[1] The office assists individuals and organizations who believe that federal institutions have not respected their rights under the ATIA.

The commissioner encourages and assists federal institutions to adopt approaches to information-sharing that meet the objectives of the ATIA, and advocates for greater access to information in Canada.

[1] Whenever possible, the commissioner relies on persuasion to solve disputes, asking for a federal court review only if an individual has been improperly denied access and a negotiated solution has proved impossible.

Caroline Maynard is the current information commissioner, appointed, for a seven-year term, on March 1, 2018.

They hold office for seven-year terms (Access to Information Act, s. 54).