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Canadian Charter - Administrative law - Judicial review - Elections - Decision of Chief Electoral Officer to approve merger of two political parties -Was it proper for the courts below to deny relief in spite of their finding that the registration of the merger was unlawful? Does s. 401(2) of the Canada Elections Act require that the Chief Electoral Officer notify officers of the merging parties before he extinguishes those parties by merging them into another party? - Can the parties merge even if the constitution of one of the parties prohibits merger? - Did the courts below err in failing to find that the Chief Electoral Officer's registration of the merger on the same day that he received the application contravened s. 3 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms? - Did the courts below err in holding that the merger application was prima facie valid?

The Applicant is a veteran member of the Progressive Conservative Party ("PC Party") who opposed a merger with the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance (the "Alliance"). The leader of the PC Party, Peter MacKay, signed an agreement in principle ("AIP") with Stephen Harper, leader of the Alliance on October 15, 2003 to create a "national force...called the Conservative Party of Canada" ("CPC"). The AIP was approved by Alliance members on December 4, 2003 and by the PC Party members on December 6, 2003. A court application, an appeal and an arbitration brought by certain members of the PC Party concerning, inter alia, the legality of the vote on the proposed merger determined that the PC Party constitution had not been contravened. On Sunday, December 7, 2003, the leaders of both parties submitted an application for merger to the Chief Electoral Officer ("CEO") in accordance with s. 400 of the Canada Elections Act (the "Act"). The CEO approved the merger on the same day and amended the political party registry accordingly. The Applicant expressed his concern to the CEO about the propriety of the approval being granted on the day of the application, and about the CEO's failure to allow him the opportunity to express his views. The basis of his claim was that the merger resolution was contrary to the PC Party constitution and that certain required steps had not ben completed. The CEO refused his request to reconsider the merger decision on December 17, 2003. The Applicant sought judicial review of both decisions. On judicial review and on appeal, the courts agreed that the CEO had failed to observe the 30 day delay before approving the merger application, as required by the Act, but declined to grant any remedy because the non-observance of this delay did not have any consequences.