SUPREME COURT OF CANADA

Citation: Public Service Alliance of Canada v. Canada, [2006] 1 S.C.R. 1027, 2006 SCC 29

Date: 20060623

Docket: 30805

Between:

Her Majesty The Queen Appellant

and

Public Service Alliance of Canada Respondent

• and -

Attorney General of Nova Scotia, Attorney General of New Brunswick, Attorney General of British Columbia, Attorney General for Saskatchewan, Attorney General of Alberta, Canadian Union of Public Employees, Alberta Urban Municipalities Association, Union of British Columbia Municipalities and Commissionaires Canada Interveners

Coram: McLachlin C.J. and Bastarache, Binnie, LeBel, Deschamps, Fish, Abella, Charron and Rothstein JJ.

Reasons for judgment: (paras. 1-3)

McLachlin C.J. (Bastarache, Binnie, LeBel, Deschamps, Fish, Abella, Charron and Rothstein JJ. concurring)

Public Service Alliance of Canada v. Canada, [2006] 1 S.C.R. 1027, 2006 SCC 29

Her Majesty The Queen Appellant

v.

Public Service Alliance of Canada Respondent

and

Attorney General of Nova Scotia, Attorney General of New Brunswick, Attorney General of British Columbia, Attorney General for Saskatchewan, Attorney General of Alberta, Canadian Union of Public Employees, Alberta Urban Municipalities Association, Union of British Columbia Municipalities and Commissionaires Canada Interveners

Indexed as: Public Service Alliance of Canada v. Canada

Neutral citation: 2006 SCC 29.

File No.: 30805.

2006: June 23.

Present: McLachlin C.J. and Bastarache, Binnie, LeBel, Deschamps, Fish, Abella, Charron and Rothstein JJ.

on appeal from the federal court of appeal

Police — Royal Canadian Mounted Police — Civilian staff — Police services agreements with municipalities — Civilian staff appointed or employed by municipalities under agreements not required to be federal public servants — Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. R-10, ss. 10, 20.

Statutes and Regulations Cited

Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. R‑10, ss. 10, 20.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Federal Court of Appeal (Décary, Sharlow and Malone JJ.A.), [2005] 3 F.C.R. 443, 249 D.L.R. (4th) 292, 329 N.R. 261, [2005] F.C.J. No. 11 (QL), 2005 FCA 5, setting aside a decision of Lemieux J. (2004), 244 F.T.R. 190, [2004] F.C.J. No. 13 (QL), 2004 FC 13. Appeal allowed.

Alain Préfontaine, for the appellant.

David Yazbeck, for the respondent.

Written submissions only by Edward A. Gores, for the intervener the Attorney General of Nova Scotia.

John G. Furey, for the intervener the Attorney General of New Brunswick.

Nancy E. Brown, for the intervener the Attorney General of British Columbia.

Written submissions only by Graeme G. Mitchell, Q.C., for the intervener the Attorney General for Saskatchewan.

Kurt J. W. Sandstrom, for the intervener the Attorney General of Alberta.

John Elder and Susan D. Coen, for the intervener the Canadian Union of Public Employees.

Colin R. Fetter and Jeffrey W. Beedell, for the intervener the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association.

Peter A. Gall, Q.C., and Nitya Iyer, for the intervener the Union of British Columbia Municipalities.

David K. Law and Sophie Gagnier, for the intervener Commissionaires Canada.

The judgment of the Court was delivered orally by

[1] The Chief Justice — It is not necessary to hear from counsel for the appellant or the interveners.

[2] We are all of a view that s. 10 of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. R‑10, applies to the civilian staff appointed and employed by the RCMP Commissioner and that it does not apply to the civilian staff appointed or employed by a municipality under an agreement entered into by the Solicitor General pursuant to s. 20 of the Act.

[3] The appeal is therefore allowed with costs throughout.

Judgment accordingly.

Solicitor for the appellant: Deputy Attorney General of Canada, Ottawa.

Solicitors for the respondent: Raven, Cameron, Ballantyne & Yazbeck, Ottawa.

Solicitor for the intervener the Attorney General of Nova Scotia: Department of Justice, Halifax.

Solicitor for the intervener the Attorney General of New Brunswick: Attorney General of New Brunswick, Fredericton.

Solicitor for the intervener the Attorney General of British Columbia: Ministry of Attorney General, Victoria.

Solicitor for the intervener the Attorney General for Saskatchewan: Attorney General for Saskatchewan, Regina.

Solicitor for the intervener the Attorney General of Alberta: Alberta Justice, Edmonton.

Solicitor for the intervener the Canadian Union of Public Employees: Canadian Union of Public Employees, Ottawa.

Solicitors for the intervener the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association: Brownlee, Edmonton.

Solicitors for the intervener the Union of British Columbia Municipalities: Heenan Blaikie, Vancouver.

Solicitors for the intervener Commissionaires Canada: Emond Harnden, Ottawa.