In an interesting article published today by the Globe and Mail, the Globe reported that the new head of the RCMP, Bob Paulson who was named RCMP Commissioner last month, is taking a new “tough line on white-collar crime” (See: New RCMP head takes tough line on white-collar crime), particularly in relation to major fraud and securities law investigations.
Mr. Paulson indicated that rather than waiting for securities regulators to “throw [enforcement officials] bones”, enforcement officials should:
“… go to the arena where the crime is happening … see who is doing it, and [get] in there. You talk to humans, … recruit sources, … do undercover operations. … get evidence in the near term and … bring it to court.”
This Globe note earlier today caught my eye as it follows a recent law enforcement trend by both the Conservative government generally and key Canadian regulatory officials.
For example, an extensive federal omnibus crime bill was recently passed that will, among other things, significantly restrict conditional sentences (e.g., sentences served in the community for criminal offences) including for some competition law offences:
The Commissioner of Competition, the enforcement official we most often watch, has also recently been discussing a tougher enforcement stance for the Competition Act:
Commissioner of Competition Addresses Current Enforcement Priorities in Two Wide-ranging Talks in Vancouver and Commissioner of Competition Speech Highlights Enhanced Competition Bureau Enforcement.
If the Commissioner of Competition’s recent efforts are any indication, which have included cases brought against The Canadian Real Estate Association and Toronto Real Estate Board (abuse of dominance / monopoly cases), Bell and Rogers (alleged misleading advertising cases) and Visa/Mastercard (a civil price maintenance case in relation to merchant fees), we may indeed be in for tougher enforcement from our regulatory enforcement bodies, including in relation to securities law violations and fraud offences.
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Templates/precedents and checklists to run promotional contests in Canada
Templates/precedents and checklists to comply with Canadian anti-spam law (CASL)
