Lawrence E. Ritchie Lawrence E. Ritchie

OSC seeks to reduce regulatory burden in step with Ontario Red Tape Initiative

The Ontario Securities Commission announced on January 14, 2019 that its Burden Reduction Task Force, in coordination with the Ministry of Finance,...

Mixed results in British Columbia white collar enforcement proceedings

Two high-profile cases in late 2018 demonstrate both the potentially grave consequences of securities law violations and the difficulties prosecutors...

Individual defendant receives three-year sentence for Canadian corruption conviction

On December 17^th, 2018, Quebec’s Superior Court of Justice sentenced Yanaï Elbaz, a former senior manager of the McGill University...

OSC approves $30 million settlement with Katanga over financial misstatements and failure to disclose DRC risks

Reflecting the trend toward increasing monetary penalties, the Ontario Securities Commission (the “OSC”) accepted an eye-popping $30...

White-collar crime enforcement

While 2018 may not have seen a significant uptick in “on the ground” securities and white-collar enforcement activity.

Alberta Securities Commission implements whistleblower program

On November 20, 2018, the Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) announced the creation of its whistleblower program and the Office of the Whistleblower...

Reference re Pan-Canadian securities regulation

Canada’s long pursuit of a more integrated and national approach to securities regulation has received a major boost. In its November 9, 2018...

Canadian prosecutors refuse to use new “Deferred Prosecution Agreement” regime in high profile case

Despite the recent and welcome introduction of a ‘deferred prosecution agreement’ regime in the context of white collar infractions in...

DOJ launches FCPA investigation into Major League Baseball

The U.S. Department of Justice (the DOJ) has reportedly commenced an investigation into Major League Baseball centering on alleged Foreign Corrupt...

Deferred Prosecution Agreements (DPAs) come into force in Canada

On September 19, 2018, amendments to Criminal Code came into force establishing for the first time a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) regime for...