DOJ Froze Canada Cooperation Over Misread Email
DOJ Froze Canada Cooperation Over Misread Email
The News
The Justice Department's antitrust division halted all cooperation with the Canadian government this week after a senior official misread an instruction, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
Lynda Marshall, chief of the antitrust division's international section, had been told to push back a scheduled meeting. Instead she sent staff an email with the subject line "Pause on Canada" ordering them to stop all case cooperation and policy engagement with Canadian authorities.
Marshall gave no reason in the email, writing only that she would "circle back if the guidance changes," according to the Journal. She corrected herself later Friday, and the division has resumed working with Canada.
Timeline
Trade talks between Washington and Ottawa break down, with the U.S. and Canada imposing tariffs on each other.
Marshall sends the "Pause on Canada" email after being told to reschedule a meeting, instructing the antitrust division to stop all work with the Canadian government.
A follow-up email goes to section chiefs demanding lists of every area of cooperation with Canada by the end of the day. Later the same day, Marshall tells staff she was mistaken and that cooperation can continue.
The Wall Street Journal publishes the account; Reuters and other outlets pick it up.
Reactions
Justice Department spokeswoman Emily Covington told the Journal that the stop-work directive followed a misunderstanding — Marshall had been told only to push back a scheduled meeting.
Representatives for Canada and its Competition Bureau did not respond to the Journal's request for comment.
What's Next
The antitrust division is back at work with its Canadian counterparts, according to the Journal. The larger question is the trade fight itself: tariffs remain in place on both sides after talks collapsed last month, and there is no announced date for negotiations to resume.
More
The freeze, brief as it was, touched a long-running partnership. The Journal noted that U.S. and Canadian antitrust authorities have multiple agreements in place to deepen cooperation and have worked joint investigations since the 2000s — including price-fixing probes in the auto parts and air cargo industries and merger cases in tech, aerospace and other sectors.
Poll
What does this episode say about the Justice Department?
UMass Dartmouth Running Back, 18, Stabbed to Death
Trump Vows 'AI Force,' Czar; Polls Name Change
Sep 20, 2026
Iran Sends Trump Three Conditions to End War
Sep 19, 2026
Faulty AI Intel Nearly Started War With China
Sep 19, 2026
German General Breuer Elected NATO's Top Officer
Sep 19, 2026
Nobel Laureate: War, Sanctions Crushing Iranians
Sep 19, 2026
Dutch Police Disperse Violent Far-Right Hague Protest
Sep 19, 2026
GOP Midterm Odds Fade With 45 Days Left
Sep 19, 2026
Maher Rejects Tarlov's Claim Democrats Are Less Crazy
Sep 19, 2026
Patrick Clancy Breaks Silence After Ex-Wife Killed Kids
Sep 19, 2026
Trump Cuts Park Staff, Diverts Fees to DC
Sep 19, 2026
Holocaust Heirs Sue LA Museums Over Looted Art
Sep 19, 2026
Trump's Fed Chair Hikes Rates, Defying White House
Sep 19, 2026
Miller Drives Push to Deport Illegal Immigrant Children
Sep 19, 2026
US Lifts Sanctions on Eritrea's Military, Ruling Party
Sep 19, 2026
Air Force Admits US Has Space Weapons
Sep 19, 2026
Turkey Revokes License of Iran's Mellat Bank
Sep 19, 2026
Billionaire Ratcliffe Blasts Britain Over Immigration, Taxes
Sep 19, 2026
Navajo Nation Flash Flood Kills Three
Sep 19, 2026
Explosions Over Riyadh Trigger Saudi Air Alerts
Sep 19, 2026
Sep 19, 2026