Rule
of law/ Preventing the solicitor-client relationship from being undermined
The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled a federal anti-money laundering law
that forces lawyers to identify sources of their clients’ cash and allows
federal investigators to conduct warrantless searches of law firms is
unconstitutional.
In a ruling Friday, the
high court settled a 15-year-long dispute between Canada’s legal profession and
the federal government. The effect of the decision is to exempt lawyers,
notaries and law offices from the law’s record-keeping, client-identification
and disclosure obligations.
But the law still applies to other financial institutions, banks and
accounting firms who must track their clients’ money trails and may be
subjected to warrantless searches by government authorities.
No comments:
Post a Comment