PM spoke to Wilson-Raybould after SNC-Lavalin was denied a remediation deal

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould almost two weeks after federal prosecutors informed SNC-Lavalin it would not be invited to negotiate a settlement to help the company avoid criminal prosecution.

Court documents show the Director of Public Prosecutions told the engineering and construction giant last Sept. 4 about its decision not to proceed with negotiations towards a remediation agreement to help SNC-Lavalin avoid bribery and fraud charges.

Trudeau has said that he spoke with Wilson-Raybould about the SNC-Lavalin case 13 days later, on Sept. 17.

The Sept. 4 decision date adds new information to the timeline of events — until now, it had appeared that Trudeau spoke with Wilson-Raybould before the prosecutor’s decision not to proceed with the settlement negotiation.

The Globe and Mail newspaper has reported that Wilson-Raybould, who was shuffled into the veterans affairs portfolio in January, was pressured by staff inside the Prime Minister’s Office to help SNC-Lavalin avoid criminal prosecution related to contracts in Libya.

Wilson-Raybould resigned from cabinet last week and has sought legal advice from former Supreme Court justice Thomas Cromwell amid questions over the SNC-Lavalin controversy.

The Canadian Press