Federal Court of Appeal dismisses challenge of federal firearms ban

A restricted gun licence holder holds a AR-15 at his home in Langley, B.C. on May 1, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

OTTAWA — The Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed a challenge of a government ban on firearms that Ottawa considers fit only for the battlefield, not hunting or sport shooting.

The Liberals outlawed some 1,500 firearm models and variants in May 2020, meaning they could no longer be legally used, sold or imported.

The move was generally applauded by gun control advocates as a first step toward removing firearms used in mass shootings from circulation.

In October 2023, a Federal Court judge dismissed a request from opponents of the ban to strike it down as unlawful and beyond the scope of powers delegated to the government.

A not-for-profit advocacy organization, firearm owners, businesses, hunters, and recreational and sport shooters appealed the ruling.

In its decision made public Tuesday, the Federal Court of Appeal rejected the latest challenge, saying the Federal Court delivered “thorough and persuasive” reasons.

The list of guns outlawed by the Liberal government has grown to more than 2,500 varieties of what it calls assault-style firearms -- semi-automatics with sustained rapid-fire capability.

Government officials say some 19,000 unique makes and models of non-restricted firearms remain available for hunting or sport shooting in Canada.

A key element of the appeal was whether the government adhered to a provision of the law forbidding it from using regulations to outlaw a firearm if it deems the gun “reasonable for use in Canada for hunting or sporting purposes.”

Writing on behalf of a unanimous three-judge panel, Court of Appeal Chief Justice Yves de Montigny said he was not persuaded that the government erred in considering public safety in assessing whether the prohibited firearms were reasonable for use in Canada for such purposes.

“It may well be that, from the sole perspective of a sensible hunter or sportsman, it makes no sense to ban firearms that are well suited or even specifically designed for hunting or sport purposes,” he wrote.

However, the federal cabinet is the most senior policy-making body in government and, because of its role at the apex of the executive branch, is best situated to develop government policy and to assess the public interest, the chief justice added.

“Surely, the inherent danger that some firearms pose to public safety because of their lethality and their ability to injure or kill a large number of people in a short period of time, the fact that they have been used in mass shootings in Canada and abroad, the fact that they are disproportionate for civilian use, and the increasing demand for measures to address gun violence are all valid considerations in determining whether their use is reasonable for hunting and sporting purposes.”

The Canadian Coalition for Firearm Rights, one of the parties in the appeal, called the court ruling “bad news” for Canadians.

“The decision is clear, the courts will not constrain the government’s overreach on this issue. This has negative implications on many aspects of the legal and legislative system in Canada,” the group said in a social media post.

“Our legal team will be reviewing the decision in depth over the next while and will advise on next steps.”

By Jim Bronskill

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 15, 2025.