.7 Appeal must be in Writing
.1 To appeal, a team, group or individual must prepare an appeal in writing. The submission is to specify the decision being
appealed, or lack of a decision, the grounds for appeal and the facts supporting the appeal. It is to be concise and to
contain numbered paragraphs.
.2 The appeal shall be filed with the ALLIANCE Executive Director and be accompanied by a four hundred dollars ($400.00)
appeal fee.
.3 The appeal to the Registration Committee shall be filed with the ALLIANCE Executive Director and be accompanied by a
two hundred and fifty dollars ($250.00) appeal fee.
.8 Hearing Date
.1 Within seven (7) business days of an appeal being filed the President shall set a date for the hearing of the appeal or the
first business day following, if such date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or statutory holiday. The hearing date will be no more
than seventeen (17) days after the filing date.
.9 Notice of Hearing .1 The Executive Director shall notify all parties to the appeal as soon as the hearing date is set. This notice shall inform the
parties of the time, place, date, and purpose of the hearing. It will also advise that if the party does not attend the
hearing the appeal may proceed in the party's absence and will void entitlement to any further notice in the proceedings.
.10 Rights on Hearing of Appeal
.1 A party to the appeal may be represented by counsel or agent, call and examine witnesses, present arguments and
submissions, conduct cross‑examinations of witnesses reasonably required for a full and fair disclosure of facts given in
evidence.
.11 Appointing Appeal Committee
.1 The Appeal Committee Chair shall select an Appeal Committee as provided herein to hear the appeal.
.12 Jurisdiction of Appeal Committee
.1 In hearing an appeal, the Appeal Committee appointed shall first determine if they have jurisdiction in the matter;
.2 Whether the appeal filing procedures have been properly followed;
.3 Whether the proper fees have been submitted;
.4 If (.2) and (.3) are not in order shall excuse the principals and decide whether there is sufficient merit to continue with the
hearing.
.13 Appeal Hearing Procedure
.1 The appellant’s submission should deal strictly with the facts. It should outline the original circumstances, the original
decision, and the result of decision and where there is error in the original decision;
.2 One spokesperson shall be allowed to complete the submission without interruption;
.3 Committee members or other parties to the appeal may ask questions, through the Chairperson, once the submission is
completed.
.14 Submission of New Evidence
.1 The Committee may only allow new evidence at an appeal hearing to be introduced if that evidence was not available to
the appellant(s) at the time of the original hearing. Evidence that was available at the time of the original hearing, but not
introduced as evidence at that time shall not be allowed at an appeal hearing. The onus is on the introducer of new
evidence to prove that the evidence was not reasonably available for the original hearing.
.15 Disposition of Appeal
.1 In rendering a final decision, the Committee may:
.1 Allow the appeal;
.2 Dismiss the appeal;
.3 Vary the decision appealed from/by:
.1 Increasing or decreasing the fine and/or the suspension;
.2 Issuing an order prohibiting the continuation of any matters dealt with in the appeal;
.4 Assessing the whole or any part of the costs of the appeal to any party to the appeal;
.5 Determine the disposition up to fifty percent (50%) of the appeal fee paid.
.16 Decision Timelines
.1 The Appeal Committee shall give its oral decision not more than three (3) business days after the hearing at which time
the ALLIANCE Hockey Office will put in writing the decision and outline the next appeal procedure to the Ontario Hockey
Federation.
.2 The Appeals Committee shall submit a written report within (10) days of the oral decision.
.17 Appeal Procedures
.1 Any recourse to the Courts of any jurisdiction by any member, or by someone acting on behalf of a member, before all
rights of appeal and all the rights and remedies of the By-Laws of the Minor Hockey Alliance of Ontario have been
exhausted, shall be deemed to be a violation and breach of the By-Laws of the Minor Hockey Alliance of Ontario. This
violation and breach shall result in the automatic indefinite suspension of such member from the Minor Hockey Alliance of
Ontario activities and games.
.2 Any association, club, league, team, player, coach, manager, trainer, and referee and/or an individual acting on behalf of
an individual, who has sought court and/or legal action before exhausting all proper procedures of appeal, will be liable for
all legal costs and disbursements incurred by the ALLIANCE.
.3 Until full legal costs are paid, at the discretion of the President, the right of membership of the said party will be
suspended.
.4 Any association, club, league, team, player, coach, manager, trainer, referee and/or an individual acting on behalf of an
individual who, having exhausted the appeal procedures, proceeds with Court action will be liable for all legal costs and
disbursements incurred by the ALLIANCE, should the Courts rule in favour of the ALLIANCE, prior to reinstatement of
said party's membership with the ALLIANCE.
.18 Ontario Hockey Federation Appeals
.1 An Appeal may be made to the Ontario Hockey Federation (OHF) from any decision of the ALLIANCE Appeal Committee.
.2 The Appeal must be filed with the OHF in accordance with the OHF Appeal Procedure.
.3 The Appeal must be in accordance with the provisions of the Ontario Hockey Federation relating to the adjudication of
disputes amongst member partners and/or members of member partners.
.19 .1 All appeals for transfer/residency must comply with ALLIANCE Registration Committee Policy.
6.2 PROTESTS
.1 Processing of Protests
.1 All protests and evidence in support thereof must be sent to the Executive Director of the ALLIANCE within forty-eight
(48) hours of the start time of the protested game.
.2 Initial notification of the protest must be provided to the Executive Director by email.
