Federal Courts Act
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 1 — Short title
This Act may be cited as the Federal Courts Act .
Section 2 — Definitions
In this Act, action for collision includes an action for damage caused by one or more ships to another ship or ships or to property or persons on board another ship or ships as a result of carrying…
Section 3 — Federal Court — Appeal Division continued
The division of the Federal Court of Canada called the Federal Court — Appeal Division is continued under the name “Federal Court of Appeal” in English and “Cour d’appel fédérale” in French. It is…
Section 4 — Federal Court — Trial Division continued
The division of the Federal Court of Canada called the Federal Court — Trial Division is continued under the name “Federal Court” in English and “Cour fédérale” in French. It is continued as an…
Section 5 — Constitution of Federal Court of Appeal
The Federal Court of Appeal consists of a chief justice called the Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Appeal, who is the president of the Federal Court of Appeal, and 14 other judges. For each…
Section 5.1 — Constitution of Federal Court
The Federal Court consists of a chief justice called the Chief Justice of the Federal Court, who is the president of the Federal Court, an associate chief justice called the Associate Chief Justice…
Section 5.2 — Appointment of judges
The judges of the Federal Court of Appeal and the Federal Court are to be appointed by the Governor in Council by letters patent under the Great Seal.
Section 5.3 — Who may be appointed judge
A person may be appointed a judge of the Federal Court of Appeal or the Federal Court if the person is or has been a judge of a superior, county or district court in Canada; is or has been a…
Section 5.4 — Judges from Quebec
At least five of the judges of the Federal Court of Appeal and at least 10 of the judges of the Federal Court must be persons who have been judges of the Court of Appeal or of the Superior Court of…
Section 6 — Rank and precedence
The Chief Justices of the Federal Court of Appeal and the Federal Court and the other judges of those courts have rank and precedence among themselves in the following order: the Chief Justice of the…
Section 7 — Residence of judges
The judges of the Federal Court of Appeal and the Federal Court shall reside in the National Capital Region described in the schedule to the National Capital Act or within 40 kilometres of that…
Section 8 — Tenure of office
Subject to subsection (2), the judges of the Federal Court of Appeal and the Federal Court hold office during good behaviour, but are removable by the Governor General on address of the Senate and…
Section 9 — Oath of office for judges
Before judges of the Federal Court of Appeal or the Federal Court begin to perform their duties as judges, they shall take an oath that they will duly and faithfully execute their powers and trusts…
Section 10 — Deputy judges of the Federal Court of Appeal
Subject to subsection (3), any judge of a superior, county or district court in Canada, and any person who has held office as a judge of a superior, county or district court in Canada, may, at the…
Section 10.1 — Meetings
The judges of the Federal Court of Appeal shall meet at least once in each year, on a day fixed by the Chief Justice of the court, in order to consider this Act, the Rules and the administration of…
Section 11 — Barrister or advocate
Every person who is a barrister or an advocate in a province may practise as a barrister or an advocate in the Federal Court of Appeal or the Federal Court. Every person who is an attorney or a…
Section 12 — Associate judges
The Governor in Council may appoint as associate judges of the Federal Court any fit and proper persons who are barristers or advocates in a province and who are, in the opinion of the Governor in…
Section 13 — Sheriff
The Governor in Council may appoint a sheriff of the Federal Court of Appeal and of the Federal Court for any geographical area. If no sheriff is appointed under subsection (1) for a court for a…
Section 14 — Designation
The Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Appeal may designate an employee of the Service as the Judicial Administrator of the Federal Court of Appeal, and the Chief Justice of the Federal Court may…
Section 15 — Sittings of the Federal Court
Subject to the Rules, any judge of the Federal Court may sit and act at any time and at any place in Canada for the transaction of the business of the court or any part of it and, when a judge so…
Section 16 — Sittings of the Federal Court of Appeal
Except as otherwise provided in this Act or any other Act of Parliament, every appeal and every application for leave to appeal to the Federal Court of Appeal, and every application for judicial…
Section 17 — Relief against the Crown
Except as otherwise provided in this Act or any other Act of Parliament, the Federal Court has concurrent original jurisdiction in all cases in which relief is claimed against the Crown. Without…
Section 18 — Extraordinary remedies, federal tribunals
Subject to section 28, the Federal Court has exclusive original jurisdiction to issue an injunction, writ of certiorari , writ of prohibition, writ of mandamus or writ of quo warranto , or grant…
Section 18.1 — Application for judicial review
An application for judicial review may be made by the Attorney General of Canada or by anyone directly affected by the matter in respect of which relief is sought. An application for judicial review…
Section 18.2 — Interim orders
On an application for judicial review, the Federal Court may make any interim orders that it considers appropriate pending the final disposition of the application.
