Simon's Legal Resources

Competition Tribunal - Nature

. Google Canada Corporation v. Canada (Commissioner of Competition)

In Google Canada Corporation v. Canada (Commissioner of Competition) (Fed CA, 2026) the Federal Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal, this brought against a discovery refusal ruling within "proceedings in the Competition Tribunal concerning some of the appellants’ online advertising services".

Here the court comment on the status and nature of the Competition Tribunal:

[18] The Tribunal is an administrative decision-maker in a highly specialized regulatory field, with knowledge and experience handling large and complicated cases. It is master of its own procedure and can tailor things to ensure the administrative law requirements of procedural fairness are met, including the right of the appellants to make full answer and defence. It must apply its procedural rules "“as informally and expeditiously as the circumstances and considerations of fairness permit”". See Competition Tribunal Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. 19 (2nd Supp.), s. 9(2); Competition Tribunal Rules, Rule 2(1) and Rule 34(1); Knight v. Indian Head School Division No. 19, 1990 CanLII 138 (SCC), [1990] 1 S.C.R. 653 at 685.