Federal immigration committee investigating allegations misled judge

OTTAWA — The House of Commons committee on immigration has called an urgent meeting to consider allegations that the department misled a federal judge in a trademark infringement case, which the former Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino categorically denies this.

The allegations stem from the creation of a new college to regulate immigration consultants in 2020.

An existing company called the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council sued the government in federal court over the use of a similar name: College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants.

On the day of the hearing, the Privy Council posted an order on its website stating that the law establishing the college had come into force.

The government issued a press release a few days later, quoting Mendicino, as saying the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Act had come into effect – although it would not come into effect for another two weeks.

Mendicino communications director Alex Cohen said the discrepancy was the result of human error among department officials and the court was notified when the error was discovered.

This report from The Canadian Press was first published on October 9, 2022.

Laura Osman, The Canadian Press