The appellant media organisation challenged a publication ban issued by the Manitoba Court of Appeal over an affidavit filed in wrongful conviction proceedings.
The affidavit concerned the death of a witness and contained highly sensitive personal information about the witness's spouse.
Applying the three-branch test from Sherman Estate v. Donovan, 2021 SCC 25, the Court held that court openness posed a serious risk to the spouse's dignity as an important public interest, the ban was necessary and not overbroad, and the benefits of the ban significantly outweighed its minimal effect on free expression and the open court principle.
The affidavit was not admitted as evidence and played no role in determining that a wrongful conviction had occurred.
