Invocation of the Emergencies Act for the Freedom Convoy protests was unreasonable and ultra vires.
The applicants challenged the federal government's invocation of the Emergencies Act in February 2022 to deal with the 'Freedom Convoy' protests and blockades.
The Federal Court found that the decision to issue the Proclamation Declaring a Public Order Emergency was unreasonable and ultra vires because the situation did not meet the statutory threshold of a 'national emergency' that could not be dealt with under any other law of Canada, nor did it constitute 'threats to the security of Canada' as defined in the CSIS Act.
The Court also held that the Emergency Measures Regulations infringed freedom of expression under s. 2(b) of the Charter and the Emergency Economic Measures Order infringed the right against unreasonable search and seizure under s. 8 of the Charter, and neither infringement was justified under s. 1.
