The federal government won't appeal an Ontario Superior Court ruling that struck down part of the Elections Act, leaving Canada without a law specifically prohibiting the spreading of misinformation about candidates or party leaders during a federal election.
Ontario Superior Court Justice Breese Davies ruled that a section of the Canada Election Act which prohibited the act of circulating false information during an election was an unjustifiable restriction on Canadians' right to free speech.
The section was added to the election law in 2018 as part of Bill C-76. Section 91 (1) of that legislation makes it against the law to make a false statement during an election about whether a candidate, a prospective candidate, the leader of a political party or a public figure associated with a political party is under investigation or has committed an offence.
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