British Columbia Emergency Order Permits Virtual Only Shareholder Meetings

This post was originally published on April 23, 2020 and has been updated as of July 15, 2020 to incorporate the impact of applicable provisions contained in the COVID-19 Related Measures Act (British Columbia), which came into force on July 10, 2020. The COVID-19 Related Measures Act (British Columbia) extends orders made under the Emergency Program Act (British Columbia) to provide a transition period so that the orders will not immediately end when the declaration of a state of emergency ends.

In light of the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and related public health orders and advisories, the Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General of British Columbia has published a temporary order under the Emergency Program Act (British Columbia) (the Order) which provides greater certainty and additional flexibility to BCBCA companies looking to hold virtual-only shareholder meetings during the 2020 proxy season. The order also applies to a meeting of directors of