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On Dec. 16, 2024, the Government of Canada released its long-awaited 2024 Fall Economic Statement. The Statement reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to combatting modern slavery in global supply chains, currently given effect by the existing import ban on goods made with forced or child labour and the mandatory supply chain reporting requirement for certain businesses and government entities. The Statement further announced the Government’s intention to introduce four new measures…

Case Summary - Québec (Attorney General) v. Pekuakamiulnuatsh Takuhikan, 2024 SCC 39 In Québec (Attorney General) v. Pekuakamiulnuatsh Takuhikan (Pekuakamiulnuatsh), the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) ruled that Québec’s refusal to renegotiate funding terms violated the principles of good faith and the honour of the Crown. The SCC ordered Québec to pay damages in line with reconciliatory justice to restore the relationship between the parties. I. Background This case concerns…

Introduction The Liberal government’s Fall Economic Statement arrived last month in the midst of an increasingly uncertain political landscape. Among its many offerings, in the trade sphere, the Statement presents a commitment to use the full range of Canada’s “toolkit” to protect its economic security against unfair conduct from trading partners and to promote reciprocity across Canada’s trading partnerships. This represents a departure from Canada’s traditional approach to international trade…

Following an initial round of consultation held during the summer of 2024, the Competition Bureau (the Bureau) has published its proposed guidelines (the Proposed Guidelines) concerning environmental claims. The Bureau has launched a public consultation to solicit feedback from Canadians on the Proposed Guidelines – the deadline is February 28, 2025. The Proposed Guidelines respond to recent amendments to the Competition Act, which added new explicit provisions targeting misleading environmental benefits claims (greenwashing). Visit…

The number of women on TSX-listed issuers’ boards of directors has increased steadily from 11 per cent to 29 per cent in the last ten years. However, Canadian public companies have yet to collectively cross the widely touted target of having 30 per cent of women on boards. Considering recent data from the Canadian Securities Administrators, we look at why the glass ceiling is noticeably thicker for some women and…

Context Reports out of Washington indicate that the United States is poised to impose “universal” tariffs (that is, tariffs on imports from all its trading partners) on health care and other “critical” goods on the basis of “national security”. This would or could – the situation remains “fluid/uncertain”, as reported – include tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, five years after President Trump agreed to the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement precisely…

On Nov. 28, 2024, the Canadian Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) announced that the Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation (WLON) and the township of Ignace in the province of Ontario were selected as host communities for a repository to be constructed on Revell Lake. The NWMO began its search in 2010 and initially considered 22 potential sites. The NWMO narrowed the site selection process to the following two locations: The Wabigoon Lake Ojibway…

Through the publication of CSA Staff Notice and Consultation 11-348 Applicability of Canadian Securities Laws and the Use of Artificial Intelligence Systems in Capital Markets (the AI Staff Notice), the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) have put registered firms on notice that using AI in virtually any fashion may trigger additional regulatory expectations to demonstrate compliance with securities laws. Best practices for the responsible use of AI All firms should consider…

Introduction On Jan. 10, 2025, the federal Minister of Health released long-awaited guidance on the delivery of insured health care services pursuant to the Canada Health Act (the CHA). The Honourable Mark Holland, Federal Minister of Health (the Minister), issued a letter clarifying the Government’s position that patients should not be charged for services provided by any health professional if those services would otherwise be covered when delivered by a…

On Dec. 19, 2024, the Office of the Alberta Superintendent of Insurance published a revised version of Interpretation Bulletin No. 05-2024 (the Superintendent’s Revised Bulletin) setting out the Superintendent’s position with respect to products commonly marketed by automobile dealerships in conjunction with the sale of motor vehicles. The original Bulletin published by the Superintendent has not substantively changed, and was previously summarized in an article by BLG found here. The Superintendent’s…

On December 12, 2024, the Ontario government launched a consultation for the regulations (the Consultation) under Ontario’s new consumer protection legislation. On December 6, 2023, the new Consumer Protection Act, 2023 (the New CPA) received Royal Assent as part of the Bill 142, the Better for Consumers, Better for Businesses Act, 2023. The substance of the New CPA will be detailed in the Proposed Regulations. Once in force, the New…

Introduction On Dec. 18, 2024, the finalized Clean Energy Regulations (the Regulation) were published in the Canada Gazette, Part II. Aligning with the release of the final version of the Regulation, the Government of Canada published Powering Canada’s Future: A Clean Electricity Strategy (the Electricity Strategy) on Dec. 17, 2024, which notes that the Regulation is one of the measures that the federal government has taken to help build a…

The evolving landscape of state immunity in award-enforcement proceedings in Canada The rise of investor-state disputes, which has taken place globally over the last two decades, has led to a growing number of recognition and enforcement proceedings of foreign arbitral awards before Canadian courts by award creditors seeking to execute against the Canadian assets of delinquent sovereign debtors in the recent years. Against this backdrop, the proceedings initiated by the…

