OPINION
ALISON
BREWIN
Eighty-three per cent of Brit-
ish Columbians with incomes
under $50,000 are likely to have
a civil legal problem in a three
year period. Only 11 per cent will
retain a lawyer to resolve
it—some of them through legal
aid if it falls within the very nar-
row subject area and their income
is less than $20,000 or so
depending on family size. The
research suggests that about a
quarter of a million people in the
province don’t resolve their legal
issue as a result of a barrier — lan-
guage, finances, disability. What
happens to those individuals?
What happens to their families?
What happens to their commun-
ities? Unfortunately that research
data has not been collected. But
we can extrapolate from research
in other jurisdictions.
PETER BONO FOR THE LAWYERS WEEKLY
The case keeps growing for a national securities regulator
OPINION
POONAM
PURI
At the end of October, the government of Canada set out its legal
position on why Parliament has
the authority to enact the proposed Canadian Securities Act as
part of a constitutional reference
before the Quebec Court of Appeal.
Constitutional references are also
underway in the Supreme Court of
Canada and Alberta Court of
Appeal. The heavyweights of Canadian constitutional law have
opined that there is a valid federal
power under the Constitution to
regulate the Canadian securities
market.
While the constitutionality of
the Act is being considered before
the courts, it is worth looking at
trends in the global and regulatory
environment that underscore the
need for a Canadian securities
regulator. Among these trends are
the need for more effective
enforcement, greater regulatory
co-operation between countries
and timely regulatory action.
The need for effective enforcement of securities market conduct
is widely recognized. Even the
best-designed regulation must be
enforced effectively if it is to optimally promote investor protection
and investor confidence. Canada is
“
A consolidated and harmonized national regulator
would combine regulatory and criminal
enforcement in the same body, provide additional
tools to investigators and establish simplified
national complaint handling and redress standards.
regulators is therefore clear. The
current system fails to recognize
the nature of Canada’s capital
markets and does a disservice to
those who depend on them. A
single national securities regulator
would be able to enforce market
conduct effectively, speak with a
single voice on the world stage and
provide timely regulatory response
to market events.
subject to unfavourable international comparisons for our
enforcement of securities regulations. In particular, resources are
inefficiently allocated and
unnecessarily duplicated, regulatory responses to misconduct are
delayed and expertise is lacking.
A consolidated and harmonized national regulator would
combine regulatory and criminal
enforcement in the same body,
provide additional tools to investigators and establish simplified
national complaint handling and
redress standards.
The need for regulatory co-
operation among countries and
international standards-setting
bodies for securities regulation is
also clear. As trade and financial
markets have globalized, countries
have been increasingly interested
in regulatory co-operation. The
International Organization of
Securities Commissions (IOSCO)
was founded to act as a co-opera-
tive regulatory body at a global
level. Canada is the only country
that does not have a national voice
at the IOSCO.
Poonam Puri is a law professor
at Osgoode Law School, York Uni-
versity and Co-Director of the Hen-
nick Centre for Business and Law.
A fuller discussion and empirical
analysis is available in the article
“The Capital Markets Perspective
on a National Securities Regu-
lator” in (2010), 51 Supreme Court
Law Review (2d) 589-609.
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