Does my judicial review become pointless if I leave Canada before it is decided?

Not automatically. Leaving Canada, whether voluntarily or through removal, can affect whether the Federal Court decides the case still serves a real, practical purpose, since the original dispute was often tied to remaining in or entering Canada. But courts have gone on to decide judicial reviews even after a person has left, where there is still an ongoing practical effect worth resolving — for example, an impact on future admissibility, or a broader legal question that matters beyond the individual case.

Whether a specific case remains worth pursuing after departure depends heavily on what relief is actually being sought and what difference a favourable decision would still make. A case focused narrowly on stopping a specific removal that has already happened is more vulnerable to being treated as moot than one where the underlying legal status or future consequences are still genuinely in play.

Anyone who has left Canada, or is at risk of being removed, while a judicial review is pending should get this assessed specifically for their situation rather than assuming the case is automatically over, since the answer depends on the particular facts involved.