How to File an Appeal

You may file an Academic Appeal with the ADFG Office only IF you have already exhausted all divisional avenues. 

This means that you may file an Academic Appeal with the ADFG Office if all of the following criteria are met:

1) An appeal has already been filed with your respective Academic Division;

EXAMPLES:

  • If you are an undergraduate student, majoring in History and English, your division is the Faculty of Arts and Science
  • If you are a graduate level student, regardless of your area of study, your division is the School of Graduate Studies

2) A decision has been issued by your division’s final appeal body; and,

3) Ninety (90) calendar days have not elapsed since the Decision from your division's final appeal body.

  • If the 90th calendar day falls on a holiday or weekend, you may file your appeal by 5:00 p.m. the next business day.
  • For example, the Decision from your division is dated July 8, 2024. You have 90 calendar days to file your appeal. As the 90th day falls on a weekend, October 6, 2024, your deadline is actually Monday, October 7, 2024 by 5:00 p.m.
  • Use the Appeal Deadline Calculator to determine the deadline to file your appeal

There are a number of possible remedies.  You will have to determine which remedy, or remedies, best fit your circumstances and will have to verify that the remedy or, remedies, that you are seeking is/are applicable and available to you. Available remedies differ for undergraduate and graduate students and amongst divisions and Faculties. For more information on divisional processes, you can find links to their webpages here

For information about the University's Undergraduate Grading Practices Policy, please click here. 

Examples of Remedies

Please Note: Each circumstance is unique and the decision regarding your case will be made by the Academic Appeals Committee ("AAC").  The examples below are not exhaustive.

Note: The cases referred to below were decided prior to the Academic Appeals Committee Rules being adopted, therefore some of the hearing procedures referred to in those cases no longer apply. See What Happens at an Academic Appeal Hearing for more information on current hearing procedures.


Permission for Late withdrawal without Academic Penalty (LWD) 
LWD can be designated on a student's transcript if the Division approves a student's petition for late withdrawal without academic penalty from a course. The LWD designation carries no credit for the course in that it does not count towards your credit requirements, and it is not considered for averaging purposes.  

As examples, see reports: 302 and 280


Permission to Write Deferred Exam 
Request by the Student to write an exam (not a test) at a later date. The mark received on the deferred exam will be calculated into the Student’s final grade in the course.

As examples, see reports: 272 and 325


Grade Appeal 
Request by the Student  to appeal the final grade for a course, if the Student believes that the grade received in that course is not a proper assessment of his or her cumulative coursework.  Please be aware that the Academic Appeals Committee cannot assess academic work and assign a grade.  They can only determine if a policy was applied fairly and consistently.

As examples, see reports: 434 and 358


Reinstatement to Program 
Application for reinstatement to a program where the Student has been refused further registration in that program because they have not maintained the required GPA. This is not an admissions decision.  

As examples, see reports: 383 and 369

Permission to Return Early from an Academic Suspension 
Request by the Student to return early to a program where the Student has been suspended but wishes to resume his or her studies before the academic suspension is over. 

As examples, see reports: 330 and 408


Exemption from Program Requirements 
Request by the Student to be exempted from program requirement(s) if the Student has already completed the requirement(s) at a recognized institution and the requirements are consistent with what is required in the course content in the course(s) that the exemption is being requested. 

As examples, see reports: 382 and 378

Extension on Coursework 
Request by the Student for an extension to allow work to be submitted after the course deadline, and have it assessed without late penalty. 

As examples, see reports: 301, 326 and 289


External Assessment of Academic Work 
Request by the Student to have his or her course work assessed by someone other than the Instructor or Examiner. 

As examples, see reports: 269 and 290

Permission to Rewrite an Assignment/Exam 
Request permission to rewrite an assignment or an exam, where the Student has already completed the assignment or written the exam. The grade earned on the rewritten test or assignment will be averaged into the Student’s course average and will contribute to the Student’s overall GPA.  And the original mark earned in the assignment or exam will not be reflected in the final mark. 

As examples, see reports: 329 and 364


Remove Notation from Transcript 
Request by the Student to have a notation taken off of his or her transcript. (eg. A notation of suspension, etc.) 

As examples, see reports: 270 and 376


Defer Academic Suspension 
Request by the Student to have a suspension deferred to an alternate starting date other than the one determined by his or her respective Division. 

As examples, see reports: 270 and 261

Aegrotat Standing (AEG) 
Request by the Student to receive credit for the course but there is no mark assigned and therefore it does not impact his or her GPA or CGPA. 

