The appellant, a private investigator hired by the defence, attempted to discover the identity of a confidential police informant.
He was charged with obstruction of justice and extortion.
The trial judge acquitted him on all counts.
The Court of Appeal ordered a new trial on all counts.
The Supreme Court of Canada held that while the defence is not bound by informer privilege and may independently investigate an informant's identity, such investigation must be lawful.
The Court ordered a new trial on the obstruction of justice and the first extortion count (against the police officer) due to errors of law by the trial judge, but restored the acquittal on the second extortion count (against the associates) as it was based on factual findings.