.3 The initial notification shall provide all evidence in support thereof. Upon receipt of the initial protest, the Executive
Director shall immediately contact the protested team, Association and shall provide the protested team, Association
with all the evidence in support thereof.
.4 From the time of notification by the Executive Director the protested team, Association shall have thirty-six (36)
hours to file a defense, stating its evidence back to the Executive Director. Except that during playoffs or playdowns
the Protest Chair may rule that the defense be filed less than thirty-six (36) hours subject to the next scheduled
game.
.5 Failure to comply with any or all of the above could result in the protest or the defense being declared null and void.
.2 No protest or defense of a protest shall be valid unless signed by both the President or designate of the Association concerned
and responsible officials of the team. The protest fee shall be $250.00 (two-hundred and fifty dollars). The Protest Committee
shall not have the power to return the fees to any team, Association.
.3 No member of the ALLIANCE shall be eligible to serve on any committee or to vote on any protest or question involving directly
any team from their Association.
.4 A protest must be lodged for the game in which a challenged offence occurred, i.e. ineligible player or coach. A protest lodged
for subsequent games involving the same offence will not be considered for reversal of a game decision. In these cases,
suspensions for ineligible participants will be enforced.
6.3 VIDEO REVIEW
.1 Overview
With the current prevalence of video technology within the minor hockey landscape (including spectator and/or Association
video), ALLIANCE Hockey incurs multiple challenges when reviewing such video.
Through this policy, the ALLIANCE Hockey aims to communicate its position on when it is appropriate and responsible to review video submissions.
It should be noted that, in addition to video submitted by a Member Association, ALLIANCE Hockey may also utilize any other
available video source(s) for making any determination(s) under this Policy.
Reference in this Policy to the Executive Director includes the Executive Director and/or their designate.
Both Hockey Canada and ALLIANCE Hockey maintain strict rules regarding the authority of on-ice officials:
• Hockey Canada's Playing Rule 5.1 (c) states: "A Referee shall have full authority and the final decision in all
matters under dispute. Their decision shall be final on all questions of judgment and not subject to appeal."
• ALLIANCE Hockey states: "REFEREE’S DECISION: “A protest on a referee’s decision will not be considered unless it
concerns a question respecting interpretation of the rules of the game."
.2 Video that will not be reviewed
The ALLIANCE Hockey Executive Director will generally not review video for the following:
.1 For challenging a Game Official’s decisions or penalties, except as specified in this policy;
.2 For individual player or Team Official conduct, unless stated otherwise in this policy;
.3 For evaluating team conduct during games, unless stated otherwise in this policy;
.4 For the purpose of reviewing goals or disallowed goals, unless stated otherwise in this policy.
Rationale: Game Officials have rules at their disposal to penalize these situations.
.3 Video that may be reviewed
The ALLIANCE Hockey Executive Director may review video for the following:
.1 Appealing a suspension based on the Association’s contention of a misapplied rule or a Game Official's error in judgment
resulting in a suspension of three (3) or more games;
.2 Identifying the correct player when the on-ice official may have incorrectly penalized a player, resulting in a suspension;
.3 Evaluating the conduct of a Game Official during altercations, particularly involving the use of force;
.4 Assessing any game situations leading to serious player injuries, regardless of whether a penalty was initially assessed, to
determine appropriate suspension length for involved player(s);
.5 Reviewing penalties carrying indefinite suspensions;
.6 Assessing the conduct of spectators, including parents/guardians.
.4 Submitting video for review
The ALLIANCE Hockey Executive Director will consider a video review as submitted to the Executive Director by the Association’s
President and/or Council Representative using the applicable form and when the following requirements are met:
.1 Completed payment of the $250.00 review fee via credit or e-transfer to ‘ALLIANCE Hockey’, non-refundable per incident;
.2 Provision of a complete copy of the video. The video must be queued to the incident and/or accompanied by written details
specifying the time and location within the submission;
.3 A copy of the official gamesheet;
.4 Submission of a signed statement from the Association President and/or Council Representative outlining the appeal;
.5 Submission received within forty-eight (48) hours following the conclusion of the associated game;
.6 Reviewing item identified in 3.1.4, must also be accompanied by a diagnosis from a medical doctor outlining the nature
and seriousness of the injury (understanding when extenuating circumstances are involved).
.5 Video Review Procedure
Upon receiving the video review request, the ALLIANCE Hockey Executive Director will review the request and may determine any
or all of the following:
.1 Inconclusive Review: The Executive Director may deem a review inconclusive if, among other reasons, the video
recording does not clearly show the incident. In such a case, any suspension resulting from the assessed penalty or
penalties by the Game Official will remain in effect. This decision is final and not eligible for further appeal.
.2 Misapplication Determined: The Executive Director may conclude that the Game Official misapplied the rule and/or used
incorrect judgment. In these instances, the corresponding suspension(s) will be revised or revoked.
.3 Correct Application Determined: The Executive Director may determine that the Game Official correctly applied the rule
and/or used correct judgment. Consequently, any suspension resulting from the penalty or penalties will remain in effect.
This decision is final and not eligible for further appeal.
.4 The Executive Director may assess any appropriate penalty, suspension and/or supplementary suspension
(including substituted or additional penalties) for any infraction committed during the course of such game or during the
aftermath of such game by any player or Team Official whether or not such infraction has been penalized by the Game
Official.