Federal Court Refuses To Recognize Common Interest Privilege In The Transactional Context

The doctrine of "common interest privilege" ensures that a document or communication that is already protected by solicitor-client or litigation privilege does not lose that protection when it is shared between two parties sharing a "common interest" in either litigation or a transaction. In a lengthy decision released on December 12, 2016, the Federal Court refused to recognize the version of this doctrine that has become known as "transactional common interest privilege." Iggillis Holdings Inc. v. Canada (National Revenue), 2016 FC 1352 (Iggillis) is significant because, in the words of the Court itself, it stands as the "first Canadian decision that concludes that [common interest privilege] should be limited to litigation-related matters."