Politics · Canada · 2 hrs ago
Supreme Court to hear federal appeal over 2022 Emergencies Act use
Canada’s Supreme Court agreed to hear Ottawa’s appeal over the federal government’s use of the Emergencies Act in 2022.
The law was invoked during weeks of trucker protests in Ottawa, where demonstrators opposed pandemic vaccine mandates and blocked the city centre.
The government used the act for the first time since it became law in 1988, gaining temporary powers that included restricting public assemblies and freezing bank assets.
Two lower courts ruled the use was not justified, finding the government had not met the law’s strict legal test.
The Supreme Court case will examine the limits of government power during a crisis and whether the lower courts were right.
A hearing date has not been set and is unlikely before next spring or possibly next fall.
The Supreme Court of Canada has agreed to hear the federal government’s appeal over its 2022 use of the Emergencies Act during the Freedom Convoy protests.
The court will consider rulings that found the government’s decision unjustified and said it infringed Charter rights.
The Federal Court of Appeal upheld the lower court’s ruling in January 2026.
The federal government argues that the lower courts used flawed principles and that their reasoning restricts governments’ ability to respond to future crises.
The hearing has not been scheduled and is not expected before next spring or possibly next fall.
- Who
- The Supreme Court of Canada will hear the appeal brought by the federal government.
- What
- The appeal concerns the government’s 2022 invocation of the Emergencies Act and lower-court rulings that found it unjustified and in violation of Charter rights.
- When
- The court agreed to hear the appeal on Thursday, October 22, 2026. A hearing has not been scheduled.
- Where
- Canada; the protests took place in Ottawa and at border crossings.
- Why
- The federal government is challenging lower-court rulings that found its use of the act did not meet the legal threshold.
Federal government
Federal Court and Federal Court of Appeal
Aspect
Federal government
The government says the lower courts applied the wrong principles and that it acted reasonably in concluding a public order emergency existed.
Federal Court and Federal Court of Appeal
The courts found the government lacked reasonable grounds to believe the convoy posed a threat to national security and that invoking the act was not legally justified.
Aspect
Federal government
The government argues the rulings restrict governments’ ability to respond effectively to future crises.
Federal Court and Federal Court of Appeal
The Federal Court of Appeal said the convoy protests fell short of a threat to national security.
The federal government invoked the Emergencies Act during the protests.
Commissioner Paul Rouleau concluded that the government met the high threshold for invoking the act.
The Federal Court ruled that the invocation was unjustified and infringed Charter rights.
The Federal Court of Appeal upheld the lower court’s decision.
The Supreme Court of Canada agreed to hear the federal government’s appeal.
- Act first used
- 2022, according to the Globe and Mail and CBC
- Invocation date
- February 14, 2022
- Federal Court ruling
- 2024
- Federal Court of Appeal ruling
- January 2026
- Supreme Court appeal decision
- October 22, 2026
4 sources
Supreme Court to hear federal appeal of Emergencies Act use
Supreme Court to hear final appeal of Trudeau government's invocation of Emergencies Act
Top court will hear appeal on ruling that found feds violated Charter during convoy protest
Lower courts' reasoning 'neuters' Emergencies Act, government tells Supreme Court
What people are saying
acted reasonably in finding reasonable grounds to conclude that a public order emergency existed.
As disturbing and disruptive the blockades and the convoy protests in Ottawa could be, they fell well short of a threat to national security
I do not come to this conclusion easily, as I do not consider the factual basis for it to be overwhelming.