Fundamental Changes Made To Canadian Regulatory Legislation: What They Mean For You

Welcome to the October issue of Blakes Competitive Edge, a monthly publication of the Blakes Competition, Antitrust & Foreign Investment group. Blakes Competitive Edge provides an overview of recent developments in Canadian competition and foreign investment law, including updates on enforcement activity by the Canadian Competition Bureau (Bureau), recent initiatives and key trends.

Canada's Competition Bureau has released updated guidelines addressing environmental claims and greenwashing under the Competition Act. The guidelines establish six compliance principles and clarify how businesses must substantiate environmental benefit claims following recent legislative amendments, including changes introduced by Bill C-15 that provide greater flexibility in substantiation methods while maintaining evidence requirements.

Amazon has agreed to pay a $1,000,000 administrative monetary penalty and $60,000 in Competition Bureau costs, following the Bureau's conclusion that Amazon did not substantiate its sale prices.

The Competition Bureau of Canada has entered into a consent agreement with Empire Company Limited, parent of major grocery chains including Sobeys and Safeway, restricting the company's use of property controls that limit competition. This agreement prohibits Empire from enforcing certain restrictive covenants and exclusivity clauses that prevent other grocers from operating nearby, despite Empire's earlier voluntary commitments. The Bureau's action signals heightened regulatory scrutiny of property control

In the current economic environment, many businesses may feel pressured to get creative with their marketing and pricing strategies to remain competitive.

Canada and the European Union have launched the Alliance for the Future initiative, marking a significant milestone in transatlantic cooperation with the conclusion of negotiations on a groundbreaking Competition Agreement.

Canadian businessman John Bennett will be extradited to the US face bid-rigging, fraud, conspiracy, and kick-back charges, the BC Court of Appeal held recently.

More particularly, the Plaintiff had argued that the drip pricing provision in subsection 52(1.3) of the Competition Act requires “all-inclusive pricing” and forbids all forms of “fragmented or segmented pricing,” and that Ticketmaster’s partitioned price representations are thus prohibited as a criminal conduct and amount to false or misleading representations covered by the criminal misleading advertising provision in section 52

Canada's Competition Bureau has clarified that existing competition laws apply fully to AI-related business conduct, with no special exemptions for artificial intelligence technologies.

Minimum advertised pricing (MAP) policies have come under the Competition Bureau’s microscope. The Bureau announced on September 28, 2026, that it has launched an investigation into whether MAP policies in the grocery sector are limiting competition among grocers and keeping lower prices out of reach for consumers.

Canada and Germany are making unprecedented investments in AI infrastructure and safety research, while major players like Cohere, OpenAI, and Bell position themselves in a rapidly evolving landscape of technology sovereignty. How will these strategic moves reshape the global AI race and what do they mean for businesses navigating data residency, vendor relationships, and emerging regulatory frameworks?

Canada's anti-money laundering enforcement regime is undergoing a seismic shift, with FINTRAC issuing record penalties and new legislation increasing penalty caps by up to 40 times. Understanding how to navigate the enforcement pipeline—from examination through Federal Court litigation—is now critical for reporting entities facing unprecedented regulatory scrutiny.

Christopher Anderson and Michael Kandev are featured legal professionals at Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP, a prominent law firm. Their professional backgrounds and expertise are highlighted through biographical information and imagery from the firm's Toronto office.

Max Jarvie shared his insights in a recent article published by The Globe and Mail, examining the legal uncertainty surrounding liability when AI systems behave in unexpected or unintended ways.

Yesterday, the Federal Government announced changes to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act to exempt various projects funded under the Building Canada Plan from federal environmental assessment ("EA") requirements.

This past summer witnessed a number of significant legislative changes to Canada's environmental regimes at both the federal and provincial levels.

Davies' Investment Canada Act guide provides foreign investors with essential information about national security reviews and net benefit assessments when establishing or acquiring Canadian businesses. The comprehensive resource outlines review processes, timing considerations, and regulatory requirements that non-Canadian entities must navigate when investing in Canada.

Canada's proposed Privacy and Consumer Data Act introduces sweeping changes to private sector privacy regulation, including a new enforcement body with unprecedented penalty powers, mandatory cross-border transfer assessments, and enhanced protections for children's data. Organizations operating in Canada face a fundamental shift from PIPEDA's principles-based approach to a prescriptive compliance regime with significant financial and legal consequences.

The Government of Canada introduced Bill C-29, An Act to establish the Financial Crimes Agency and to make consequential amendments to certain Acts and regulations (Bill), on April 27, 2026.

Canada's federal government has introduced sweeping regulatory reforms aimed at accelerating major project approvals through compressed timelines and streamlined coordination. The Building Canada's Success Act establishes a one-year federal review period for designated projects while creating new mechanisms for regional preapprovals and consolidated decision-making. These changes fundamentally reshape how infrastructure and resource projects navigate federal environmental assessments and permitting processe