Archive for the 'Competition Bureau' Category
The Competition Bureau announced today that the pre-merger notification size of transaction threshold for 2012 will increase to C $77 million (increased from C $73 million in 2011). The 2012 size of transaction threshold will come into effect on about February 11, 2012 following publication in the Canada Gazette.
The Competition Bureau announced today that it will begin publishing monthly reports of concluded merger reviews, which the Commissioner of Competition Melanie Aitken had referred to in recent public statements.
In making the announcement the Bureau said:
“The report will contain a list of merger reviews concluded in the prior month where: a pre-merger notification was made under section 114 of the Competition Act; and/or a request was made for an advance ruling certificate under section 102 of the Act.
The report will provide the names of the parties to the transaction, the industry sector involved, and the result of the Bureau’s review.
The first report, for the month of February 2012, will be published at the beginning of March and at the beginning of each month thereafter.”
This announcement is the latest in a number of recent merger related initiatives by the Bureau, which have included a recent Merger Remedies Study Summary, newly updated Merger Review Process Guidelines and Merger Enforcement Guidelines and new Hostile Transactions Interpretation Guidelines.
I saw this rather fine note recently by Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP (Anita Banicevic, Erika Douglas and David Stolow). We are reprinting it with permission.
Businesses operating in Canada should be aware of a recent trend towards greater regulation and enforcement action surrounding pricing representations where additional costs are not clearly disclosed up front. Last week, the Minister of State for Transport announced that the Canada Transportation Agency is proceeding with regulations to require Canadian air carriers to include all fees, charges and taxes in advertised prices. This trend towards requiring up-front disclosure of all fees and charges in any advertised pricing is consistent with the enforcement initiatives recently undertaken by the Competition Bureau (the “Bureau”) as well as the approach taken in recent class actions involving pricing representations brought in Québec and Ontario. The Bureau’s aggressive enforcement approach combined with an increase in class actions concerning pricing representations suggests it may be prudent for businesses to consider disclosing all fees imposed by the seller and applicable to all customers up front in any advertising.
The Competition Bureau announced last Friday in a news release that another seven individuals have pleaded guilty to criminal conspiracy charges in relation to the Bureau’s ongoing gasoline price-fixing investigation in Quebec.
The Vancouver Sun, Montreal Gazette, Huffington Post and others have reported that Rogers has launched constitutional arguments in response to allegations by the federal Competition Bureau that it misled consumers with performance claims in relation to its Chatr cell phone brand.
In particular, according to media reports, Rogers is arguing that the civil “performance claim” provision of the Competition Act is contrary to the freedom of expression rights under the Charter and that the penalties for civil misleading advertising are unconstitutional.
On January 19, 2012, the Competition Tribunal set hearing dates in the ongoing abuse of dominance case The Commissioner of Competition v. The Toronto Real Estate Board (see Scheduling Order).
The evidentiary portion of the hearing in this case is scheduled to begin on September 10, 2012 in Toronto.
A claim against two major real estate boards and their executives for breaching terms of an earlier settlement agreement, common law and Competition Act conspiracy and certain economic torts survived a motion to dismiss last week. The reasons for judgment provide insight into the sufficiency of pleadings in cases involving allegations of anti-competitive conspiracies against businesses and their executives.
Last Friday, Mr. Justice Kenneth L. Campbell of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice dismissed a motion by the defendants in Dale v. The Toronto Real Estate Board to dismiss Realtysellers (Ontario) Limited’s (“Realtysellers”) action against The Canadian Real Estate Board (“CREA”), The Toronto Real Estate Board (“TREB”) and 47 other defendants (for a copy of the decision see: Dale v. The Toronto Real Estate Board).
FEBRUARY 1-3, 2012 – Vancouver
The Antitrust Law Section of the American Bar Association and the International Bar Association (IBA) will be holding their bi-annual International Cartel Workshop in Vancouver from February 1-3, 2012 at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver.
From the American Bar Association:
“The International Cartel Workshop, recognized globally as the premier international cartel program offered anywhere, is presented only once every two years. The next Workshop, which will have many new features, will be held in Vancouver, Canada during February 1-3, 2012. The 2012 program will continue the Workshop’s tradition of instruction by demonstration, with experienced faculty from around the globe taking you inside a hypothetical international cartel matter — from detection by government enforcers to the disposition of government prosecutions and private damage claims. The Workshop will also highlight new developments in the law and leniency practices around the world, with leading enforcers and experienced private practitioners demonstrating how critical decisions are made on both sides of the table and providing examples of important interactions between counsel and enforcers. The 2012 Workshop’s international faculty includes many of the most accomplished cartel attorneys in the world, as well as the most senior cartel enforcement officials from a variety of jurisdictions.”
For more information about the joint ABA/IBA Cartel Workshop see:
American Bar Association – Antitrust International Cartel Workshop
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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)
