The Competition Bureau (the "Bureau") recently announced that criminal charges had been laid against a company and an individual for their alleged role in rigging bids for infrastructure projects in the Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu region in the Province of Québec. The alleged conduct took place between January 2008 and December 2009.
A joint investigation by the Québec's permanent anti-corruption squad (commonly known as the "UPAC") and the Bureau uncovered a complex bid-rigging scheme which ensured preferential treatment for a group of contractors seeking to obtain municipal contracts for infrastructure projects.
Under the Competition Act, bid-rigging is per se illegal, meaning there is no need to demonstrate an anti-competitive effect to obtain a conviction. Bid-rigging occurs when two or more persons agree that, in response to a tender, one or more of them will: (i) not submit a bid; (ii) withdraw a bid; or (iii) submit a bid arrived at by agreement. The penalty for persons convicted of bid-rigging is a fine in an amount to be determined by the court (there is no limit on the size of the fine) and/or imprisonment for up to five years.
Cooperation between the Bureau and UPAC has intensified in the context of the Charbonneau Commission which was set up by the Québec government in 2011 to investigate allegations of significant corruption in the management of public construction contracts. In June 2012, the agencies charged 11 individuals and 9 companies for a collusion scheme.
This recent enforcement action is consistent with the Bureau's broader priority to aggressively enforce misconduct related to the procurement activities of municipalities or other public entities. Consistent with this enforcement priority, in May 2013, the Commissioner of Competition launched the Bureau's whistleblowing initiative, to encourage reporting suspected incidences of price-fixing, bid-rigging, and other anti-competitive conduct (for more details about the Whistleblowing Initiative, please click here to see our post).
For a copy of the Bureau's press release, please click here.
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