Case information

Civil procedure — Injunctions — Interim preservation order — Court granting interim preservation order to respondent to preserve assets seized during a drug trafficking investigation, including vehicles, currency, and valuables — Applicants arguing items seized were personal and not crime-related — Application judge finding test for granting order was met — Application judge finding respondent demonstrated a serious question to be tried as to whether the items seized were an instrument of crime or the proceeds of crime — Application judge finding order must be granted because applicants failed to demonstrate order was contrary to the interests of justice — Court of Appeal upholding order — Whether application raises issue of public importance.

Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.

The Director of Civil Forfeiture applied for an interim preservation order (IPO) to preserve the property the RCMP seized from the applicants during an investigation into the trafficking of controlled substances, including vehicles, currency, and valuables. The Supreme Court of British Columbia granted the order, finding that the two-part test for granting an IPO was met. The Court of Appeal for British Columbia upheld the IPO and found that the applicants failed to demonstrate that the IPO was contrary to the interests of justice.