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Although the Department of Justice has been coordinating a massive effort to collect subpoenaed documents, Brison declined to disclose his personal emails to the government. Instead, Brison’s lawyer informed the government in December that he preferred to disclose such documents to the court independently. His lawyer noted that Brison has “a privacy interest in the contents of his personal email communications.”

The arrival of Brison’s emails prompted an exchange in the House of Commons Tuesday as Conservative MP Lisa Raitt tried to determine what Prime Minister Justin Trudeau knew about this development. “Today we learned that the former President of the Treasury Board has withheld personal emails from Norman’s lawyers,” Raitt said in the House of Commons. “When did the Prime Minister know that (Brison) was withholding personal emails in this case?”

Raitt also asked about allegations made in December from a witness who told the court that officials in the Canadian Forces and Department of National Defence were using “code words” in documents to avoid having to turn over those records over to Norman’s lawyers. The code words would be different terms for Norman.

Trudeau said it would be inappropriate to comment on the Norman case as it was before the courts. He noted convention indicated that a MP should refrain from discussing ongoing legal procedures in the Commons.

But Raitt pressed the matter, alleging a coverup was underway. “This is all very concerning and it lies at the feet of this prime minister,” she said. “Again, when did the prime minister learn that his minister was withholding personal documents relevant to the Mark Norman case?

Trudeau repeated his first response, declining to answer.

Brison’s application to the court states that he is prepared to co-operate in providing documents relevant to the case, and that he “appreciates Vice-Admiral Norman’s right to make a full answer and defence.”

But it added that he is seeking standing to protect against “unjust and unfounded intrusion and attacks upon his privacy and reputation.”

(With files from the Canadian Press)