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Doing Business in Canada 2019

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Doing Business in Canada 2019 Doing Business in Canada A disciplined, team-driven approach focused squarely on the success of your business. Lawyers in offices across Canada, the United States, Europe and China — Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, Montréal, Ottawa, New York, London and Beijing. Among the world’s most respected corporate law firms, with expertise in virtually every area of business law. When it comes to dealmaking, Blakes Means Business. Blakes Guide to Doing Business in Canada Doing Business in Canada is intended as an introductory summary. Specific advice should be sought in connection with particular transactions. If you have any questions with respect to Doing Business in Canada, please contact our Firm Chair, Brock Gibson by email at [email protected]. Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP produces regular reports and special publications on Canadian legal developments. For further information about these reports and publications, please contact the Blakes Client Relations & Marketing Department at [email protected]. Contents I. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 1 II. Government and Legal System ............................................................................... 2 1. Brief Canadian History ............................................................................................. 2 2. Federal Government ................................................................................................. 3 3. Provincial and Territorial Governments ................................................................. 3 4. Canada’s Legal System ............................................................................................ 4 III. Business Entities and Alternative Methods of Carrying on Business in Canada ....................................................................................................................... 6 1. Corporations ............................................................................................................. 6 1.1 What types of corporations are available in Canada? ..................................... 6 1.2 Supervision and management of a corporation ............................................... 8 1.3 How may a corporation be capitalized? ........................................................... 9 1.4 What are the basic procedures governing shareholder participation? ........... 10 2. Corporations and Partnerships in Canada .......................................................... 10 3. Joint Venture Structuring ...................................................................................... 11 4. Alternative Methods of Carrying on Business..................................................... 11 4.1 Branch office .................................................................................................. 11 4.2 Agents and distributors ................................................................................... 12 4.3 Franchising ..................................................................................................... 12 4.4 Licensing ........................................................................................................ 13 IV. Trade and Investment Regulation ......................................................................... 14 1. Competition Law ..................................................................................................... 14 1.1 Criminal offences ............................................................................................ 14 1.2 What business practices may constitute civilly reviewable conduct and be subject to possible review before the Competition Tribunal? ................... 15 1.3 What business practices will attract civil liability? What is the exposure to civil damages? ............................................................................................ 15 1.4 Merger regulation ........................................................................................... 16 2. General Rules on Foreign Investments ................................................................ 18 2.1 Are there special rules governing foreign investment? .................................. 18 2.2 How are WTO members treated differently? .................................................. 19 2.3 How are trade agreement investors treated differently? ................................ 20 2.4 If a review is required, what is the process? .................................................. 20 2.5 What is required for an investment to be of “net benefit to Canada”? ........... 21 2.6 Are there any requirements for investments that are not “reviewable”? ........ 22 2.7 Are there other statutes that regulate foreign investments in particular sectors? .......................................................................................................... 22 3. International Trade Agreements ........................................................................... 23 3.1 Trade agreements as a constitution for international business regulation ........................................................................................................ 23 3.2 Key principles of trade agreements ................................................................ 23 3.3 Using trade agreements as business tools .................................................... 23 3.4 Canada’s trade agreements ........................................................................... 24 3.5 Importing goods into Canada ......................................................................... 31 3.6 Domestic trade remedy actions ...................................................................... 34 3.7 Procurement (government contracts) review ................................................. 35 3.8 Export controls, economic sanctions and industry-specific trade laws .......... 36 3.9 Controlled Goods Program ............................................................................ 38 3.10 Foreign Extraterritorial Measures Act (FEMA) and doing business with Cuba ............................................................................................................... 39 3.11 Canadian anti-bribery legislation .................................................................... 40 4. Product Standards, Labelling and Advertising ................................................... 44 4.1 How are product standards requirements created? Are Canadian product standards in line with international standards? ................................. 44 4.2 Consumer product safety legislation .............................................................. 44 4.3 What are the sources of labelling requirements? Must or should all labels be bilingual? ......................................................................................... 46 4.4 Food ............................................................................................................... 47 4.5 Drugs .............................................................................................................. 47 4.6 Weights and measures ................................................................................... 48 4.7 Advertising regulations and enforcement ....................................................... 48 5. Product Liability — Common Law Provinces ...................................................... 50 5.1 How broad is the potential for liability in a contractual claim? ........................ 50 5.2 How broad is the potential for liability in a negligence claim? ........................ 50 5.3 What is the extent of a person’s liability? ....................................................... 51 5.4 Other litigation risks: class actions, juries and punitive damages .................. 51 V. Procurement ............................................................................................................ 53 1. Procurement Law Framework ............................................................................... 53 1.1 Case law ......................................................................................................... 53 1.2 Procurement governance ............................................................................... 54 2. Issues for Organizations Participating in Canadian Procurement Processes ................................................................................................................ 57 2.1 What is the procurement governance regime that governs the procuring authority? ........................................................................................................ 58 2.2 Is the competitive procurement process a binding or non-binding process? ......................................................................................................... 58 2.3 What are a bidder’s rights in a binding procurement process? ...................... 58 2.4 Compliance with federal government integrity provisions .............................. 59 3. Issues for Organizations Conducting Competitive Procurement Processes in Canada .............................................................................................. 60 3.1 What are the organization’s internal procurement obligations? ..................... 60 3.2 Does the organization wish to conduct a binding or non-binding competitive procurement process? ................................................................ 60 3.3 What are a procuring authority’s
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