news Paul Magder and Clayton Ruby Trying to Appeal Ford Decision to Supreme Court

Case trying to remove Rob Ford from office on conflict of interest violations not quite over yet.

In response to this morning’s decision by an appeals court to overturn a decision removing Rob Ford from office as mayor of Toronto following on alleged conflict of interest violations, the citizen who launched the case and his lawyer, Clayton Ruby, have announced that they will be seeking leave to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Here is the full text of their statement—



The Court has let Rob Ford off on a technicality. We find that disappointing, particularly since the Court found that Mr. Paul Magder was right on the facts. We believe that there are serious errors of law in the judgment and we will ask the Supreme Court of Canada for leave to appeal to that Court. It must be acknowledged that such appeals are not easy but this remains an important issue for all citizens. Especially troubling is the finding that if a politician raises money from lobbyists and directs that money to his or her own personal interest, such abuse is beyond the reach of government oversight. This raises the possibility of American-style Political Action Committee (PAC) fundraising, which should be of great concern to all Canadians. (See Decision, paras. 49 and 70.) No further comments will be made by Mr. Ruby or Mr. Magder.

“Seeking leave to appeal” means that Magder and Ruby need to first persuade the Supreme Court that this case is of sufficient importance and interest, having not just a local impact but implications for broader law, that they should be granted the opportunity to appeal it. They have no automatic right of appeal—they need permission from the court in order to do so.