On May 21, 2019, in Ontario Securities Commission v York Rio Resources Inc., 2019 BCSC 776, the British Columbia Supreme Court (BCSC) enforced Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) disgorgement orders as court judgments from another province.
Other developments
Liability Rumblings Along the Blockchain
In his Blockchain Law column, Robert A. Schwinger writes: When parties interact in transactions conducted via blockchain technology, they may find themselves in relationships to one another that the law has not yet had the opportunity to clearly define. Courts,…
Sino-Forest Cont’d: Cultural Practices do not Excuse Illegal Acts
In Hung et al v Ontario (Securities Commission), 2019 ONSC 3423, the Divisional Court dismissed an appeal brought by four senior officers of Sino-Forest Corporation (the Appellants) in one of Canada’s largest frauds in history. The Appellants…
The Test on a Motion to Strike Pleadings in Proceedings Before the Ontario Securities Commission
In (Re) El-Bouji, 2019 ONSEC 19, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) determined that the test on a motion to strike portions of an affidavit filed by Staff in response to the respondent’s motion challenging the Commission’s…
Clearing the Way: “Ice Breaker” Settlements in Class Actions
In a recent class action settlement approval hearing, Justice Belobaba of the Ontario Superior Court affirmed the value of early “ice breaker” settlements in complex class actions involving multiple defendants. In such a settlement, one defendant settles ahead of the…
IIROC’s 2018 Enforcement Report: Strengthening Enforcement Authority Across Canada
Overview
On May 16, 2019, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) published its 2018 Enforcement Report (the Report). The Report summarizes IIROC’s enforcement activities in 2018 and provides an update on the progress of IIROC’s…
The AMF is not the sole arbiter of what is relevant and what should be disclosed
In AMF v. TMF, Baazov, et al. (Court File No. 500-11-052989-171), the Quebec Superior Court confirmed that the Financial Markets Administrative Tribunal (the Tribunal) has the power to order the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), Quebec’s…
Large and generous interpretation of “investment contract” and “distribution” under the Quebec Securities Act: AMF v. Desmarais, 2019 QCCA 898
In its recent decision (AMF v. Desmarais), the Court of Appeal upheld the conviction of a Montreal lawyer who played a central role in the distribution of investment contracts without a prospectus and who acted as a dealer…
Harrington v IIROC: No Equitable Duty Owed by Public Sector Regulators to Disclose Information to Victims of Wrongdoing
On December 31, 2018, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice dismissed an application by Harrington Global Opportunities Fund (Harrington) for a Norwich order against the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC). Harrington sought the order…
MFDA Annual Enforcement Report: Trends in Mutual Fund Dealer Regulation
The Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (MFDA) recently published its 2018 Annual Enforcement Report (the Report), highlighting key enforcement activities and developments over the past year.
The MFDA commenced 136 enforcement proceedings in 2018 by Notice…