Matt Barter

On March 26, 2025, Acting Information and Privacy Commissioner Kerry Hatfield released her report on my complaint regarding Memorial University’s refusal to release the letter of reprimand issued to former Board of Regents Chair Glenn Barnes. The Commissioner recommended that Memorial release most of the record. 

Memorial claimed that disclosure of a person’s “employment history” is presumed to be an unreasonable invasion of privacy. The Commissioner stated that the individual was not an employee of Memorial but an appointed senior officer. 

Memorial argues that the position has decision-making power and was, therefore, the equivalent to an employee. However, The Commissioner stated that their Office does not interpret the Act in that way, and the legislation does not explicitly include volunteers in the definition of “employee.” 

The legislation also includes a broader provision that applies to “members and officers” of a public body in addition to “employees,” which indicates that the definition of employee would be interpreted narrowly to exclude members and officers of public bodies.

In the Supreme Court case Kirby v. Chaulk, the court reviewed the provisions of the Act and their application to the facts of the case and noted that the Act, in several places, distinguishes between “employees,” “officers,” and “elected officials” and determined that the definition of “employee” could not be expanded to cover members of the House of Assembly. 

There is nothing in the Memorial University Act to suggest that members of the Board of Regents are in a contractual relationship with the University, either a contact service relationship or retained under a contract to perform services for the public body.

The Board of Regents is essentially the equivalent of a corporate board of directors. In their capacity as Board members, the individuals are effectively the employer and not employees. The members of the Board of Regents are “officers” of the University. 

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Matt Barter is a graduate of the Humanities and Social Sciences Faculty at Memorial University of Newfoundland, holding a degree in Political Science with a minor in Sociology. He enjoys reading thought-provoking articles, taking walks in nature, and volunteering in the community.