Not every refusal has to go straight to court. In some cases, the fastest path is to ask the officer to reconsider — particularly where the decision overlooked evidence, contained an error, or where important new information has come to light. Since 2004, we have used reconsideration requests, where appropriate, to reopen files without the time and cost of litigation.
When a reconsideration request makes sense
Reconsideration can be worth pursuing when there is a clear error or something significant the officer did not properly consider. It is not the right tool for every case — and at your consultation we will tell you honestly whether reconsideration, a judicial review, or both is the better route for you.
Important: protect your Federal Court deadline
A reconsideration request does not pause the strict deadline to seek judicial review (15 days in Canada, 60 days outside). For that reason, we often prepare a reconsideration request while preserving your right to go to the Federal Court, so that asking for reconsideration never costs you the chance to challenge the decision in court.