Verbitskaia v. Canada ( Minister of Citizenship and Immigration )
A-979-91
Strayer J.A
6/10/94
3 pp.
In July 1994, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration announcing regulations would be adopted whereby failed refugee claimants would be entitled, if still in Canada after three years had elapsed from date of negative decision of Board on their refugee claim, and if certain other conditions met, to apply for landing-Announcement resulting in several applications for adjournment of cases scheduled for hearing in this Court-Since announcement, those appellants concerned if successful in appeal and Board decision set aside, any right they might soon have under new regulations to apply for landing would be eliminated along with quashing of existing negative Board decision rejecting claim-Applications for adjournments of appeals rejected in two cases on basis adoption and content of regulations matters of speculation, and even if adopted as suggested, any problems created for appellants would be attributable to regulations and not to fact Court decided to hear appeals as scheduled-Following these decisions, appellants herein, in order to achieve similar purpose, applied that Court, while granting consent order setting aside CRDD's negative decision on appellants' refugee claim, should attach condition "preserving" date of previous negative decision for any administrative purposes under Immigration Act or regulations-In effect, such condition amounting to direction regulation be interpreted and applied so as to ensure appellants' three qualifying years would still start to run on date of original negative decision (May 9, 1991), notwithstanding fact it has been set aside-Appeal allowed as consented to by respondent, namely Board order set aside and matter referred back for redetermination, but request to preserve date of previous negative decision refused-No authority for such extraordinary order-Would also be wrong in principle for same reasons adjournments refused: consequences for appellants with respect to applications for landing, as failed refugee claimants not yet removed from Canada, will flow from future regulations, and government policy embodied therein, not from decisions of Court-Immigration Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. I-2.