A Single National Securities Regulator? The Debate Continues …

The establishment of a single national securities regulator is once again being debated in Canada. The decades-long dialogue among market participants, politicians and academic scholars had its "day in court" in April when the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) heard arguments in the reference regarding the constitutionality of the proposed federal Securities Act (Canada). These hearings came mere weeks after the release of decisions in similar reference cases before the courts of appeal in Alberta and Québec (in French only) both of which had found that a single federal national regulator would violate provincial jurisdiction.

The SCC's decision will be the ultimate authority as to whether the Government of Canada can proceed with the proposed Act and, more specifically, the question of who has authority over securities regulation: the federal government, the provincial governments, or a combination of both.