Senate Appeals Committee
Role
The Senate has established a Senate Appeals Committee that makes final decisions on specific cases of academic appeal once these matters have been dealt with at the faculty level. This includes:
- Appeals submitted by students concerning the application of regulations governing admissions, promotions and degree requirements, and any other academic regulations of the University;
- Any recommendation of disciplinary sanction or appeal of a disciplinary sanction in accordance with relevant Senate regulations;
- Any other appeal referred to the Committee by the Senate or its Executive Committee.
The Committee may also make recommendations on any regulatory and/or policy changes with respect to the regulations and procedures which it is entrusted to apply. It reports to the Senate or the Executive Committee of the Senate once a year, or upon request; its Chair is appointed by the Executive Committee.
Terms of Reference
Establishment
This Committee was established by Senate resolution 87-88.15, amended September 11, 1989 by resolutions 89-90.8 and 89-90.9; September 10, 2007 by resolution 2007-2008.5; February 4, 2008 by resolution 2007-2008.53; December 2, 2013 by resolution 2013-2014.17; and June 8, 2015 by resolution 2014-2015.90.
Membership
The Committee consists of ten members appointed by the Executive Committee of the Senate, including seven full-time regular professors, two undergraduate students and one graduate student.
The undergraduate students will be appointed by the Executive Committee of the Senate among the candidates presented by a nominating committee made up of the undergraduate student senators and a member of the student association recognized by the University as the exclusive representative of undergraduate students. The graduate student will be appointed by the Executive Committee of the Senate among the candidates presented by a nominating committee made up of the graduate student senators and a member of the student association recognized by the University as the exclusive representative of graduate students.
Term of Office
Terms of office are for a three-year period and are renewable.
Quorum
Five members constitute a quorum.
Chair and Vice-Chair of the Committee
The Chair and Vice-Chair are appointed by the Executive Committee of the Senate from amongst the members of the Committee.
The Chair shall not vote, except to break a tie vote.
The Vice-Chair replaces the Chair when the latter is absent, in which case the Vice-Chair shall not vote, except to break a tie vote.
In the absence of the Chair and Vice-Chair, the members choose among themselves an ad hoc Chair to preside over the meeting, who does not vote, except in the event of a tie.
The Secretary General of the University or her representative acts as secretary to the Committee. The Secretary General of the University does not vote but has a right to participate in the deliberations of the Committee.
Recusal of Member
A member of the Committee shall recuse him or herself when dealing with an appeal where the member, alone or as part of a committee, reported an issue, made a recommendation, or rendered a decision in the department or faculty appeal process involving the matter which is the subject of the Senate appeal. The Committee may also require a member to recuse himself or herself where the Committee determines that there could exist a reasonable apprehension of bias.
Functions
1. The Senate Appeals Committee makes a final decision on the following matters:
- any appeal submitted by a student concerning the application of regulations governing admissions, promotions and degree requirements, and any other academic regulations of the University;
- any recommendation of disciplinary sanction, or appeal of a disciplinary sanction, in accordance with relevant Senate regulations;
- any other appeal referred to the Committee by the Senate or its Executive Committee.
2. The Committee recommends to the Senate any change which it deems appropriate with respect to the regulations and procedures which it is entrusted to apply.
Report to Senate
Once a year, or upon request from the Senate or its Executive Committee, the Committee shall present a report of its activities to the Senate.
Secretariat Services
Secretariat services for the Committee will be provided by the Office of the Secretary General
Members
Chair
Charles Maxime Panaccio
Professor
Faculty of Law, Civil Law Section
End of Term: 2026/06/30
Vice-Chair
Valerie Steeves
Professor
Faculty of Social Sciences
End of Term: 2026/06/04
Members
Nafissa Ismail
Professor
Faculty of Social Sciences
End of Term: 2026/09/11
Robert Laganière
Professor,
Faculty of Engineering
End of Term: 2025/08/31
Sofia Leiva
Undergraduate Student
End of Term: 2026/12/04
Samantha Moreau
Undergraduate Student
End of Term: 2026-03-28
Mike Newman
Professor
Faculty of Science
End of Term: 2026/06/30
Patrick O'Byrne
Professor
Faculty of Health Sciences
End of Term: 2026/06/30
Giuliano Reis
Professor
Faculty of Education
End of Term: 2026/06/30