Policy and Jury
Administration
1. The Governor General of Canada shall be the Patron of the Persons Case Awards.
2. Status of Women Canada is responsible for the administration of the awards, serves as the Secretary and is responsible for:
- accepting all nominations for the Persons Case Awards;
- coordinating the nomination and selection processes;
- maintaining the records of the Persons Case Awards;
- working with the Governor General's office to make the necessary arrangements for the Persons Case Awards presentation;
- cultivating partnerships to enhance the profile of the Persons Case Awards; and
- carrying out such other functions related to the Persons Case Awards as the Governor General requests.
2.1 No employee of Status of Women Canada shall:
- submit nominations for the Persons Case Awards;
- have a vote on the Jury.
Jury
3. (1) The Jury for the Persons Case Awards shall be appointed by the Head of Status of Women Canada, and shall consist of four individuals, reflective of the geographic, ethnic, cultural and gender diversity of Canadian society.
(2) The members of the Jury shall be appointed for three-year terms with the exception of the initial year of this Policy, that being 2009.
In 2009,
- The Chair of the Jury shall be appointed for a three-year-term.
- The three remaining Jury members shall be appointed for each of a one- , two- or three-year term.
(5) A Jury member may have her or his term renewed once, but afterwards may be reappointed to the Jury only following a minimum one-term absence.
- In the event of a Jury member's resignation and the urgent need for a replacement, as determined by the Coordinator, Status of Women Canada, a two-term departing Jury member may be renewed for a one- or two-year term.
(6) One of the members of the Jury shall be a former Persons Case Award recipient.
(7) The release of information concerning the Persons Case Awards is subject to the Access to Information and Privacy Acts.
4. The Jury shall:
- consider those nominations referred to in paragraph 2 (a) that are transmitted to it by the Secretary;
- compile and submit in writing to Status of Women Canada a list of the five nominees plus one youth nominee; and
- advise on such matters as are referred to it by Status of Women Canada.
4.1 No member of the Jury shall:
- submit nominations for the Persons Case Awards;
- be a nominee under consideration for a Persons Case Award.
Eligibility and nominations
5. (1) Any Canadian citizen may receive a Governor General's Award in Commemoration of the Persons Case.
6. (1) Any individual or group is welcome to nominate a deserving Canadian citizen as candidate for a Persons Case Award.
(2) Nominees must be over 30 years of age. Youth award nominees must be between 15 and 30 years of age.
7. The Persons Case Awards honour outstanding individuals whose achievements and commitment have helped to advance equality for girls and women in Canada. Suitability will be demonstrated by leadership and excellence in any field, in either a paid or unpaid capacity.
Insignia
8. Laureates shall be entitled to wear such insignia as the Governor General may, by ordinance, prescribe.
9. The insignia of the Persons Case Awards shall be worn in the sequence and manner prescribed in publications issued by The Chancellery.
10. (1) Except as otherwise provided in an ordinance, the insignia of the Persons Case Awards shall remain the property of the Government of Canada.
(2) Where an individual who has received a Persons Case Award returns or rejects her or his award, or where an individual's award is rescinded by ordinance, that individual shall return the insignia to the Secretary.
Rescission of award
11. An individual's Persons Case Award ceases when
- the individual dies;
- the Governor General accepts the individual's return/rejection of the award, which shall have been made in writing and given to the Secretary; or
- the Governor General makes an ordinance rescinding the individual's award.
Ordinances
12. The Governor General may make ordinances respecting the governance and insignia of the Persons Case Awards and rescission of the award.
Policy and Procedure for Rescission of the Persons Case Award
Policy
1. Paragraph 11(c) of the Policy and Procedures of the Persons Case Awards provides for the rescission of the Persons Case Award by an ordinance made by the Governor General.
2. Rescission of the Persons Case Award shall be on the recommendation of the Jury to the Governor General. The recommendation of the Jury shall be based on evidence and guided by the principles of fairness and shall only be made after the Jury has ascertained the relevant facts relating to the case under consideration.
