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Bill C-62

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DIVISION 5

WILDLIFE COMPENSATION

Interpretation

Definitions

151. (1) The definitions in this subsection apply in this Division.

``claimant''
« réclamant »

``claimant'' means an Inuk or Inuit.

``developer''
« entrepre-
neur
»

``developer'' means any person engaged in a development activity and includes, in the case of marine transportation as described in paragraph (c) of the definition ``development activity'', the owner of a ship.

``develop-
ment activity''
« activités de développe-
ment
»

``development activity'' means any of the following carried out on land or water in the Nunavut Settlement Area or in Zone I or Zone II, within the meaning assigned by section 1.1.1 of the Agreement:

      (a) a commercial or industrial undertaking or any extension of the undertaking, provided it is not a marine transportation undertaking;

      (b) a municipal, territorial, provincial or federal government undertaking or any extension of the undertaking, provided it is not a marine transportation undertaking; and

      (c) marine transportation directly associated with an undertaking described in paragraph (a) or (b).

    It does not include any wildlife measure or use approved in accordance with Article 5 of the Agreement.

Wildlife

(2) In this Division, ``wildlife'' does not include flora.

Definitions from Canada Shipping Act

(3) For the purposes of the definition ``developer'' in subsection (1) and for the purposes of section 153, the words ``discharge'', ``oil'', ``owner'' and ``ship'' have the meanings assigned to them by section 673 of the Canada Shipping Act.

Liability of Developers

Loss or damage

152. (1) Subject to this section, a developer is absolutely liable, without proof of fault or negligence, for any of the following losses or damage suffered by a claimant as a result of a development activity of the developer:

    (a) loss of or damage to property or equipment used in harvesting wildlife or to wildlife that has been harvested;

    (b) present and future loss of income from the harvesting of wildlife; and

    (c) present and future loss of wildlife harvested for personal use by claimants.

Exceptions

(2) A developer is not liable under subsection (1)

    (a) where the developer establishes that the loss or damage was wholly the result of an act of war, hostilities, a civil war, an insurrection or a natural phenomenon of an exceptional, inevitable and irresistible character;

    (b) where the loss or damage was caused by a ship, to the extent that the developer would not, but for subsection (1), have been liable as a result of a defence or limitation of liability available at law; or

    (c) to the extent that the aggregate loss or damage for each incident exceeds twenty million dollars.

Claim

(3) Any claim for compensation by a claimant, or by a designated Inuit organization or a Hunters and Trappers Organization, within the meaning assigned to that expression by section 1.1.1 of the Agreement, acting on behalf of the claimant, for loss or damage described in subsection (1) must be made in writing to the developer within three years after the later of the date the loss or damage occurs and the date that it comes to the knowledge of the claimant.

Compensa-
tion

(4) The following principles apply to the determination of the amount of compensation payable as a result of loss or damage described in subsection (1):

    (a) a claimant is required to make all reasonable attempts to mitigate any loss or damage; and

    (b) in general, compensation must not be a guaranteed annual income in perpetuity.

Liability of Minister

153. (1) Without limiting the liability of the Minister where the Minister is the person engaged in the development activity or the owner of the ship that caused the loss or damage, the Minister is liable, in relation to any loss or damage that is attributable to marine transportation as described in paragraph (c) of the definition ``development activity'' in subsection 151(1) other than that resulting from a discharge of oil from a ship, for any portion of the loss or damage for which a developer is not liable because of the application of paragraph 152(2)(b) and for which no other person is liable.

Liability of Fund

(2) In relation to loss or damage resulting from a discharge of oil from a ship that is engaged in marine transportation as described in paragraph (c) of the definition ``development activity'' in subsection 151(1), the Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund established under Part XVI of the Canada Shipping Act is liable to the same extent that a developer would be liable under section 152 if paragraph 152(2)(b) did not apply.

Subrogation

(3) The Administrator of the Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund is subrogated, to the extent of any payment made by the Fund under subsection (2), to any rights of the claimant in respect of the loss or damage for which that payment was made and, for that purpose, the Administrator may maintain an action in the Administrator's name or in the name of the claimant.

Applications to Tribunal

Application for order

154. On application, made not less than thirty days after the making of a claim in accordance with subsection 152(3),

    (a) by the claimant, or by a designated Inuit organization or a Hunters and Trappers Organization, within the meaning assigned to that expression by section 1.1.1 of the Agreement, on behalf of the claimant,

    (b) by a developer, or

    (c) by the Minister or the Administrator of the Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund, where the Minister, under subsection 153(1), or the Fund, under subsection 153(2), may be liable,

the Tribunal shall make an order determining liability for loss or damage and the amount of compensation payable in respect of it.

Minimization of loss or damage

155. (1) In order to minimize any loss or damage suffered by a claimant, the Tribunal may

    (a) dispose of any portion of the application that concerns loss or damage described in paragraph 152(1)(a) before any portion that concerns any other loss;

    (b) require that interest be paid on compensation, at a rate set by the Tribunal, from the later of the date the loss or damage occurred and the date that it came to the knowledge of the claimant; and

    (c) provide for additional compensation

      (i) for any additional loss or damage, and

      (ii) for costs, including costs of collecting,

    that may result from any delay in carrying out the terms of an order determining the amount of compensation.

