Competition Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. C-34)

Marginal note:Order for video link, etc.

• 30.16 (1) A judge to whom an application is made under subsection 30.15(2) may make an order for the taking of evidence or a statement from a person where the judge is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds to believe that

  • (a) conduct that is the subject of a request made by a foreign state is taking place, has taken place or is about to take place; and

  • (b) the foreign state believes that the person’s evidence or statement would be relevant to the investigation or proceedings in respect of the conduct referred to in paragraph (a).

• Marginal note:Provisions of order

  (2) An order made under subsection (1) shall order the person

  • (a) to attend at the place fixed by the judge for the taking of the evidence or statement by means of the technology and to remain in attendance until the person is excused by the authorities of the foreign state;

  • (b) to answer any questions put to the person by the authorities of the foreign state or by any person authorized by those authorities;

  • (c) to make a copy of a record or to make a record from data and to bring the copy or record, when appropriate; and

  • (d) to bring any record or thing in his or her possession or control, when appropriate, in order to show it to the authorities by means of the technology.

• Marginal note:Order effective throughout Canada

  (3) An order made under subsection (1) may be executed anywhere in Canada.

• Marginal note:Terms and conditions of order

  (4) An order made under subsection (1) may include any terms or conditions that the judge considers desirable, including those relating to the protection of the interests of the person named in it and of third parties.

• Marginal note:Variation

  (5) The judge who made the order under subsection (1) or another judge of the same court may vary its terms and conditions.

• Marginal note:Expenses

  (6) A person named in an order made under subsection (1) is entitled to be paid the travel and living expenses to which the person would be entitled if the person were required to attend as a witness before the judge who made the order.

Marginal note:Other laws to apply

• 30.17 (1) When a person gives evidence or a statement pursuant to an order made under subsection 30.16(1), the person shall give the evidence or statement as though he or she were physically before the court or tribunal outside Canada, in accordance with the laws of evidence and procedure applicable to that court or tribunal, but may refuse to give evidence or a statement, in whole or in part, if giving the evidence or statement would disclose information that is protected by the Canadian law of non-disclosure of information or privilege.

• Marginal note:Statement of reasons for refusal

  (2) A person named in an order made under subsection 30.16(1) who refuses to give evidence or a statement on the grounds that it would disclose information that is protected by the Canadian law of non-disclosure of information or privilege shall, within seven days, give to the judge who made the order or another judge of the same court a detailed statement in writing of the reasons on which the person bases each refusal.

• Marginal note:Refusals

  (3) A judge to whom a statement is given under subsection (2) shall determine whether the reasons for refusal are well-founded and, if the judge determines that they are not, the judge shall order that the person named in the order made under subsection 30.16(1) give the evidence or statement.

• Marginal note:Contempt of court in Canada

  (4) When a witness gives evidence under section 30.16, the Canadian law relating to contempt of court applies with respect to a refusal by the person to answer a question or to produce a record or thing as ordered by the judge under that section.

Marginal note:Arrest warrant

• 30.18 (1) The judge who made the order under subsection 30.11(1) or 30.16(1) or another judge of the same court may issue a warrant for the arrest of the person named in the order where the judge is satisfied, on an information in writing and under oath or solemn declaration, that

  • (a) the person did not attend or remain in attendance as required by the order or is about to abscond;

  • (b) the order was personally served on the person; and

  • (c) in the case of an order made under subsection 30.11(1), the person is likely to give material evidence and, in the case of an order made under subsection 30.16(1), the foreign state believes that the testimony of the person would be relevant to the investigation or proceedings in respect of the conduct.

• Marginal note:Warrant effective throughout Canada

  (2) A warrant issued under subsection (1) may be executed anywhere in Canada by any peace officer.

• Marginal note:Order

  (3) A peace officer who arrests a person in execution of a warrant issued under subsection (1) shall, without delay, bring the person or cause the person to be brought before the judge who issued the warrant or another judge of the same court who may, to ensure compliance with the order made under subsection 30.11(1) or 30.16(1), order that the person be detained in custody or issue a release order, as defined in section 2 of the Criminal Code, the form of which may be adapted to suit the circumstances.

• Marginal note:Copy of information

  (4) A person who is arrested in execution of a warrant issued under subsection (1) is entitled to receive, on request, a copy of the information on which the warrant was issued.

Lending Exhibits

Marginal note:Approval of loan request

• 30.19 (1) If the Minister of Justice approves a request of a foreign state under an agreement to have an exhibit that was admitted in evidence in a proceeding in respect of an offence in a court in Canada or in a proceeding before the Tribunal lent to the foreign state, the Minister shall provide the Commissioner with any documents or information necessary to apply for a loan order.

• Marginal note:Application for loan order

  (2) The Commissioner or the authorized representative of the Commissioner shall apply for a loan order in respect of the exhibit to the court that has possession of the exhibit, or to the Tribunal if it has possession of the exhibit, after having given reasonable notice to the parties to the proceedings and to

  • (a) to the Attorney General of Canada, in the case of an application to the Federal Court or the Federal Court of Appeal;

  • (b) the attorney general of the province in which the exhibit is located, in the case of an application to a court other than the Federal Court or the Federal Court of Appeal; or

  • (c) the Chairman of the Tribunal, in the case of an application to the Tribunal.

• Marginal note:Contents of application

  (3) An application made under subsection (2) must

  • (a) contain a description of the exhibit requested to be lent;

  • (b) designate a person or class of persons to whom the exhibit is sought to be given;

  • (c) state the reasons for the request and, if any tests are sought to be performed on the exhibit, contain a description of the tests and a statement of the place where they will be performed;

  • (d) state the place or places to which the exhibit is sought to be removed; and

  • (e) specify the time at or before which the exhibit is to be returned.

