In striking down a controversial refugee pact between Canada and the U.S., a Canadian judge made “palpable and overriding errors” that warrant a higher court’s intervention, according to a written submission by government lawyers.
“These errors permeated both the Federal Court’s factual and legal findings,” lawyers for Canada’s immigration and public safety ministers argued in their factum filed in advance of an appeal hearing on Tuesday to overturn a court order against the Safe Third Country Agreement. “These findings render the STCA inoperable.”
In July, Justice Ann Marie McDonald ruled the accord unconstitutional because the United States routinely detained asylum seekers under poor conditions.
