Précis: The Federal Court refused to quash a warrant granted by the provincial court on the grounds that it was a collateral attack on the order of the provincial court.
Facts: In August 2017 a boat owned by Kingston and the Islands Boatlines (KTI) ran aground in waters near Kingston, Ontario. The Transportation Safety Board (TSB) commenced an investigation. The owners/operators of the vessel refused to provide information to the TSB. The applicant, an employee of KTI, sought an interlocutory injunction for the respondent making use of evidence obtained by a warrant pursuant to the TSB investigation until a judicial review was heard.
Decision: Motion dismissed.
Held: The Federal Court’s jurisdiction would be challenged if it allowed the applicant’s motion, as the applicant would have successfully undermined the basis of the warrant without ever having to engage legal proceedings in the Provincial court. This was the definition of “collateral attack”. The court was also of the opinion it could not determine an abuse of process issue created by a procedure authorized by statute in another court in another jurisdiction.