In what circumstances have lawyers been granted injunctions to exempt themselves from the operation of regulations under the Proceeds of Crime Act?

In Law Society of British Columbia v. Canada (Attorney General), 2001 BCSC 1593 (upheld in the British Columbia Court of Appeal, 2002 BCCA 49) the issue related to an application brought by The Law Society of British Columbia to exempt lawyers from the operation of the regulations under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) Act, S.C. 2000, c. 17. As Manitoba properly identified in its explanation distinguishing that case, the statute in question required a wide range of financial actors, such as banks, investment counsellors and accountants to report on their clients’ transactions. An injunction was granted exempting lawyers from the operation of the regulations on the basis that this served to protect solicitor-client privilege. As emphasized by Manitoba in the present case, the public benefit in The Law Society of British Columbia case was that the clients would be able to get advice from the lawyers knowing their confidentiality was protected. The fact that the injunction was limited to lawyers also meant that the overall policy objectives of the statute remained largely unimpeded.