September 19, 2025
2025 BCCA 197 Named Persons v. Canada (Attorney General)

2025 BCCA 197 Named Persons v. Canada (Attorney General)

The BC Court of Appeal recently addressed various issues arising from a civil trial held in camera.   
We now know, due to the Court of Appeal’s decision, that the trial involved a claim for damages by confidential informants against the Attorney General of Canada for disclosing information tending to identify the informants.  
In very extensive reasons, the trial judge awarded the informants tort damages and Charter damages.   The trial judge later determined that an edited version of the judgment could be released to the public.
The informants appealed the quantum of damages awarded to them.  The Attorney General of Canada cross-appealed the award of Charter damages and the trial judge’s decision to release a redacted version of the trial judgment to the public.  
The BC Court of Appeal dismissed the informants’ appeal and allowed the Attorney General’s cross appeal.   
The appeal judgment was released to the parties in June 2025 but sealed.   The court released a heavily redacted version to the public on September 10, 2025. 
The case represents another step towards the “err on the side of caution” approach by subordinating the open court principle to the informant privilege.   The Court of Appeal reject the trial judge’s conclusion that the trial judgment could be redacted to prevent identification of the confidential informants.  Even though the case did not involve anonymous informants (removing the need to guess at what information might tend to identify the informant), the Court of Appeal appears to have come very close to not releasing reasons at all.  Paragraph 198 seems to suggest the court released its redacted reasons largely because the informants themselves were content to have the judgment released in this form.