Christine Van Geyn: In Case of Emergency, Break Law? Why the Federal Court of Appeal Hammered Trudeau’s Use of the Emergencies Act

It’s a rare and beautiful thing to see Canada’s courts strike a blow for individual freedom, but that’s what happened in an Ottawa courthouse last month. In a ringing and powerfully-reasoned decision, the Federal Court of Appeal found the Justin Trudeau government’s invocation of the Emergencies Act during the 2022 Freedom Convoy protests violated the law and the Constitution. Civil rights lawyer Christine Van Geyn, who was in the thick of the nearly four years of litigation the event triggered, explains why the court agreed that Trudeau’s actions constituted a draconian abuse of power – and why its ruling could prove a historic victory for Canadian civil liberties.