Competition Act
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 1 — Short title
This Act may be cited as the Competition Act .
Section 1.1 — Purpose of Act
The purpose of this Act is to maintain and encourage competition in Canada in order to promote the efficiency and adaptability of the Canadian economy, in order to expand opportunities for Canadian…
Section 2 — Definitions
In this Act, article means real and personal property of every description including money, deeds and instruments relating to or evidencing the title or right to property or an interest, immediate,…
Section 2.1 — Binding on agents of Her Majesty in certain cases
This Act is binding on and applies to an agent of Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province that is a corporation, in respect of commercial activities engaged in by the corporation in competition,…
Section 3 — Defects of form
No proceedings under this Act shall be deemed invalid by reason of any defect of form or any technical irregularity.
Section 4 — Collective bargaining activities
Nothing in this Act applies in respect of combinations or activities of workmen or employees for their own reasonable protection as such workmen or employees; contracts, agreements or arrangements…
Section 4.1
[Repealed, 2009, c. 2, s. 407]
Section 5 — Underwriters
Section 45 does not apply in respect of an agreement or arrangement between persons who are members of a class of persons who ordinarily engage in the business of dealing in securities or between…
Section 6 — Amateur sport
This Act does not apply in respect of agreements or arrangements between or among teams, clubs and leagues pertaining to participation in amateur sport. For the purposes of this section, amateur…
Section 7 — Commissioner of Competition
The Governor in Council may appoint an officer to be known as the Commissioner of Competition, who shall be responsible for the administration and enforcement of this Act; and the administration and…
Section 8 — Deputy Commissioners
One or more persons may be appointed Deputy Commissioners of Competition in the manner authorized by law. The Governor in Council may authorize a Deputy Commissioner to exercise the powers and…
Section 9 — Application for inquiry
Any six persons resident in Canada who are not less than eighteen years of age and who are of the opinion that a person has contravened an order made pursuant to section 32, 33 or 34, or Part VII.1…
Section 10 — Inquiry by Commissioner
The Commissioner shall on application made under section 9, whenever the Commissioner has reason to believe that a person has contravened an order made pursuant to section 32, 33 or 34, or Part VII.1…
Section 10.1 — Market or industry inquiry
The Commissioner may, after consulting the Minister, conduct an inquiry into the state of competition in a market or industry if the Commissioner is of the opinion that it is in the public interest…
Section 11 — Order for oral examination, production or written return
If, on the ex parte application of the Commissioner or his or her authorized representative, a judge of a superior or county court is satisfied by information on oath or solemn affirmation that an…
Section 12 — Witness competent and compellable
Any person summoned to attend pursuant to paragraph 11(1)(a) is competent and may be compelled to give evidence. Every person summoned to attend pursuant to paragraph 11(1)(a) is entitled to the like…
Section 13 — Presiding officer
Any person may be designated as a presiding officer who is a barrister or advocate of at least ten years standing at the bar of a province or who has been a barrister or advocate at the bar of a…
Section 14 — Administration of oaths
The presiding officer may administer oaths and take and receive solemn affirmations for the purposes of examinations pursuant to paragraph 11(1)(a). A presiding officer may make such orders as he…
Section 14.1 — Application of Criminal Code — preservation demand and orders for preservation or production of data
Sections 487.012 , 487.013 , 487.015 , 487.016 and 487.018 of the Criminal Code , which apply to the investigation of offences under any Act of Parliament, also apply, with any modifications that the…
Section 15 — Warrant for entry of premises
If, on the ex parte application of the Commissioner or his or her authorized representative, a judge of a superior or county court is satisfied by information on oath or solemn affirmation that there…
Section 16 — Operation of computer system
A person who is authorized pursuant to subsection 15(1) to search premises for a record may use or cause to be used any computer system on the premises to search any data contained in or available to…
Section 17 — Presentation of or report on record or thing seized
Where a record or other thing is seized pursuant to paragraph 15(1)(d), subsection 15(7) or section 16, the Commissioner or the authorized representative of the Commissioner shall, as soon as…
Section 18 — Commissioner to take reasonable care
Where any record or other thing is produced pursuant to section 11 or seized pursuant to section 15 or 16, the Commissioner shall take reasonable care to ensure that it is preserved until it is…
Section 19 — Claim to solicitor-client privilege (section 11)
Where a person is ordered to produce a record pursuant to section 11 and that person claims that there exists a solicitor-client privilege in respect thereof, the person shall place it in a package…
Section 20 — Inspection of records and things
All records or other things obtained or received by the Commissioner may be inspected by the Commissioner and also by such persons as he directs. Copies of any records referred to in subsection (1),…
Section 21 — Counsel
