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*Article written by Rebel News staff

Rebel News Senior Editor Tamara Ugolini caught up with lawyer Lawrence Greenspon following a hearing in Ottawa today involving Freedom Convoy trucker James Bauder.

Bauder, whose legal representation is being crowdfunded by The Democracy Fund, is facing multiple criminal charges. These include mischief, obstruction, and counselling others to commit indictable offences for his participation in the anti-mandate Freedom Convoy protests in Ottawa in 2022.

Greenspon, who was representing Bauder in court today, explained why the trucker couldn't attend the hearing in Ottawa in-person. "He can't be present in-person, and this was verified before the judge, he can't be present in-person because he would forfeit his application for asylum which is pending in the United States," he said.

"We basically said to the judge, look in light of that, why don't we adjourn the trial and see how things go on the application for asylum. And the judge was not willing to do that and issued a warrant for James Bauder's arrest," Greenspon continued.

I’m here at the Ottawa court house for the hearing of James Bauder, being criminally charged for his participation in the 2022 Freedom Convoy. He’s taken interesting action to seek political asylum in the United States as a result pic.twitter.com/zfk773tiY8

— Tamara Ugolini 🇨🇦 (@TamaraUgo) August 27, 2025

Speaking about Bauder's chances of getting extradited to Canada prior to his November trial date, Greenspon said he doubts the U.S. would take that action.

"There is of course an extradition treaty between Canada and the United States, but while an application for asylum is pending, and this is really a matter of U.S. law, I can't imagine that they would act on an extradition request from Canada, if there was one even forthcoming," he said.

Greenspon added that he doesn't anticipate Bauder returning to Canada for his trial in November.

The lawyer also had a final message for political dissidents and people protesting government overreach in Canada: "My message is that if you have freedom of expression and you express yourself in a peaceful way, and you assemble in a peaceful way, than that should ... trump any infringement on rights to enjoyment of property."