Supreme Court confirms in R. v. Comeau that provinces can restrict interprovincial trade in beer and other goods
On October 6, 2012, New Brunswick resident Gerard Comeau was stopped by the RCMP at the Quebec/New Brunswick border with 354 bottles or cans of beer and two bottles of whiskey. Mr. Comeau stood accused, under section 134(b) of the Liquor Control Act (New Brunswick), of having in his possession an excessive amount of liquor not purchased from the New Brunswick Liquor Corporation (the “Corporation”). Mr. Comeau challenged the constitutionality of this statutory provision by invoking section 121 of the Constitution Act, 1867.