Anti-terrorism Act upheld.

At the Air India trial in Vancouver, the Crown and the RCMP had been trying to force an unco-operative witness to answer questions in a closed hearing. Lawyers for the witness argued that the witness's Charter right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure, which includes privacy rights, would be violated if he was forced to testify. However, the Crown argued that the Anti-Terrorism Act allows a judge to compel a witness to testify if there are reasonable grounds to believe that a terrorist offence has been or will be committed. The Supreme Court of Canada upheld the validity of the new Act. The majority decision said "The challenge for democracies in the battle against terrorism is to balance an effective response with fundamental democratic values that respect the importance of human life, liberty, and the rule of law ... s. 83.28 of the Criminal Code meets that challenge." The Court further stated "Judges bring the full weight of their authority to the hearing to provide all the constitutional guarantees of the Charter, and the failure to do so will constitute on the part of the hearing judge a reviewable error."

Application under section 83.28 of the Criminal Code 2004 SCC 42