Bill C-231
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- ENGLISH
- SUMMARY SUMMARY
- 1 Competition Act 1 Competition Act
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First Session, Forty-fourth Parliament,
70 Elizabeth II, 2021-2022
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HOUSE OF COMMONS OF CANADA
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BILL C-231
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An Act to amend the Competition Act (vehicle repair)
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FIRST READING, February 4, 2022
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Mr. Masse
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441038
SUMMARY
This enactment amends the Competition Act to authorize the Competition Tribunal, if certain criteria are met, to make an order requiring a vehicle manufacturer to provide an independent vehicle repair provider with access to diagnostic and repair information as well as to service parts on the same terms and in the same manner as the manufacturer makes the information and parts available to repair providers who are specifically authorized by the manufacturer to service their vehicles.
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Available on the House of Commons website at the following address:
www.ourcommons.ca
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1st Session, 44th Parliament,
70 Elizabeth II, 2021-2022
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HOUSE OF COMMONS OF CANADA
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BILL C-231
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An Act to amend the Competition Act (vehicle repair)
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Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:
R.S., c. C-34; R.S., c. 19 (2nd Supp.), s. 19
Competition Act
1 The Competition Act is amended by adding the following after section 75:
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Vehicles — Access to Information and Service Parts
End of inserted block Vehicles — access to diagnostic and repair information and service parts
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75.1 (1) On application by the Commissioner or a person granted leave under section 103.1, the Tribunal may make an order under subsection (2) if the Tribunal finds that
(a) an independent repair provider is substantially affected in their business or is precluded from carrying on business due to their inability to obtain, on the same terms and in the same manner as authorized repair providers, access to diagnostic and repair information — including technical updates, diagnostic software or tools and any related documentation — or service parts;
(b) the independent repair provider referred to in paragraph (a) is unable to obtain access to the diagnostic and repair information or the service parts because the manufacturer of the vehicle has withheld access to the information or parts with the object of impeding or preventing that provider’s entry into, or eliminating them from, the business of repairing the manufacturer’s vehicles;
(c) the diagnostic and repair information or the service parts are essential for the diagnosis, service, maintenance or repair of the vehicle; and
(d) the refusal to provide access to the information or the service parts has had, is having or is likely to have an adverse effect on competition in the vehicle repair market.
End of inserted block Order
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(2) The Tribunal may make an order requiring the manufacturer of a vehicle to provide the independent repair provider with access to the diagnostic and repair information described in subsection (1) — or make service parts available for purchase by the provider — on the same terms and in the same manner as the manufacturer makes the information and parts available to authorized repair providers.
End of inserted block Definitions
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(3) The following definitions apply in this section.
authorized repair provider means a person engaged in the diagnosis, maintenance or repair of vehicles that is authorized by the manufacturer of a vehicle in respect of which it carries on its business to service the vehicle on behalf of the manufacturer. (fournisseur de services de réparation agréé)
independent repair provider means a person engaged in the diagnosis, maintenance or repair of vehicles that is not affiliated with the manufacturer or distributor of a vehicle in respect of which it carries on its business or with an authorized repair provider. (fournisseur de services de réparation indépendant)
service parts means the parts made available by the manufacturer of a vehicle to an authorized repair provider for the purpose of repairing a vehicle manufactured by the manufacturer. (pièces de rechange)
vehicle has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act. (vehicle)
End of inserted block Trade secrets
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(4) Nothing in this section is to be interpreted as requiring the disclosure of any information that is a trade secret.
End of inserted block 2 (1) Subsections 103.1(1) and (2) of the Act are replaced by the following:
Leave to make application under section 75, 75.1, 76 or 77
103.1 (1) Any person may apply to the Tribunal for leave to make an application under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76 or 77. The application for leave must be accompanied by an affidavit setting out the facts in support of the person’s application under that section.
Notice
(2) The applicant must serve a copy of the application for leave on the Commissioner and any person against whom the order under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76 or 77, as the case may be, is sought.
(2) Paragraph 103.1(3)(b) of the Act is replaced by the following:
(b) was the subject of an inquiry that has been discontinued because of a settlement between the Commissioner and the person against whom the order under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76 or 77, as the case may be, is sought.
(3) Subsection 103.1(4) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Application discontinued
(4) The Tribunal shall not consider an application for leave respecting a matter described in paragraph (3)(a) or (b) or a matter that is the subject of an application already submitted to the Tribunal by the Commissioner under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76 or 77.
(4) Subsection 103.1(7) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Granting leave to make application under section 75, 75.1 or 77
(7) The Tribunal may grant leave to make an application under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end or 77 if it has reason to believe that the applicant is directly and substantially affected in the Insertion start applicant’s Insertion end business by any practice referred to in one of those sections that could be subject to an order under that section.
(5) Subsection 103.1(8) of the English version of the Act is replaced by the following:
Time and conditions for making application
(8) The Tribunal may set the time within which and the conditions subject to which an application under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76 or 77 must be made. The application must be made no more than one year after the practice or conduct that is the subject of the application has ceased.
(6) Subsection 103.1(10) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Limitation
(10) The Commissioner may not make an application for an order under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76, 77 or 79 on the basis of the same or substantially the same facts as are alleged in a matter for which the Tribunal has granted leave under subsection (7) or (7.1), if the person granted leave has already applied to the Tribunal under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76 or 77.
3 Section 103.2 of the Act is replaced by the following:
Intervention by Commissioner
103.2 If a person granted leave under subsection 103.1(7) or (7.1) makes an application under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76 or 77, the Commissioner may intervene in the proceedings.
4 Subsection 104(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Interim order
104 (1) If an application has been made for an order under this Part, other than an interim order under section 100 or 103.3, the Tribunal, on application by the Commissioner or a person who has made an application under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76 or 77, may issue any interim order that it considers appropriate, having regard to the principles ordinarily considered by superior courts when granting interlocutory or injunctive relief.
5 Subsection 106.1(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Consent agreement — parties to a private action
106.1 (1) If a person granted leave under section 103.1 makes an application to the Tribunal for an order under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76 or 77 and the terms of the order are agreed to by the person in respect of whom the order is sought and consistent with the provisions of this Act, a consent agreement may be filed with the Tribunal for registration.
6 Subsection 124.2(3) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Reference by agreement of parties to a private action
(3) A person granted leave under section 103.1 and the person against whom an order is sought under section 75, Insertion start 75.1 Insertion end , 76 or 77 may by agreement refer to the Tribunal for determination any question of law, or mixed law and fact, in relation to the application or interpretation of Part VIII, if the Tribunal grants them leave. They must send a notice of their application for leave to the Commissioner, who may intervene in the proceedings.
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Published under authority of the Speaker of the House of Commons
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