Meng Wanzhou extradition battle could stretch past November, as Canada seeks to deny Huawei executive access to documents
- Canadian government lawyer says extending case is a possibility, after warning of litigation over ‘privileged’ documents
- Formal hearings set to begin next week with arguments about whether the case satisfies the extradition requirement of ‘double criminality’
The extradition battle over Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou could stretch beyond November after lawyers for both sides warned of new litigation to force Canada to disclose more documents related to her case.
The disclosure fight is likely to compel changes to the scheduling of Meng’s formal extradition hearings in Vancouver, although these will begin on Monday, regardless, more than 13 months after Meng was arrested at the city’s international airport at the request of the US.
There have already been months of preliminary hearings.
Canadian government lawyers acting on behalf of the US said at a case-management conference at the British Columbia Supreme Court on Friday that they would likely seek to deny Meng access to some requested evidence, asserting privilege over the documents.
That would mean this issue might have to be litigated at an April hearing already scheduled to discuss other matters.