In the case at the center of the controversy, Rachel Marsden, then a student, and Liam Donnelly, a swimming coach, accused each other of sexual harassment.
The case was widely reported in the Canadian press because of the topic of sexual harassment, and controversy over the procedures for investigating it.
On the advice of his lawyer, the coach dropped his own complaint against Marsden and took it instead to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
In it the panelists admitted that the specific incidents about which the student complained appeared insignificant and innocuous, but when "the sum total" was considered, it was determined that her complaint was true on a balance of probability.
The panel's report, issued on October 11, 1996, recommended that Donnelly be dismissed and that Marsden be financially compensated, given counselling, and be helped with her academic career.
The president of SFU, John Stubbs, approved a secret settlement with Marsden by which she was given $12,000 to compensate her for a scholarship she failed to receive, lost summer employment and injuries to her feelings.