Canada's Competition Bureau has released three new
guidelines relating to its merger review process under Part IX of
the Competition Act. The
first two guidelines discuss the Bureau's approach to the
disclosure of confidential information and the running of waiting
periods in the context of unsolicited (hostile) bids. The third
guideline discusses the completeness of notifications, in
particular with respect to the meaning of "officers and
directors" for non-corporate entities, and when information
can be excluded from a notification on the basis of
confidentiality.
Hostile Transactions: Disclosure of Information
The Bureau's first guideline, Hostile Transactions Interpretation
Guideline Number 1, discusses its confidentiality
policy with respect to hostile transactions. Generally speaking, in
deciding what information to share with parties to a transaction,
the Bureau is guided by section 29 of the Act as well as by its Information Bulletin on the
Communication