3. The Jury shall consider the rescission of the Persons Case Award if:
- the individual concerned has been convicted of a criminal offence; or
- the conduct of the individual is unbecoming of a Persons Case Award recipient in that it constitutes a significant departure from generally recognized standards of public behaviour. Such behaviour would be seen to undermine the credibility, integrity or relevance of the Persons Case Awards and to detract from the original grounds upon which the award was granted.
4. Rescission is the sole sanction for an individual honoured with the Persons Case Award.
Procedure
5. The termination shall proceed in the following stages:
Stage 1- A request to consider the rescission of the Persons Case Award may be made by any individual in writing to the Secretary. After review, if the grounds for rescission are considered insufficient or spurious, the Secretary will send a reply to that effect to the individual who made the request.
The Secretary may initiate a request for rescission on her/his own accord.
Stage 2- If the Secretary determines there may be reasonable grounds for rescission of the Persons Case Award, the request will be forwarded to the Jury for consideration.
Stage 3- The Jury will consider the request, and if in its opinion there are insufficient grounds to proceed, the Secretary will send a reply to that effect to the individual who made the request.
Stage 4- If the Jury determines there are reasonable grounds for rescission of the Persons Case Award, the request will be subject to the remainder of the termination process.
Stage 5- The Secretary, on behalf of the Jury, will send, by registered mail, a written notice advising the individual, on the basis of the allegations of fact set out in the notice, that rescission of the Persons Case Award is under consideration. The notice will advise the individual that, within the time prescribed in the notice, she or he may:
- return the award (see stage 6); or
- make representations respecting the matter under consideration or any allegation of fact set out in the notice.
The notice will also indicate that the rescission process will continue, even if the individual does not reply within the prescribed time.
Stage 6- If the individual chooses to return the award, she or he shall notify the Secretary in writing of that fact within the time prescribed in the notice. After the Governor General's acceptance of the individual's return of the award pursuant to paragraph 11(b) of the Policy and Procedures of the Persons Case Awards, the individual's name shall be struck from any list held by the Chancellery and, pursuant to subsection 10(2) of the Policy and Procedures of the Persons Case Awards, the individual shall return the insignia to the Secretary of the Persons Case Awards Jury.
Stage 7- If the individual elects to make representations respecting the matter under consideration or any allegation of fact set out in the notice, the individual or her or his representative may, within the time prescribed in the notice or as otherwise authorized by the Secretary, make representations in writing or as the Secretary may authorize.
Stage 8- If, within the time prescribed in the notice or authorized by the Secretary, the individual fails to reply to the notice, the Secretary will request the Jury to review the case in accordance with the procedures provided for in stage 9.
Stage 9- If the individual has made representations, the Secretary will send all relevant documentation to the Jury. After due consideration, the Jury will prepare for the Governor General a report that contains its findings and recommendations with respect to rescission of the Persons Case Award.
Stage 10- On receiving the report referred to in stage 9, the Governor General, in accordance with the recommendation of the report, shall
- request the Secretary either to advise the individual in question that she or he remains a Persons Case Award recipient in good standing; or
- pursuant to paragraph 11(c) of the Policy and Procedures of the Persons Case Awards, make an ordinance rescinding the Persons Case Award
Stage 11- Notice of the rescission of the Persons Case Award shall be published in the Canada Gazette.
6. An example of an ordinance of rescission is annexed.
Ordinance no. ( )
Whereas was honoured with a Persons Case Award in ;
Whereas, further to, the Jury of the Persons Case Awards considered whether there were grounds to rescind the Persons Case Award presented to;
Whereas the Jury, after considering all the facts in this matter, has recommended to the Governor General that the Persons Case Award of be rescinded;
And whereas the Governor General has seen fit to accept the Jury's recommendation;
Now, therefore, pursuant to paragraph 11(c) and section 12 of the Policy and Procedures of the Persons Case Awards ( ), the Governor General hereby rescinds the Persons Case Award presented to.
In witness whereof, the Governor General, Patron of the Persons Case Awards, has hereunto set her/his hand.
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