# 2019-278 Releases, Release - Compulsory

Case summary

F&R Date: 2021-04-29

During basic occupational training, the grievor submitted a memo stating that he did not accept unlimited liability and requested he be released from the course and transferred to a non-combative occupation. A progress review board (PRB) recommended that the grievor be released from the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), and the Commanding Officer (CO) of the training establishment concluded that the grievor would be released. The grievor argued that the memo did not reflect his true beliefs and that his subsequent requests to retract the memo went unanswered. The grievor requested retention in the CAF and permission to continue training.

The Initial Authority was unable to render a decision within the allotted time limit. However, the CO stated that several options had been considered by the PRB, and that the grievor's stated inability to accept unlimited liability during the PRB rendered him unsuitable for continued CAF training. 

The Committee noted that the statements made in the memo were serious and that the grievor did not recant these statements during the PRB. The Committee found that the grievor's actions indicated a lack of commitment to the CAF and to its core military ethos. The Committee also found that the grievor's release was reasonable and in accordance with regulations. The Committee noted that the grievor received an honorable release and that he was free to apply for re-enrollment in the CAF if he wished to do so. The Committee recommended that redress be denied.

FA decision summary

The Final Authority (FA), the Acting Chief of the Defence Staff, agreed with the Committee's recommendation that the grievor not be granted redress. The FA agreed that the decision to release the grievor under item 5d was appropriate as the grievor was unable to commit to the realities of military life or accept unlimited liability.