My lawyer refuses to give us access to the tracker

[HyMyJ]

Hi all, here goes our story with working with the lawyer.
My husband (PA) and I (sponsor, PR) are with this lawyer processing our inland spousal sponsorship. We received AOR on Feb 23rd, 2025 and now we are doing PCC of him and his non-accompanying child (18 years old). *we received the request due by March 15, which we got into some issues and requested extension.*

We have trouble with him regarding having our access to the application tracker. Can we ask help from IRCC to push him to cooperate?

At the earlier stage, I had some red flags about this lawyer.

1. He instructed my husband to provide the history of the past 10 years without a gap. But he also said, "If there's not enough line in the application, just leave out the rest." So my husband wrote his 4 years and a half in the application and the lawyer submitted it as it was. Of course, IRCC requested to provide ALL 10 YEARS and returned our paper.

2. We are requesting him to pass the code for opening the tracker for my husband. He is telling us that if we open our tracker account, he would lose the accessibility to the representative as well as the ongoing correspondence with IRCC. We tried to convince him that we would keep him as our representative and we only wanted to see the status of our application. Though he won't listen to us and he keeps telling us to believe him.

3. My husband is divorcé and we have all the documents regarding his divorce. BUT, in the form IMM5532, he marked the PA as no relationship before me. (He never instructed my husband to fill out this form.) I found this error after we received AOR, so I asked him if it should be corrected ASAP. He goes "it's ok as we submitted the documents indicating he is divorcé. It is a mistake but it will be ok." Well, I should trust him... right?

4. The process of PCC for Mexican nationality has been changed since this January, 2025. We are having issues with providing fingerprint of the non-accompanying child in Mexico and our lawyer doesn't know how get through it. Not trying at all to figure out how the things are different now and then. I think he should at least learn the new process as he admitted my husband is his first case after the change.

In the end, he always says he is "very busy" so he can't tell us every change moving forward. Basically that's why we want to see the process of our application in the IRCC.
I'm now so regret choosing him as our representative but too late to change. Can we file a complaint on him at IRCC and would it make any changes?
Thank you all who read this long story.

 

[scylla]

Hi all, here goes our story with working with the lawyer.
My husband (PA) and I (sponsor, PR) are with this lawyer processing our inland spousal sponsorship. We received AOR on Feb 23rd, 2025 and now we are doing PCC of him and his non-accompanying child (18 years old). *we received the request due by March 15, which we got into some issues and requested extension.*

We have trouble with him regarding having our access to the application tracker. Can we ask help from IRCC to push him to cooperate?

At the earlier stage, I had some red flags about this lawyer.

1. He instructed my husband to provide the history of the past 10 years without a gap. But he also said, "If there's not enough line in the application, just leave out the rest." So my husband wrote his 4 years and a half in the application and the lawyer submitted it as it was. Of course, IRCC requested to provide ALL 10 YEARS and returned our paper.

2. We are requesting him to pass the code for opening the tracker for my husband. He is telling us that if we open our tracker account, he would lose the accessibility to the representative as well as the ongoing correspondence with IRCC. We tried to convince him that we would keep him as our representative and we only wanted to see the status of our application. Though he won't listen to us and he keeps telling us to believe him.

3. My husband is divorcé and we have all the documents regarding his divorce. BUT, in the form IMM5532, he marked the PA as no relationship before me. (He never instructed my husband to fill out this form.) I found this error after we received AOR, so I asked him if it should be corrected ASAP. He goes "it's ok as we submitted the documents indicating he is divorcé. It is a mistake but it will be ok." Well, I should trust him... right?

4. The process of PCC for Mexican nationality has been changed since this January, 2025. We are having issues with providing fingerprint of the non-accompanying child in Mexico and our lawyer doesn't know how get through it. Not trying at all to figure out how the things are different now and then. I think he should at least learn the new process as he admitted my husband is his first case after the change.

In the end, he always says he is "very busy" so he can't tell us every change moving forward. Basically that's why we want to see the process of our application in the IRCC.
I'm now so regret choosing him as our representative but too late to change. Can we file a complaint on him at IRCC and would it make any changes?
Thank you all who read this long story.

I would remove your representative, withdraw the application and then submit a new application yourselves. At least that is what we would do in your shoes.

Errors like misrepresentation of previous marital status are very serious and can result in refusals and bans. I would be concerned what else is wrong in the application. Again, that's me. The consequences of a big error are too serious and I would personally prefer to lose time and resubmit vs proceedings with an approved that may contain materially wrong information.

IRCC is generally not the right body to complain to. Who you complain to depends on whether the individual is an actual lawyer or an RCIC. I would definitely submit a complaint after you take your application into your own hands.

 

[armoured]

Is this a Canadian lawyer?

 

[HyMyJ]

I would remove your representative, withdraw the application and then submit a new application yourselves. At least that is what we would do in your shoes.

Errors like misrepresentation of previous marital status are very serious and can result in refusals and bans. I would be concerned what else is wrong in the application. Again, that's me. The consequences of a big error are too serious and I would personally prefer to lose time and resubmit vs proceedings with an approved that may contain materially wrong information.

IRCC is generally not the right body to complain to. Who you complain to depends on whether the individual is an actual lawyer or an RCIC. I would definitely submit a complaint after you take your application into your own hands.

Thank you for the advice.
Withdraw the application and resubmit it... I will discuss this option with my husband.
Is there any plus point to have a representative to process the application?

 

[HyMyJ]

Is this a Canadian lawyer?

Yes he is. In his signature;

Authorized Canadian Immigration Law Practitioner (RCIC) & Commissioner of Oaths

 

[scylla]

Thank you for the advice.
Withdraw the application and resubmit it... I will discuss this option with my husband.
Is there any plus point to have a representative to process the application?

No, there really isn't apart from helping you out the application together. And yours doesn't seem to have done a good job of that at all.

 

[scylla]

Yes he is. In his signature;

Authorized Canadian Immigration Law Practitioner (RCIC) & Commissioner of Oaths

So not a lawyer. He's an RCIC which is not a lawyer. He's an immigration consultant.

 

[scylla]

Yes he is. In his signature;

Authorized Canadian Immigration Law Practitioner (RCIC) & Commissioner of Oaths

You would file a complaint with the CICC since he's a consultant:

https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/immigration-citizenship-representative/file-complaint-against-representative.html

 

[armoured]

So not a lawyer. He's an RCIC which is not a lawyer. He's an immigration consultant.

You would file a complaint with the CICC since he's a consultant:

https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/immigration-citizenship-representative/file-complaint-against-representative.html

I'd go further than that, and also contact the provincial law society, first with this question: can someone who is not a lawyer use the title "Authorized Canadian Immigration Law Practitioner". I don't believe there is any such category of 'law practitioner' that's entitled to use phrasing that suggests they are authorized to practice law in Canada - apart from actual licensed lawyers. That is very much a no-no.

The CICC might be able to confirm this as well - but if I'm right, I guarantee that the law society will have much sharper teeth and will not hesitate to use them (whereas the CICC may max out their strict punishment at half-a-dozen lashes with a wet noodle).

 

[Flyingfast]

I don't understand why people waste money using a lawyer. Unless you have a complicated case do it yourself!