Supreme Court will not hear challenge to government's reworking of wheat board

OTTAWA - The federal government has won another court battle over its changes to the Canadian Wheat Board.

The Supreme Court of Canada says it will not hear an appeal by eight former board directors of a lower-court ruling.

In 2011, the government stripped the board of its marketing monopoly on western wheat and barley.

The former directors argued Ottawa broke a law that governed the wheat board by not first holding a plebiscite among producers about its intentions.

The former directors won in Federal Court, but that was overturned in the Federal Court of Appeal.

But it's unlikely to be the end of the battle: a coalition of wheat board supporters has filed a lawsuit seeking damages or an order forcing Ottawa to restore the wheat board's monopoly.

As is its usual practice, the Supreme Court did not release details on why it decided not to hear the appeal.