Manitoba Judge Vic Toews drops court challenge of ethics commissioner ruling

Manitoba Judge Vic Toews has dropped his court challenge of a federal ethics commissioner's ruling that found he violated the Conflict of Interest Act when he received money from two Manitoba First Nations.

A Federal Court document shows Toews, a former federal Conservative cabinet minister, filed a notice of discontinuance earlier this month.

Federal ethics commissioner Mary Dawson ruled in April that Toews violated the Act when he received money for consulting services he performed just after leaving office in July 2013.

Toews became a Court of Queen's Bench judge in 2014.

After her ruling, the Canadian Judicial Council said it opened a file on Toews and was reviewing his conduct.

The council then said its inquiry would be put on hold until his legal challenge played out in the court.

A spokesperson for the council told CBC Friday it will decide next week if it will resume the inquiry into Toews's conduct.

Toews has said that Dawson's findings were "inaccurate" and "inconsistent with the evidence" presented to her.

His lawyer, Robert Tapper, said Toews was confident of winning the federal court action. But he decided to drop the appeal because it would have delayed resolution of proceedings before the judicial council, Tapper said.

Toews served as a member of Parliament for nearly 13 years and was in Stephen Harper's cabinet for 7 1/2 years.

He served as president of the treasury board and public safety minister, and also was Canada's justice minister from February 2006 to January 2007.