Whenever in the opinion of the Commissioner the public interest so requires, the Commissioner may apply to the Attorney General of Canada to appoint and instruct counsel to assist in an inquiry under…
Section 22 — Discontinuance of inquiry
At any stage of an inquiry under section 10, if the Commissioner is of the opinion that the matter being inquired into does not justify further inquiry, the Commissioner may discontinue the inquiry.…
Section 23 — Reference to Attorney General of Canada
The Commissioner may, at any stage of an inquiry under section 10, in addition to or in lieu of continuing the inquiry, remit any records, returns or evidence to the Attorney General of Canada for…
Section 24 — Regulations
The Governor in Council may make regulations regulating the practice and procedure in respect of applications, proceedings and orders under sections 11 to 19. Subject to subsection (3), a copy of…
Section 25 — Staff
All officers, clerks and employees required for carrying out this Act shall be appointed in accordance with the Public Service Employment Act , except that the Commissioner may, with the approval of…
Section 26 — Remuneration of temporary staff
Any temporary, technical and special assistants employed by the Commissioner shall be paid such remuneration, and are entitled to be paid such travel and living expenses incurred in the performance…
Section 27 — Authority of technical or special assistants
Any technical or special assistant or other person employed under this Act, when so authorized or deputed by the Commissioner, has power and authority to exercise any of the powers and perform any of…
Section 28 — Minister may require interim report
The Minister may at any time require the Commissioner to submit an interim report with respect to any inquiry by him under this Act, and it is the duty of the Commissioner whenever thereunto required…
Section 29 — Confidentiality
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…
Section 29.1 — Communication to Minister of Transport
Notwithstanding subsection 29(1), the Commissioner may, if requested to do so by the Minister of Transport in accordance with subsection (3), communicate or allow to be communicated to that Minister…
Section 29.2 — Communication to Minister of Finance
Notwithstanding subsection 29(1), the Commissioner may, if requested to do so by the Minister of Finance in accordance with subsection (3), communicate or allow to be communicated to the Minister of…
Section 30 — Definitions
The definitions in this section apply in this Part. agreement means a treaty, convention or other international agreement to which Canada is a party that provides for mutual legal assistance in…
Section 30.01 — Agreements respecting mutual legal assistance
Before Canada enters into an agreement, the Minister of Justice must be satisfied that the laws of the foreign state that address conduct that is similar to conduct prohibited or reviewable under…
Section 30.02 — Publication in Canada Gazette
An agreement must be published in the Canada Gazette no later than 60 days after the agreement comes into force, unless it has already been published under subsection (2). An agreement may be…
Section 30.03 — Requests
The Minister of Justice is responsible for dealing with a request made by a foreign state under an agreement, in accordance with the agreement and this Part.
Section 30.04 — Application of sections 15, 16 and 19
Sections 15, 16 and 19 apply, with any modifications that the circumstances require, in respect of a search or a seizure under this Part, except to the extent that those sections are inconsistent…
Section 30.05 — Approval of request for search and seizure
If the Minister of Justice approves a request of a foreign state to have a search and seizure carried out in respect of conduct that is the subject of the request, the Minister of Justice shall…
Section 30.06 — Warrant for entry of premises
A judge to whom an application is made under subsection 30.05(2) may issue a search warrant authorizing the person named in it to execute it anywhere in Canada where the judge is satisfied by…
Section 30.07 — Report
The person who executes a search warrant shall, at least five days before the time of the hearing to consider its execution, file with the court of which the judge who issued the warrant is a member…
Section 30.08 — Sending abroad
At the hearing referred to in subsection 30.06(3), after having considered any representations of the Minister of Justice, the Commissioner, the person from whom a record or thing was seized and any…
Section 30.09 — Terms and conditions
No record or thing seized that has been ordered under section 30.08 to be sent to a foreign state shall be so sent until the Minister of Justice is satisfied that the foreign state has agreed to…
Section 30.1 — Approval of request to obtain evidence
If the Minister of Justice approves a request of a foreign state to obtain, by means of an order of a judge, evidence in respect of conduct that is the subject of the request, the Minister of Justice…
Section 30.11 — Evidence-gathering order
A judge to whom an application is made under subsection 30.1(2) may make an order for the gathering of evidence where the judge is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds to believe that conduct…
Section 30.12 — Report
A person designated under paragraph 30.11(2)(c) in an order made under subsection 30.11(1) shall make a report to the judge who made the order, or another judge of the same court, accompanied by a…
Section 30.13 — Sending abroad
A judge to whom a report is made under subsection 30.12(1) may order that there be sent to the foreign state mentioned in subsection 30.1(1) the report, any transcript referred to in paragraph…