OTTAWA –
The Federal Court is urging the Canadian Security Intelligence Service to “do better” after chastising the spy agency over concerns related to judicial warrants.
The ruling from Federal Court Chief Justice Paul Crampton is the court’s latest expression of displeasure with CSIS over its obligation to keep the court informed of problems in a timely way.
A public version of the top secret October 2023 decision was released today.
The ruling describes how CSIS relied on the Communications Security Establishment, Canada’s cyberspy agency, to execute warrants approved by the court.
It later emerged, through a spy watchdog report, that the CSE had disclosed information about Canadians in a way that contradicted key principles CSIS had previously outlined to the court.
In his ruling, Crampton says CSIS must ensure that such third parties, such as the CSE, live up to the same standards that apply to the intelligence service itself.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 30, 2024.
