- Parties: The applicant was Mohammed AL-Harbawi. The respondent was the Attorney General of Canada.

- Subject Matter: The applicant was paid employment insurance benefits of $595 per week based on a record of employment (ROE). A day after issuing that ROE, the employer amended the ROE to correct an error. The amended ROE reduced his benefit entitlement to $500 per week. Nine months later, the Canada Employment Insurance Commission adjusted the benefits and sent him a notice of debt for an overpayment of $3,895. The General Division of the Social Security Tribunal’s Employment Insurance Section allowed his appeal of the Commission’s decision. The Appeal Division concluded that the General Division erred by requiring the Commission to consider irrelevant factors but recommended that the applicant receive the opportunity to make an undue hardship claim, which could potentially influence the decision of whether to write off his debt.

- Ruling: The appeal court ruled in the respondent’s favour and dismissed the application. The appeal court saw no basis to conclude that the Appeal Division’s decision was unreasonable. The appeal court noted that the decision had the hallmarks of reasonableness – justification, transparency, and intelligibility – and was justified relating to the relevant factual and legal constraints.

- Date: The hearing was set on Sept. 18, 2024. The court released its decision on Sept. 18, 2024.

- Venue: This was a federal case before the Federal Court of Appeal.

- Amount: The appeal court awarded no costs as the respondent did not ask for costs.