The Federal Court of Appeal () is a Canadian

appellate court An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear a case upon appeal from a trial court or other lower tribunal. Appel ...

that hears cases concerning federal matters.

History

Section 101 of the

Constitution Act, 1867 The ''Constitution Act, 1867'' ( 30 & 31 Vict. c. 3) (),''The Constitution Act, 1867'', 30 & 31 Victoria (U.K.), c. 3, http://canlii.ca/t/ldsw retrieved on 2019-03-14. originally enacted as the ''British North America Act, 1867'' (BNA Act), ...

empowers the

Parliament of Canada The Parliament of Canada () is the Canadian federalism, federal legislature of Canada. The Monarchy of Canada, Crown, along with two chambers: the Senate of Canada, Senate and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, form the Bicameral ...

to establish "additional Courts for the better Administration of the Laws of Canada". In 1971, Parliament created the

Federal Court of Canada The Federal Court of Canada, which succeeded the Exchequer Court of Canada in 1971, was a national court of Canada that had limited jurisdiction to hear certain types of disputes arising under the Parliament of Canada, federal government's Canadi ...

, which consisted of two divisions: the Trial Division (which replaced the

Exchequer Court of Canada In the civil service of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's Exchequer, or just the Exchequer, is the accounting process of central government and the government's '' current account'' (i.e., money held from taxation and other government revenues) ...

) and the Appeal Division. On July 2, 2003, the ''Courts Administration Service Act'' split the Federal Court of Canada into two separate courts, with the Federal Court of Appeal succeeding the Appeal Division and the new Federal Court succeeding the Trial Division.

Appellate jurisdiction

The Federal Court of Appeal hears appeals from the Federal Court and the

Tax Court of Canada The Tax Court of Canada (TCC; ), established in 1983 by the ''Tax Court of Canada Act'', is a federal superior court which deals with matters involving companies or individuals and tax issues with the Government of Canada. Jurisdiction Appeal ...

Original jurisdiction

The Federal Court of Appeal has original jurisdiction over applications for judicial review and appeals in respect of certain federal tribunals. Federal tribunals that are subject to judicial review under s. 28 of the ''Federal Court Act'' include the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, the Canadian International Trade Tribunal, the Canadian Energy Regulator, the Canada Industrial Relations Board, the Copyright Board, the Canadian Transportation Agency, the Competition Tribunal, the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Tribunal and the Specific Claims Tribunal established by the Specific Claims Tribunal Act.

Salaries

Salaries are determined annually by the Judicial Compensation and Benefits Commission. As of 2020, the chief justice's salary is $344,400 and the other judges, including the supernumerary judges, earn $314,100 annually.

Notable decisions

In April 2014, the court ruled in favour of the

Métis people The Métis ( , , , ) are a mixed-race Indigenous people whose historical homelands include Canada's three Prairie Provinces extending into parts of Ontario, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the northwest United States. They hav ...

in a case involving extending protections to

Aboriginal peoples in Canada Indigenous peoples in Canada (also known as Aboriginals) are the Indigenous peoples within the boundaries of Canada. They comprise the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis, representing roughly 5.0% of the total Canadian population. There are over ...

who lived off-reserve. In September 2015, the court dismissed an appeal by the

Government of Canada The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...

over a ruling by the Federal Court that found a rule banning the Niqāb at citizenship ceremonies to be unconstitutional.

Appointments

References

External links

*
''Federal Courts Act''
{{Authority control Canadian appellate courts Federal Court of Canada 2003 establishments in Canada Courts and tribunals established in 2003