As examples, see reports: 342 and 291

The ADFG Office cannot assist you with the merits or the legal issues regarding your case, but the Office can provide information about the appeals process and procedures.

You have the right to be represented before the Academic Appeals Committee, although some students choose to represent themselves or have a friend or family member represent them.  For information on hearing attendees, please see Who Is Going to Be At The Hearing?  There are also resources that may be available to you as a student at the University. Speak to your registrar or Dean's Office to explore these resources.

Here are two options for representation:

Downtown Legal Services
655 Spadina Avenue 
Toronto, ON M5S 2H9 
Downtown Legal Services 
416-978-6447

DLS is staffed by law students working under the supervision of lawyers, and is a service provided free of charge to students who pay the DLS levy. Note that DLS is not able to accept every request for assistance due to limited capacity. 


Law Society Referral Service
416-947-3330 (within the GTA) 
1-800-268-8326
Law Society Referral Service 

The Law Society of Ontario operates the Law Society Referral Service.  You will be able to speak with a lawyer or paralegal, and receive up to a 30 minute consultation for free.

Since the Academic Appeals Committee will be reviewing the previous decision for reasonableness, you must file all documents you submitted to the previous body whose decision you are appealing.  

In order to file an appeal with the ADFG Office, you must submit one electronic file in PDF format (your Appeal Package). The PDF file should include bookmarks with corresponding titles, a table of contents, and page numbers using the bates numbering tool in Adobe Acrobat. 

The Appeal Package must include the following:

  • A completed, signed, and dated Notice of Appeal Form
  • A copy of the decision from the divisional appeals committee or equivalent denying your appeal
  • A copy of all the materials you submitted to the previous appeals committee whose decision you are appealing (including any evidence, petition forms, email correspondence, etc.)
  • A statement written by you or your representative/counsel setting out:

1. The grounds of your appeal (e.g., medical)

2. The remedy that you are seeking (e.g., late withdrawal without academic penalty, permission to write a deferred exam, etc.);

3. A brief description of the background to your appeal (i.e., in your own words, describe what happened); and

Normally, you will not be allowed to add any documents past the 90-day deadline.

There are predetermined hearing months in which hearings are scheduled. However, you can make a request to have your hearing heard before the predetermined hearing months. To do so, you will need to provide a written rationale for your request to expedite your appeal. Please note that this request is only granted in exceptional circumstances. For more information on hearing scheduling, please see When Will My Hearing Be Scheduled?

IMPORTANT NOTE: Your appeal must meet ALL of the above criteria and be filed by email with the ADFG Office by the 90th calendar day from the decision of your Division's final appeal body. The email address is adfg.admin@utoronto.ca. The ADFG Office has the right not to accept your appeal and to close your file if one or more of the above criteria are not met by the deadline. You are advised to file your materials prior to the 90th calendar day in case your appeal package is determined to be incomplete so  you have time to add the additional required documentation to complete your appeal package.

New Evidence

New evidence or information that was not submitted to the previous level of appeal may be admitted with the permission of the chair hearing your appeal. If you want to submit new evidence, indicate this on your Notice of Appeal form and submit the additional information in the electronic file, specifying that it is new, identifying the page number(s) of the information and the document type and/or title. 

A student is responsible for meeting the requirements set out in the AAC’s Terms of Reference and Rules of Practice and Procedure. Failure to do so may result in an appeal being closed. For example, if a student fails to meet the requirements relating to the commencement of a proceeding (i.e., a step within the appeal process), the appeal or that particular proceeding within the appeal (e.g. a motion) may be closed in accordance with the Rules of Practice and Procedure.

A student is also responsible for maintaining and advising the University, through the Repository of Student Information (ROSI), of a current and valid postal address, as well as a current and valid “utoronto” email address. You may also provide other email addresses that you access/use, send/receive correspondence from, and check on a regular basis. 

If you do not do so, you may miss important information. This failure will not be considered an acceptable reason for failing to receive official correspondence from the University. 

You are expected to monitor and read all emails sent to you by the University on a frequent and consistent basis. You have the responsibility to recognize that certain communications may be time-critical. 

You are also expected to respond to communications from the University as required. See the Policy on Official Correspondence with Students.

NOTE: Only the ADFG Office may communicate directly with the chair or the panel hearing your appeal. All correspondence should be sent to the chair/panel via the ADFG Office. Always copy the other side on your communications. Otherwise, the ADFG Office will copy them on its response.