Investment Management Division Report On Nov. 5, 2024, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) published OSC Staff Notice 81-736 (the Staff Notice), summarizing the activities and regulatory focus of the OSC’s Investment Management Division (IM Division), formerly known as the Investment Funds and Structured Products Branch, for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024. This bulletin highlights certain key insights from the Staff Notice, including: New artificial intelligence (AI) and cryptocurrency…

BLG senior counsel, Rambod Behboodi, was invited to appear before the House of Commons Standing Committee on International Trade on Dec. 9, 2024, to share his thoughts on the potential trade impact of Canada’s leadership in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The following is his presentation, with French sections translated into English. Good morning, Madame Chair and members of the Committee. It’s an honour to appear before you to discuss trade…

The legislation to implement Canada’s new system of Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) has been registered with the Privy Counsel and has published. The system will come into effect on January 1, 2025. Canada is required to implement PTA in 2025 to offset administrative delay in granting patents under the terms of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA). Draft amendments to Canada’s Patent Rules were published earlier in the year. The final legislation…

On July 17, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) launched the new MyCIPO Patents online portal for filing, tracking, and managing patents files, as part of their modernization effort and alignment with the World Intellectual Property Office’s ST.27 standard for the Exchange of Patent Legal Status Data. Significant problems began immediately. Initial issues that appear to have been resolved included: the Canadian Patents Database (CPD) being inaccessible for approximately six…

The Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) recently issued its decision in the appeal of Galderma’s second judicial review of the decision of the Patented Medicines Price Review Board (the PMPRB) that it had jurisdiction over Galderma’s Differin® product. In a strongly worded decision, the FCA granted Galderma’s appeal and set aside the PMPRB’s decision, holding that the PMPRB does not have jurisdiction over the price of the unpatented Differin® product.…

The United Kingdom and Switzerland announced, in December 2023, the signing of a ground-breaking mutual recognition agreement in the financial services sector. The Berne Financial Services Agreement, its proponents promise, opens doors hitherto closed, vistas so far unexplored, and markets yet unexploited. This kind of an agreement — or something like it, or something in the ballpark, or something notionally similar — had eluded U.K. officials in the course of…

On Nov. 27, 2024, just one month after many provisions of Ontario’s Working for Workers Five Act, 2024 (Bill 190) received Royal Assent, Ontario has proposed Bill 229, the Working for Workers Six Act, 2024. The new legislation, which builds upon its five predecessors, proposes changes that will affect employers, in particular to the Employment Standards Act (ESA) and the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA). Key proposed changes to…

Although the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Vavilov1 established a general framework for selecting which standard to apply on judicial review, it left open which standard of review applies to reviewing the vires of subordinate legislation, including regulations and guidelines. Vavilov therefore generated lingering uncertainty about whether pre-Vavilov principles still applied in such cases. The SCC had established in Katz Group2  that a regulation would only be struck down…

L’étendue du régime de responsabilité sans égard à la faute prévu à la Loi sur l’assurance automobile (LAA) a été balisée par la Cour supérieure du Québec dans la décision Roberge c. Compagnie General Motors du Canada, 2023 QCCS 4309. Cette décision synthétise les critères d’application des règles de la LAA en présence d’un accident automobile causant un préjudice. Elle constitue un précédent offrant une référence claire en ce qui concerne…

The evolving landscape of fiduciary duties in the investment industry Since the Client-Focused Reforms were introduced in 2019, the investment industry has been closely following whether these reforms will result in Courts imposing fiduciary duties on registrants. Against this backdrop, the proposed class action in Boal v. International Capital Management Inc. et al. (Boal) has been closely watched as a test case. Starting in 2021 and culminating in a 2023…

Over the course of his first term in office, President Trump made no secret of his skepticism towards the World Trade Organization (WTO). In 2018, he threatened to withdraw the United States from the WTO if it did not “shape up”.  During a White House press briefing in September of 2020, he stated that “the WTO, as far as I’m concerned, was created to suck money and jobs out of…

On Oct. 11, 2024, the Supreme Court of Canada (the SCC) released its decision in Aquino v. Bondfield Construction Co. – the first case in which it has addressed the doctrine of corporate attribution in the context of insolvency proceedings. In particular, the SCC considered the way in which the doctrine interacts with section 96 of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (the BIA), also known as the “transfer at undervalue”…

On November 15, 2024, in Morabito v. British Columbia (Securities Commission), the Court of Appeal for British Columbia allowed the appeals from a decision of the British Columbia Securities Commission because the procedure adopted by the Commission panel hearing the appellants’ abuse of process applications denied the appellants a fair hearing. The Court’s decision confirmed that while deference is generally owed to administrative tribunals such as the Securities Commission, the…

Mandatory extended producer responsibility (EPR) systems continue to roll-out in Canadian provinces, making producers responsible for the products and product packaging they supply to consumers. The rollouts include new fees, third party verification of data, significant penalties for non-compliance, and expansion of scope.  Most provinces have now enacted EPR legislation, except for Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nunavut and Northwest Territories. As we have discussed in previous articles, EPR…

