – Notice of Motion
• OPPI Form 2A – Pre-Hearing Conference Memo

No, professional planners who do not belong to OPPI are not governed by The Professional Code of Practice, and OPPI has no jurisdiction over them.

OPPI’s complaints process only considers allegations that an OPPI member has breached a provision of The Professional Code of Practice. For example, the complaints process cannot be used to:

• Address policy issues, including policy regarding the profession or practice of planning in Ontario.
• Object to or reverse planning decisions, such as those made by local/municipal/provincial governments, Committees of Adjustment, or Ontario Land Tribunal hearings.
• Adjudicate business disputes, disputes over the quality of work performed, or fees charged by an OPPI member related to a specific contract unless there is an associated allegation that the member has breached OPPI’s Professional Code of Practice. OPPI does not have the jurisdiction to require a member to reimburse client fees.
• Revisit complaints that have already been considered.

Request a complaint form from [email protected]

Please read the Guide and fill out the Complaint Form in full. When complete, please email it to the OPPI Registrar at [email protected].

Please note that the Complaint Form requires the complainant’s name, and stipulates that you cannot initiate a complaint on behalf of another individual or organization.

OPPI endeavours to address all complaints in a timely manner. The target time to respond to a new complaint is two (2) to six (6) weeks. Statistics obtained by OPPI in 2022/2023 indicate an average time of four (4) months between the receipt of a new complaint and the delivery to all parties of a decision of the Complaints Committee. The process will take longer if a complaint is referred by the Complaints Committee to the Discipline Committee. Consistent with other regulatory bodies, it may take from one (1) to two (2)  years after a complaint is referred to the Discipline Committee for a hearing to take place. These timelines will vary and may take longer for complex complaints.

All complaints received by OPPI are reviewed by the Complaints Committee. The Complaints Committee is made up of Full, Practicing members of OPPI and a Public Interest Representative. For those complaints referred for investigation, a third-party investigator is assigned to conduct the investigation and to share their findings with the committee for their ultimate decision on how to proceed.

A caution is a meeting between the Complaints Committee and member where they discuss instances where the member may have failed to meet best practices. It does not involve a hearing or evidence and does not involve a formal finding of misconduct.

The Complaints Committee could agree with the member that an appropriate resolution of the complaint would be if the member took a certain course, for instance. 

There is a prehearing conference between the parties and a chair is appointed by the Discipline Committee. The prehearing conference is used to explore settlement possibilities, and (if a hearing is actually required) to order disclosure, narrow issues and schedule the hearing itself.

The process is confidential to the extent that OPPI does not disclose or publicize the name of the complainant or the member against whom a complaint has been made. However, in order to properly and fairly deal with a complaint, that member will receive a copy of the complaint and learn the name of the complainant, and the parties may receive other information about each other during the course of the investigation and hearing. OPPI can direct its members not to disclose such information publicly in specific circumstances, but OPPI cannot guarantee that no information will be disclosed by the other parties.

Multiple complaints against different OPPI members must have separate complaint forms. Please complete a form for each involved OPPI member.

Professional discipline hearings are generally open to the public. If some compelling reason can be given why the hearing should not be open to the public, the Discipline Committee panel has the power to make that order.

No. If a member is found to have breached the OPPI Professional Code of Practice, the member may be suspended, revoked, reprimanded, fined, or ordered to complete relevant education measures, among other penalties.

Note that the “fine” is not paid to the complainant but to the general account of the Institute. Generally, in self-regulated professions, such fines are not payable to the complainant. Also note that even if the OPPI Discipline Committee determined that a member was careless or incompetent in giving a planning opinion or testimony, OPPI has no authority to overturn a planning decision made by an elected council, committee of adjustment, or tribunal.

Decisions of the Discipline Committee are published in OPPI’s Annual Report documents and may also be published in any other OPPI publication, such as Y Magazine. If the member was found to have breached The Professional Code of Practice, that summary may also include the member’s name and the penalty imposed.

Complaints that are dismissed by a Panel of the Complaints Committee cannot be appealed through OPPI. If a finding of professional misconduct is made by a Panel of the Discipline Committee, however, per Rule 4 of OPPI’s Complaints & Discipline Provisions, “a party to a proceeding before the Discipline Committee may file a a review request to Council of a final decision or order of the Discipline Committee.”