Definitions of findings under the Privacy Act

• Not well-founded:
  A finding that a complaint is not well-founded means that the investigation uncovered no evidence to lead the Commissioner to conclude that the Government institution violated the complainant's rights under the Privacy Act.
• Well-founded:
  A finding that a complaint is well-founded means that the Government institution failed to respect the Privacy Act rights of an individual. This would also be the Commissioner's finding in a situation where the Government institution refuses to grant access to personal information, despite our recommendation that it be released. In such a case, the next step could be to seek a review by the Federal Court of Canada.
• Well-Founded/Resolved:
  The Commissioner will find a complaint to be well-founded/resolved when the allegations are substantiated by the investigation and the Government institution has agreed to take corrective measures to rectify the problem.
• Resolved:
  Resolved is a formal finding that reflects the Commissioner's role as an ombudsman. It's for those complaints where well-founded would be too harsh to fit what essentially is a miscommunication or misunderstanding. It means that this Office, after a full and thorough investigation, has helped negotiate a solution that satisfies all the parties.
• Settled During the Course of the Investigation:
  This is not a formal finding but an acceptable means to dispose of a complaint when the investigation is completed, and the complainant is satisfied with the efforts of this Office and doesn't wish to pursue the issue any further. The complainant retains the right to request a formal finding. When that happens, the investigator re-opens the file, and submits a formal report, and the Commissioner reports the findings in a letter to the complainant.
• Discontinued:
  This means that the investigation was terminated before all the allegations were fully investigated. A case may be discontinued for any number of reasons - for instance, the complainant may no longer be interested in pursuing the matter or cannot be located to provide additional information critical to reaching a conclusion. The Commissioner does not issue a formal finding in discontinued complaints.