Thirty Years After: Anton Piller Orders and the Supreme and Federal Courts of Canada

Thirty years have passed since the creation of the Anton Piller order; an interlocutory order that allows a plaintiff to demand access to a defendant’s premises so as to search for infringing property and documents where there is a real threat that such evidence will be lost if the action was to commence in the normal way. During the passage of this time, the Federal Court of Canada, which has a special jurisdiction over intellectual property disputes, has developed an innovative Rolling Anton Piller order that is of particular attraction to holders of intellectual property. In July 2006, Canada’s highest appellate court had its first opportunity to rule on an Anton Piller order, although not a rolling order. This paper discusses some unintended consequences that the decision of the Supreme Court of Canada may have on rolling Anton Piller orders.