Terms of payment

(2) The Tribunal may require compensation to be paid by one lump sum payment or by periodic payments of equal or different amounts and may order that, where the limit set out in paragraph 152(2)(c) has been met, compensation be prorated.

Apportion-
ment of liability

(3) If the Tribunal determines that more than one developer caused the loss or damage, it shall apportion liability in accordance with generally accepted legal principles.

Deadline

156. The Tribunal shall render a decision on an application within thirty days after completing the hearing of the application.

Other Remedies

Developer, Minister and Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund

157. (1) Nothing in this Division shall be construed as limiting or restricting any remedy that a developer, the Minister or the Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund may have against any person other than the claimant.

Claimant

(2) Subject to section 165, this Division is without prejudice to any other right or remedy that a claimant may have under a law of general application.

DIVISION 6

GENERAL

Decisions of the Tribunal

Costs

158. The costs relating to an application to or a hearing before the Tribunal that are incurred by the parties are in the discretion of the Tribunal and the Tribunal may, by order, award such costs on or before the final disposition of the application.

Reasons for decisions

159. The Tribunal shall give written reasons for every decision that it makes in relation to an application.

Copies

160. As soon as practicable after making a decision in relation to an application, the Tribunal shall give copies of the decision and the reasons for it to the parties.

Proof of orders

161. A document purporting to be an order or other decision of the Tribunal, or to be certified by the Chairperson of the Tribunal or any other person authorized by the by-laws as a true copy of such a decision, is evidence of the making of the decision and of its contents, without proof of the signature or official character of the person appearing to have signed the decision or certified the copy.

Order binding on successor

162. An order of the Tribunal is binding on, and the rights and obligations under it extend to, any person who subsequently acquires the ownership of or other interest or right in the land that is subject to the order and, in the case of an entry order, the right of access and the right for which the right of access was acquired.

Enforcement of orders

163. (1) An order of the Tribunal may be made an order of the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories by filing a certified copy of the order with the registrar of the Court and the order is enforceable in the same manner as an order of that Court.

Wildlife compensation orders

(2) At the request of a claimant, the Tribunal shall file a certified copy of an order made under section 154 with the registrar of the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories.

Assistance by Tribunal

164. The Tribunal may provide assistance in the enforcement of an order made under section 154.

Review of Orders

Findings of fact

165. Subject to sections 166 to 168 and the Federal Court Act, a determination of the Tribunal on the following questions is final and binding:

    (a) on any question of fact within its jurisdiction; and

    (b) in an application under section 154, on any question in relation to loss or damage described in subsection 152(1).

Review by Tribunal

166. The Tribunal may, on application made by any person who was a party to the hearing held in respect of the order or any successor to such a party referred to in section 162, review any of its orders, including an order made under this section, where it appears, in the opinion of the Tribunal, that there has been a material change in the facts or circumstances relating to the order and shall

    (a) where it determines that there has been a material change in the facts or circumstances relating to the order that would justify the amendment applied for,

      (i) if the effects on Inuit or on Inuit-owned land that would be caused as a result of the amendment are significantly detrimental, rescind that order and make a new order accordingly, or

      (ii) in any other case, amend the order accordingly; or

    (b) in any other case, dismiss the application.

Termination

167. The Tribunal shall, on application made by any person who was a party to the hearing held in respect of the order or any successor to such a party referred to in section 162, terminate an entry order under this Part if it is satisfied that the land subject to the order is no longer being used for the purpose for which the order was made.

Review of compensation

168. (1) Except where every person to whom notice is given under subsection (2)

    (a) waives the requirement for a review, or

    (b) is deemed, under subsection (3), to have waived that requirement,

the Tribunal shall review the amount of compensation payable under an order providing for compensation in relation to Inuit-owned lands at the expiry of each five year period after the day on which the order was made.

Notice

(2) The Tribunal shall, not later than sixty days before the expiry of each period referred to in subsection (1), notify, in writing, each person to whom a copy of the order was sent and any successor to such a person referred to in section 162 who has notified the Tribunal of the succession that

    (a) the Tribunal intends to review the amount of compensation payable under the order; and

    (b) the person may make written representations in respect of the amount of compensation to the Tribunal within thirty days after the day on which the person receives the notice.

Deemed waiver

(3) Every person who does not make representations in the manner described in paragraph (2)(b) is deemed to have waived the requirement for a review.

Regulations

Regulations

169. The Governor in Council may make regulations

    (a) prescribing what constitutes a material conflict of interest for the purposes of subsection 124(2);

    (b) respecting the maintenance of public records by the Tribunal;

    (c) respecting the amount of security that may be required to be given under a term or condition of an order of the Tribunal made under this Part and the nature, form, terms and conditions of the security and the manner in which the security may be realized;

    (d) prescribing, for the purposes of subsections 139(3) and 146(3), a rate of interest or rules for determining the rate of interest that may be payable on compensation payments; and

    (e) generally, for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Part.