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Immigration In Canada

November 26, 2011 by · Comments Off on Immigration In Canada 

Immigration In Canada, Federal Court of Canada judges appointed by Conservatives are significantly less likely to overturn decisions by government officers and tribunals, to deny refugee claims or deport non-citizens, than are judges appointed by past Liberal administrations.

And an applicant’s likelihood of success diminishes even further if the appeal or review of their case is heard by judges named to the court in the past three years by Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

The findings come from an Ottawa Citizen analysis of 480 refugee, immigration and citizenship decisions posted to the Federal Court’s website in the first six months of this year. Along with similar findings in academic research, they raise troubling questions about the degree to which the court is delivering consistent justice to those who rely on Canada’s immigration and refugee processes.

The Federal Court hears challenges of decisions – known as judicial reviews – made by the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) and Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) officials. It also rules on applications for stays of removal orders and appeals of decisions by citizenship judges.

In 194 cases studied by the Citizen, Federal Court judges upheld the challenge and over-turned the original decision, sending it back for a new hearing by another officer. In 286 cases, they dismissed the challenge and confirmed the original decision.

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