The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) has released the
Report on the sense of access to justice associated with virtual hearings held before the IRB using MS Teams and the corresponding
Management Response and Action Plan (MRAP).
In the fall of 2021, the IRB undertook an independent review on the impact of virtual hearings on access to justice. The review evaluated whether virtual hearings provided the same access to justice to participants as in-person hearings. Overall, results of this review indicate that the IRB's use of virtual hearings has had a positive impact on access to justice. Cyberjustice, the independent reviewer, also made a series of recommendations to further increase access to justice for participants. The IRB has committed to various actions to fulfill these recommendations, as outlined in the Management Response and Action Plan.