A Government inspection report (the “Report”) was placed before the Court to secure a Receivership Order in respect of a feeder cooperative. Two unnamed individuals applied for a Sealing Order to prevent public disclosure of the Report on the basis that, if it were publicly released, it would damage their reputation and standing in the community (the “Application”). The Court inferred from the Report that the two individuals benefited personally by engaging in improper or unethical practices while holding positions of influence at the feeder cooperative.

Justice Douglas noted that a Sealing Order for a particular document is a species of Restricted Court Access Order that is procedurally governed by Rules 6.28 ­­- 6.36, which the parties had followed, including notifying the media. The Court applied the test for restricted access as set out in Sherman Estate v Donovan, 2021 SCC 25, to the facts of the case. In the end, the Application was dismissed, primarily because the two individuals were unable to establish an important public interest under the first part of the test.