A-162-75
Gilbert Thomas Hinton and Jill Hinton
(Applicants)
v.
The Minister of Manpower and Immigration
(Respondent)
Court of Appeal, Pratte, Urie and Ryan JJ.—
Vancouver, April 25, 1975.
Judicial review—Deportation order—Remarks of Special
Inquiry Officer suggesting to proceed without counsel—Enti-
tlement to counsel under s. 26 of Immigration Act—Special
inquiry illegally conducted—Deportation order set aside
Federal Court Act, s. 28.
APPLICATION for judicial review.
COUNSEL:
D. J. Rosenbloom for applicants.
G. C. Carruthers for respondent.
SOLICITORS:
Gibbons, Rosenbloom, Baigent & Germaine,
Vancouver, for applicants.
Deputy Attorney General of Canada for
respondent.
The reasons for judgment of the Court were
delivered orally in English by
PRATTE J.: We are all of the view that this
application should succeed, and that the deporta
tion order made against the applicants should be
quashed.
Under section 26 of the Immigration Act, "The
person concerned, if he so desires ... has the right
to obtain and to be represented by counsel at his
hearing". In our view, this section presupposes that
the person concerned has the right to decide
whether or not he will be represented by counsel
without any suggestion or interference from the
Special Inquiry Officer. In the present case, cer
tain of the remarks made by the Special Inquiry
Officer, could be interpreted by the person con
cerned as an invitation to proceed without the
assistance of counsel. For these reasons the
requirements of section 26(2) were not met and, as
a consequence, the special inquiry which resulted
in the deportation order here in question was
illegally conducted.
You are being directed to the most recent version of the statute which may not be the version considered at the time of the judgment.