Supreme Court clears review of Trudeau WE Charity ethics case

The Supreme Court of Canada ruled unanimously that a provision of the Conflict of Interest Act that barred judicial review of a federal ethics report is unconstitutional. The decision allows the watchdog group Democracy Watch to challenge the 2021 finding by former ethics commissioner Mario Dion that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau did not breach conflict‑of‑interest rules in relation to the WE Charity programme awarded to administer COVID‑19‑related volunteer projects.

Chief Justice Richard Wagner said the Constitution guarantees the availability of “legality review,” and that political oversight of the ethics commissioner is not a sufficient alternative. The court sent the matter back to the Federal Court of Appeal for further consideration, preserving the ability to test whether the commissioner’s interpretation of the act exceeded the limits of administrative authority.