BREAKING: Federal appeals court rules Emergencies Act was unconstitutional

A federal appeals court has shut down the Trudeau government’s attempt to overturn a ruling that found the use of the Emergencies Act against peaceful Freedom Convoy protesters was unconstitutional.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Author: Clayton DeMaine

A federal appeals court has shut down the Trudeau government’s attempt to overturn a ruling that found the use of the Emergencies Act against peaceful Freedom Convoy protesters in 2022 was unconstitutional and violated the Charter rights of Canadians.

The Federal Court of Appeals upheld on Friday a January 2024 Federal Court decision that the federal government’s invocation of the Emergencies Act was “unreasonable.” Justice Richard Mosley’s earlier ruling had declared the Act’s economic and emergency measures violated the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

“We are of the opinion that every appeal before this Court should be dismissed. The Federal Court correctly determined that the declaration of a public order emergency was unreasonable and that parts of the Regulations and Economic Order infringed paragraph 2(b) and section 8 of the Charter,” the decision reads. “the Federal Court made no reviewable error with regards to standing or in admitting evidence that was before the Public Order Emergency Commission.”

In its reasons, the appeal court ruled that Cabinet did not have “reasonable grounds to believe that a threat to national security existed,” a requirement for invoking the act. It also found that the government did not need to use the act to deal with the issues and, therefore, Trudeau’s use of the act did not meet the threshold of a national emergency.

The court found that “the only incident of violence put forward by the Attorney General of Canada” was the a firearms caches and ammunition found at Coutts Alberta and “vague reports of harassment, intimidation and assault, and that the Ottawa police were “overwhelmed.”

“In our view, this is insufficient to satisfy the compelling and credible information requirement to justify the conclusion that there were reasonable grounds to believe that there was a threat or use of acts of serious violence,” the court said in its decision. “Declaring a public order emergency is a very serious matter, considering the extraordinary powers vested in the executive branch of the federal government once the Act is invoked, and for that reason the exacting requirements set out by Parliament must be strictly adhered to.”

The Canadian Constitution Foundation, a civil liberties group that intervened against the federal government in the case, is celebrating a victory for the Charter rights of Canadians.

“This decision is excellent news for Canadians who care about their rights and freedoms,” Josh Dehaas, a litigator for the CCF told True North.“It means that governments that trample rights will face consequences. It means a future government will think twice before violating the Constitution.”

Dehaas said the case could still be seen by the Supreme Court of Canada if Prime Minister Mark Carney “decides he wants to ignore two courts and four judges that have now found the invocation was unlawful and violated Charter rights, we will see him at the Supreme Court.”
During the Freedom Convoy anti-vaccine mandate protests in February 2022, Carney wrote an opinion piece for the Globe and Mail recommending that the government freeze the protesters’ bank accounts. This action was made possible by the “unconstitutional” Emergencies Act.