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Review and Appeals Board
Guidelines for the Standing Rules Governing
the Appeals Procedure

[Adopted by the Academic Council on October 31, 2006]

1.  At the beginning of each academic year, the chair of the Review and Appeals Board shall designate an executive committee consisting of the chair and vice-chair of the RAB and the most recent chair of the RAB who is not on leave or sabbatical. The Academic Secretary shall serve as an ex officio member of the committee.

2.  The executive committee of the RAB shall facilitate agreement between the vice-chair of the Advisory Committee and the chair of the candidate’s department in the stipulation of the record in the case, and the points of disagreement between the Advisory Committee and the department.

Should agreement not be forthcoming, the final determination will rest with the executive committee of the RAB.

3. The record and the points of disagreement shall be the agenda for the appeal hearing. The deliberations of the Review and Appeals Board shall be restricted to this agenda.

4. In every case, consideration of the four criteria (i.e., telling procedural errors and the three inappropriate criteria in Sec 101e-h) will include examination of the candidate’s CV and the referees' letters and reports from the Advisory Committee, the department and where relevant, the program.

5.  New evidence in a case may not be introduced by members of the Advisory Committee, the candidate’s department, or the Review and Appeals Board unless it contains relevant information that existed at the time of: (a) the departmental review, but was unknown and could not have been known by the department, despite a good faith effort, when it made its negative recommendation; or (b) the Advisory Committee review, but was unknown and could not have been known by the Advisory Committee, despite a good faith effort, when it made its negative recommendation.

6. The department and Advisory Committee shall designate a spokesperson for each respective body.

7.  The chair of the Review and Appeals Board shall rule on the relevance of questions or comments to determine whether they are out of order and therefore to be stricken from the record.  Questions and comments are relevant only to the extent that they bear on the specific grounds of the appeal.

8.  In each tenure and appeal case, the Chair of the RAB shall provide an oral report to the President on committee’s deliberations, procedures, and voting. The Chair of RAB shall also file a written report with the President reporting the number of members present and voting, the number of members recused, and the final vote (positive, negative, and abstentions).