Marginal note:Making of loan order

• 30.2 (1) If the court or the Tribunal, as the case may be, is satisfied that the foreign state has requested the loan for a fixed period and has agreed to comply with the terms and conditions that the court or Tribunal proposes to include in any loan order, the court or Tribunal may, after having considered any representations of the persons to whom notice of the application was given in accordance with subsection 30.19(2), make a loan order.

• Marginal note:Terms of loan order

  (2) A loan order made under subsection (1) must

  • (a) contain a description of the exhibit;

  • (b) order the person who has possession of the exhibit to give it to a person designated in the order or who is a member of a class of persons so designated;

  • (c) contain a description of any tests authorized to be performed on the exhibit, as well as a statement of the place where the tests must be performed;

  • (d) fix the place or places to which the exhibit may be removed; and

  • (e) fix the time at or before which the exhibit must be returned.

• Marginal note:Terms and conditions

  (3) A loan order made under subsection (1) may include any terms or conditions that the court or the Tribunal considers desirable, including those relating to the preservation of the exhibit.

Marginal note:Variation of loan order

30.21 A court or the Tribunal may vary the terms and conditions of any loan order made by it.

Marginal note:Copy of order to custodian

30.22 A copy of a loan order and of an order varying it shall be delivered by the Commissioner to the Minister of Justice and to the person who had possession of the exhibit when the loan order was made.

Marginal note:Presumption of continuity

30.23 The burden of proving that an exhibit lent to a foreign state pursuant to a loan order made under subsection 30.2(1) and returned to Canada is not in the same condition as it was when the loan order was made or that it was tampered with after the loan order was made is on the party who makes that allegation and, in the absence of that proof, the exhibit is deemed to have been continuously in the possession of the court that made the loan order or the Tribunal, as the case may be.

Appeal

Marginal note:Appeal on question of law

• 30.24 (1) An appeal lies, with leave, on a question of law alone, to the court of appeal, within the meaning of section 2 of the Criminal Code, from an order or decision of a judge or a court in Canada made under this Part, other than an order or decision of the Federal Court or a judge of that Court, if the application for leave to appeal is made to a judge of the court of appeal within fifteen days after the order or decision.

• Marginal note:Appeal on question of law

  (2) An appeal lies, with leave, on a question of law alone, to the Federal Court of Appeal, from any order or decision of the Federal Court or the Tribunal made under this Part, if the application for leave to appeal is made to a judge of that Court within fifteen days after the order or decision.

Evidence Obtained by Canada from Abroad

Marginal note:Evidence

30.25 The Minister of Justice shall, on receiving evidence sent by a foreign state in response to a request made by Canada under an agreement, send it promptly to the Commissioner.

Marginal note:Foreign records

• 30.26 (1) In a proceeding in respect of which Parliament has jurisdiction, a record or a copy of a record and any affidavit, certificate or other statement pertaining to the record made by a person who has custody or knowledge of the record, sent to the Minister of Justice by a foreign state in accordance with a Canadian request under an agreement, is not inadmissible in evidence by reason only that a statement contained in it is hearsay or a statement of opinion.

• Marginal note:Probative value

  (2) For the purpose of determining the probative value of a record or a copy of a record admitted in evidence under Part VII.1 or VIII, the court hearing the matter, or the Tribunal in proceedings before it, may examine the record or copy, receive evidence orally or by affidavit, or by a certificate or other statement pertaining to the record in which a person attests that the certificate or statement is made in conformity with the laws that apply to a foreign state, whether or not the certificate or statement is in the form of an affidavit attested to before an official of the foreign state, including evidence as to the circumstances in which the information contained in the record or copy was written, stored or reproduced, and may draw any reasonable inference from the form or content of the record or copy.

Marginal note:Foreign things

30.27 In a proceeding in respect of which Parliament has jurisdiction, a thing and any affidavit, certificate or other statement pertaining to the thing made by a person in a foreign state as to the identity and possession of the thing from the time it was obtained until its sending to the Commissioner by the Minister of Justice in accordance with a Canadian request under an agreement, are not inadmissible in evidence by reason only that the affidavit, certificate or other statement contains hearsay or a statement of opinion.

Marginal note:Status of certificate

30.28 An affidavit, certificate or other statement mentioned in section 30.26 or 30.27 is, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, proof of the statements contained in it without proof of the signature or official character of the person appearing to have signed it.

General

Marginal note:Confidentiality of foreign requests and evidence

• 30.29 (1) No person who performs or has performed duties or functions in the administration or enforcement of this Act shall communicate or allow to be communicated to any other person, except for the purposes of the administration or enforcement of this Act,

  • (a) the contents of a request made to Canada from a foreign state or the fact of the request having been made; or

  • (b) the contents of any record or thing obtained from a foreign state pursuant to a Canadian request.

• Marginal note:Confidentiality of Canadian evidence

  (2) No person who performs or has performed duties or functions in the administration or enforcement of this Act shall communicate or allow to be communicated to any other person, except to a Canadian law enforcement agency or for the purposes of the administration or enforcement of this Act, any information obtained under section 30.06 or 30.11.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (3) This section does not apply in respect of any information that has been made public.

Marginal note:Records or other things already in Commissioner’s possession

• 30.291 (1) For greater certainty, any evidence requested by a foreign state under an agreement may be obtained for the purposes of giving effect to the request only in accordance with the agreement and the procedure set out in this Part, even in the case of records or other things already in the possession of the Commissioner.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (2) This section does not apply in respect of any information that has been made public or any information the communication of which was authorized by the person who provided the information.

Marginal note:Preservation of informal arrangements

30.3 Nothing in this Part shall be construed so as to abrogate or derogate from any arrangement or agreement, other than an agreement under this Part, in respect of cooperation between the Commissioner and a foreign authority.