The Alberta government has taken the next step in its challenge of the federal government’s move to create a single Canadian securities regulator.

The specific reference questions Alberta will be using to test the constitutional soundness of the federal plan were filed Friday with the Alberta Court of Appeal.

The filing asks the court to consider whether the federal government has the legislative authority to pass legislation that covers the same substance as the Alberta Securities Act, similar to the draft act proposed by the federal expert panel on securities regulation last January.

The Alberta government is also asking whether Parliament has jurisdiction to pass legislation that would “exclude application” of Alberta’s provincial securities legislation to market players that opt to be regulated under a federal regime; or who have a “substantial connection” to a jurisdiction other than Alberta, as recommended in the expert panel report; or, by other unilateral action.

“We very strongly believe that this is an intrusion by the federal government into an area that has historically been under provincial jurisdiction,” said Ted Morton, Alberta’s Minister of Finance and Enterprise. “This comes down to defending Alberta’s jurisdiction and the rights of Albertans to regulate their own provincial affairs, as well as defending a provincial regulatory system that works well now and better serves the interests of Alberta companies and investors.”

The appeal court will meet with representatives from the provincial and federal governments to establish timelines and procedures for managing the challenge. The province is also intervening in a similar challenge by the Quebec government to the Québec Court of Appeal.