Meng Wanzhou returns to court as U.S. election looms and political pressures mount | CBC News

courtroom next week as her lawyers launch their latest attempt to end extradition proceedings against the Huawei executive.

Meng's defence team will argue that the United States provided Canada with a misleading record of the case against her when they sought Meng's arrest on fraud and conspiracy charges in Vancouver in December 2018.

Supreme Court justice overseeing the case that Meng's rights have been violated.

But they believe Canada's justice minister will face increasing pressure to intervene due to allegations of political interference and China's ongoing detention of Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor.

University of British Columbia professor Michael Byers, who holds the Canada Research Chair in Global Politics and International Law, says everyone with a stake in the Meng case — politicians, lawyers and the defendant herself — is likely watching the upcoming U.S.

foreign policy, and the Meng extradition request might come into play in that regard," Byers said.

Starting Monday, Meng's lawyers hope to convince Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes that claims about the U.S.

Byers said it is rare for judges to end extradition proceedings based on the underlying record of the case. .

Diab and his family are now suing the federal government over the role Canada played in his extradition — including allegations that "convincing and crucial evidence" was kept from the extradition judge, such as the fact Canadian officials had determined that Diab's fingerprints didn't appear to match those of the suspected bomber.

"The extradition system is premised on almost a presumption that the individual will be transferred," Byers said.

Vancouver lawyer Gary Botting, who has written a book on Canadian extradition law, agreed with Byers that the prospects are slim for a stay in Meng's case.

Botting's view of the proceedings is in line with those of 19 high-profile Canadians — including former Liberal cabinet minister Allan Rock and former Supreme Court Justice Louise Arbour — who have called on Justice Minister David Lametti to end them.

Their rationale is based on a legal opinion from prominent defence lawyer Brian Greenspan, who concluded that although a justice minister doesn't normally weigh in on extradition until the judicial phase of the process has concluded, the Extradition Act gives Lametti the right to free Meng at any time.

In an open letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Rock, Arbour and others said they were writing as Canadians "deeply concerned about the prolonged and unlawful detention" of Kovrig, a former diplomat, and Spavor, an entrepreneur, who have been in Chinese custody since the days immediately following Meng's 2018 arrest.

He said he was peripherally involved in the late 90s in the case that saw Spain try to extradite the late Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet from the United Kingdom, where he was arrested while seeking medical treatment.

Meng is playing," he said.