Let The Games Begin: Round Two Of Competition Act Amendments

On November 17th, the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry announced a comprehensive review¹ of Canada's Competition Act. The review will look to improve "all the key areas of the competition framework", including (but not limited to) the scope of the Competition Act, the enforcement methods and corrective measures at play, the role and powers of the Competition Bureau as the responsible enforcement agency, and the tools available to address competition in digital and data-driven markets.

The announcement comes on the heels of significant amendments to the Competition Act in June of this year², which marked the first substantial reform of Canadian competition law since 2009. These amendments made several targeted changes to the Competition Act, including significant increases to criminal and civil financial penalties, expanded investigatory powers for the Bureau, adjustments to strengthen enforcement in digital markets, and – critically – the