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ARTICLE · 26 APRIL 2011

Reference Re Securities Act (Canada)

WeirFoulds LLP
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A unanimous Reference decision of the Alberta Court of Appeal held that Parliament’s proposed "Securities Act" ("Act") to establish a national securities regulator is unconstitutional; specifically, the five-member panel found that the proposed "Act" is "ultra vires" Parliament’s authority pursuant to the "Constitution Act, 1867".

CanadaGovernment, Public Sector
Nicholas Caughey
Nicholas Caughey
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2011 ABCA 77 (Released 8 March 2011)

Constitutional Law – Division of Powers – Securities Regulation

A unanimous Reference decision of the Alberta Court of Appeal held that Parliament's proposed Securities Act ("Act") to establish a national securities regulator is unconstitutional; specifically, the five-member panel found that the proposed Act is ultra vires Parliament's authority pursuant to the Constitution Act, 1867.

Both the federal and Alberta governments agreed that the proposed Act is, in pith and substance, the regulation of the participants in the public market and transactions relating to the raising of capital. At its core, the purpose of the Act is the regulation of particular investment contracts and property. Existing case law provides that the provinces have historically regulated the securities industry within provincial jurisdiction over "property and civil rights".

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