Section 18.3 — Reference by federal tribunal
A federal board, commission or other tribunal may at any stage of its proceedings refer any question or issue of law, of jurisdiction or of practice and procedure to the Federal Court for hearing and…
Section 18.4 — Hearings in summary way
Subject to subsection (2), an application or reference to the Federal Court under any of sections 18.1 to 18.3 shall be heard and determined without delay and in a summary way. The Federal Court may,…
Section 18.5 — Exception to sections 18 and 18.1
Despite sections 18 and 18.1, if an Act of Parliament expressly provides for an appeal to the Federal Court, the Federal Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court of Canada, the Court Martial Appeal Court,…
Section 19 — Intergovernmental disputes
If the legislature of a province has passed an Act agreeing that the Federal Court, the Federal Court of Canada or the Exchequer Court of Canada has jurisdiction in cases of controversies between…
Section 20 — Industrial property, exclusive jurisdiction
The Federal Court has exclusive original jurisdiction, between subject and subject as well as otherwise, in all cases of conflicting applications for any patent of invention or for any certificate of…
Section 21
[Repealed, 2014, c. 22, s. 41]
Section 22 — Navigation and shipping
The Federal Court has concurrent original jurisdiction, between subject and subject as well as otherwise, in all cases in which a claim for relief is made or a remedy is sought under or by virtue of…
Section 23 — Bills of exchange and promissory notes — aeronautics and interprovincial works and undertakings
Except to the extent that jurisdiction has been otherwise specially assigned, the Federal Court has concurrent original jurisdiction, between subject and subject as well as otherwise, in all cases in…
Section 24
[Repealed, 2002, c. 8, s. 33]
Section 25 — Extraprovincial jurisdiction
The Federal Court has original jurisdiction, between subject and subject as well as otherwise, in any case in which a claim for relief is made or a remedy is sought under or by virtue of the laws of…
Section 26 — General original jurisdiction
The Federal Court has original jurisdiction in respect of any matter, not allocated specifically to the Federal Court of Appeal, in respect of which jurisdiction has been conferred by an Act of…
Section 27 — Appeals from Federal Court
An appeal lies to the Federal Court of Appeal from any of the following decisions of the Federal Court: a final judgment; a judgment on a question of law determined before trial; an interlocutory…
Section 28 — Judicial review
The Federal Court of Appeal has jurisdiction to hear and determine applications for judicial review made in respect of any of the following federal boards, commissions or other tribunals: [Repealed,…
Section 29 to 35
[Repealed, 1990, c. 8, s. 8]
Section 36 — Prejudgment interest — cause of action within province
Except as otherwise provided in any other Act of Parliament, and subject to subsection (2), the laws relating to prejudgment interest in proceedings between subject and subject that are in force in a…
Section 37 — Judgment interest — causes of action within province
Except as otherwise provided in any other Act of Parliament and subject to subsection (2), the laws relating to interest on judgments in causes of action between subject and subject that are in force…
Section 38
[Repealed, 1990, c. 8, s. 9]
Section 39 — Prescription and limitation on proceedings
Except as expressly provided by any other Act, the laws relating to prescription and the limitation of actions in force in a province between subject and subject apply to any proceedings in the…
Section 40 — Vexatious proceedings
If the Federal Court of Appeal or the Federal Court is satisfied, on application, that a person has persistently instituted vexatious proceedings or has conducted a proceeding in a vexatious manner,…
Section 41
[Repealed, 1990, c. 8, s. 11]
Section 42 — Maritime law continued
Canadian maritime law as it was immediately before June 1, 1971 continues subject to such changes therein as may be made by this Act or any other Act of Parliament.
Section 43 — Jurisdiction in personam
Subject to subsection (4), the jurisdiction conferred on the Federal Court by section 22 may in all cases be exercised in personam . Subject to subsection (3), the jurisdiction conferred on the…
Section 44 — Mandamus , injunction, specific performance or appointment of receiver
In addition to any other relief that the Federal Court of Appeal or the Federal Court may grant or award, a mandamus , an injunction or an order for specific performance may be granted or a receiver…
Section 45 — Giving of judgment after judge ceases to hold office
A judge of the Federal Court of Appeal or the Federal Court who resigns or is appointed to another court or otherwise ceases to hold office may, at the request of the Chief Justice of that court, at…
Section 45.1 — Rules Committee
There shall be a rules committee composed of the following members: the Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Appeal; the Chief Justice or the Associate Chief Justice of the Federal Court; three…