Top court will hear appeal on ruling that found feds violated Charter during convoy protest

Source: CBC Politics
Date: 2026-10-22 16:08:52.0
Tags: [National, Justice, Public Safety, Emergency, Governance]

The Supreme Court of Canada agreed to hear an appeal regarding a 2024 Federal Court ruling—later upheld by the Federal Court of Appeal in January 2026—which found that the federal government of former prime minister Justin Trudeau infringed the Charter rights of Freedom Convoy participants when it invoked the Emergencies Act on February 14, 2022. The lower courts ruled that the Liberal cabinet lacked reasonable grounds and a legal basis to believe the protests posed a national security threat. This legal challenge contrasts with the findings of the 2023 Public Order Emergency Commission led by Commissioner Paul Rouleau, which concluded that the government had met the high legal threshold required to invoke the act.