February 2014

As of February 24, 2014, prosecutors in the United Kingdom will have a new tool in their arsenal to combat corporate criminal wrongdoing. After a lengthy consultation process, and with the benefit of observing a longstanding U.S. practice, the British Parliament amended its Crime and Courts Act to allow for Deferred Prosecution Agreements (“DPAs”). Canadian lawmakers should carefully review this new legislation, as well as the U.S. DPA program, as either system would be a step in the right direction for Canada.  

To date, federal officials in Canada have not shown an interest in introducing a DPA system for use by Canadian prosecutors tasked with combatting commercial crime. A DPA system, however, has many advantages for both the regulator and the regulated that Canada should consider. For the regulator, it provides the benefit of internal investigations that are funded by industry and disclosed voluntarily, which saves massive government resources. For the regulated, they avoid a conviction and admission of liability, which minimizes legal and reputational damage. The newly adopted U.K. regime provides a new model for Canada to consider alongside the American regime.
Continue Reading Deferred prosecution agreements arrive in the U.K.; food for thought for Canada

When a Ponzi scheme collapses, as with musical chairs, there will be some investors with a place to sit, while others are bereft of such comfort. Unlike musical chairs, the first time the music stops for most Ponzi schemes, the majority of the participants are on the losing end.  A recent British Columbia decision in the Bankruptcy of Rashida Abdulrasul Samji explored what happens when some of the fortunate few “winners” in an alleged Ponzi scheme negotiate a resolution with a bankruptcy trustee responsible for making decisions in the best interests of all the creditors of the bankrupt entity at the centre of the alleged scheme. 
Continue Reading “Winners” and “losers” in alleged Ponzi schemes: Court approves bankruptcy trustee’s settlement with parties who did not lose money

The global presence of counterfeit products is an increasingly real problem. The RCMP released an update reporting an increase from CAD $7.7 million in 2005 to CAD $38 million in 2012 in the retail value of counterfeit goods seized. Canada is looking to address this economically damaging and potentially harmful situation through Bill C-8 entitled “Combatting Counterfeit Products Act”. Bill C-8 is a positive step towards combatting the problems associated with counterfeit goods and pirated copies. It will also better align Canada with other nations (such as the EU and US) who have already adopted similar measures.
Continue Reading Combatting counterfeit and pirated goods