The respondent obtained Letters Rogatory from a U.S. District Court to examine a former in-house counsel of a corporation in Ontario.
The application judge ordered the witness to attend for examination by U.S. counsel pursuant to U.S. rules.
The witness appealed, arguing the application judge failed to apply the proper legal test and that permitting U.S. counsel to conduct the examination infringed Canadian sovereignty and the provincial legislation governing the legal profession.
The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding the application judge properly applied the criteria for enforcing Letters Rogatory and that allowing U.S. counsel to conduct the examination for a foreign action did not constitute practising law in Ontario or infringe sovereignty.