Background On Nov. 4, 2024, the Minister of Service tabled Bill 30, the Service Alberta Statutes Amendment Act, 2024 (Bill 30). Bill 30 introduces proposed amendments to Alberta’s Prompt Payment and Construction Lien Act (the PPCLA) and the Public Works Act (the PWA) that could result in changes to the province’s construction industry. Bill 30 presents an interesting opportunity for the Alberta Legislature to provide additional clarification around the adjudication…

The Ontario Capital Markets Tribunal (OCMT) cease traded the Bitfarms Ltd. (Bitfarms) shareholder rights plan pursuant to its public interest powers. The OCMT’s decision found the Plan “undermined, in a real and substantial way, the principles underlying the take-over bid regime.” The reasons for the decision provide important insights into the use of shareholder rights plans to prevent hostile take-over bids. What you need to know The purpose of the…

On Oct. 1, 2024, amendments to the Ontario Energy Board’s (OEB) Transmission System Code (TSC) and Distribution System Code (DSC, and together, the Codes) came into force. The amendments are intended to facilitate and enhance cyber security readiness, collaboration and innovation in Ontario’s electricity sector. The amendments require licensed electricity transmitters and distributors (utilities) to comply with the new Ontario Cyber Security Standard (the Standard), which lays out cyber security…

On Oct. 10, 2024 the Office of the Alberta Superintendent of Insurance published Interpretation Bulletin No. 05-2024 (the Bulletin) setting out the Superintendent’s position with respect to products commonly marketed by automobile dealerships in conjunction with the sale of motor vehicles. The Bulletin comes on the heels of a similar bulletin published by the British Columbia Financial Services Authority earlier this year. We have been engaged to assist several industry…

Canada, with its vast coastline stretching over 243,000 kilometers, possesses immense potential for offshore wind energy development. Despite this natural advantage, the country has been slow to harness its offshore wind resources compared to other nations. However, recent initiatives and policy changes indicate a growing interest in this renewable energy sector. Current status As of 2024, Canada has no operational offshore wind farms. The country's wind energy sector has primarily…

Disclosure about the adoption of new technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), and environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters, including greenwashing, are highlighted in CSA Staff Notice 51-365 – Continuous Disclosure Review Program Activities for the Fiscal Years Ended March 31, 2024 and March 31, 2023 (the Notice) published by the Canadian Securities Administrators (the CSA) on Nov. 7, 2024. The Notice highlights common disclosure deficiencies of reporting issuers through…

OSC seeks feedback on a new proposed investment fund that will give retail investors access to long-term illiquid assets On October 10, 2024, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) released Consultation Paper 81-737 (the Proposal), to enhance retail investors’ access to long-term illiquid assets (Long-Term Assets) by creating a new investment fund category, the Ontario Long-Term Asset Fund (OLTF). The OSC seeks to expand the opportunity for retail investors to gain…

Taylor Swift mania has taken hold of Canada, and alongside it comes important changes to employment and employment-related legislation that Ontario employers need to understand and implement both immediately and in the near future. “Track 5” of the Ontario government’s employment legislation comes in the form of Bill 190, officially titled the Working for Workers Five Act, 2024. Bill 190 makes several amendments to Ontario’s employment standards legislation (ESA) as…

Generative AI has been a buzzword in the tech world, and it’s now making inroads into more traditional sectors like insurance. One standout example is Wisedocs, a Toronto-based startup using AI to review and summarize medical records, that recently raised $12.7 million in Series A financing and $4.5 million in growth capital financing with the support of BLG. BLG Partner Frazer House caught up with Wisedocs founders Connor Atchison and Jenna…

The year 2024 is a pivotal year for artificial intelligence regulation around the world with the enactment  of the European Union’s Artificial Intelligence Act, which is already pictured as the golden standard, not unlike what the General Data Protection Regulation had previously achieved. Canada showed leadership of its own in 2022 with the introduction of Bill C-27 and its proposed Artificial Intelligence and Data Act (AIDA). However, since its introduction,…

Updated guidance for entities (Guidance) has been published with respect to the reporting obligations under the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act (the Supply Chains Act). The revisions provide significant clarification in several areas where there was previous uncertainty, including with respect to the definition of “assets” and the type of activities that will trigger a reporting obligation. The Guidance also includes tips for avoiding…

On Nov. 21, 2024, the Department of Finance announced temporary goods and services tax/harmonized sales tax (GST/HST) relief on certain qualifying goods as part of the federal government’s wider announcement titled More money in your pocket: A tax break for all Canadians. While the authors generally support substantive tax reform to address Canada’s declining productivity and relieve inflationary pressure on the cost of living for Canadians, temporary GST/HST relief on…

The Ontario Capital Markets Tribunal (the CMT) dismissed the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) prosecution in Re Cormark Securities Inc. The CMT held that the OSC “failed to prove any of its allegations”, that the transactions in issue were not an illegal distribution, and that the respondents’ conduct did not engage the CMT’s public interest jurisdiction. The CMT’s decision contains helpful guidance for market participants on a number of issues. BLG…