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Bill C-83

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First Reading

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	Commissioner of Canada Elections
Commissioner of Canada Elections	509. The Chief Electoral Officer shall appoint a Commissioner of Canada Elections, whose duty is to ensure that this Act is complied with and enforced.
Chief Electoral Officer to direct inquiry	510. If the Chief Electoral Officer believes on reasonable grounds that an election officer may have committed an offence against this Act or that any person may have committed an offence under any of paragraphs 486(3)(a) and (d) and 489(3)(g), sections 488 and 493 and subsection 499(1), the Chief Electoral Officer shall direct the Commissioner to make any inquiry that appears to be called for in the circumstances and, if after making the inquiry, it appears to the Commissioner that a prosecution for the offence should be taken, he or she shall institute and carry on the prosecution or cause it to be instituted and carried on and incur any expense that it may be necessary to incur for that purpose.
Commissioner may prosecute	511. If the Commissioner believes on reasonable grounds that an offence under this Act has been committed and is of the view that the public interest justifies it, the Commissioner may institute or cause to be instituted a prosecution for the offence
	(a) in the cases described in section 510, after an inquiry made under that section; or
	(b) in any other case,
	(i) on the Commissioner's own initiative, or
	(ii) after the receipt, within six months after the commission of the offence, of a written complaint alleging the commission of the offence.
Commission- er's consent required	512. (1) No prosecution for an offence under this Act may be instituted by a person other than the Commissioner without the Commissioner's prior written consent.
Exception	(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to an offence in relation to which an election officer has taken measures under subsection 479(3).
Document of consent	(3) Every document purporting to be the Commissioner's consent under subsection (1) is deemed to be that consent unless it is called into question by the Commissioner or by someone acting for the Commissioner or for Her Majesty.
Commissioner may intervene	513. The Commissioner may assist in carrying on a prosecution to which the Commissioner has consented if that assistance is, in the Commissioner's view, in the public interest. The Commissioner may incur such expenses as are necessary for that purpose.
Limitation period	514. (1) Proceedings in relation to an offence under this Act must be instituted within eighteen months after the day on which the offence was committed.
Exception	(2) Despite subsection (1), if a prosecution cannot be instituted because the offender has left the jurisdiction of the court, the prosecution may be instituted within one year after the offender's return.
Criminal court may allow costs to private prosecutor	515. (1) Any court of criminal jurisdiction before which a private prosecution is instituted for an offence against this Act may order payment by the defendant to the prosecutor of such costs and expenses as appear to the court to have been reasonably incurred in and about the conduct of the prosecution.
Prior recognizance required	(2) A court shall not make an order under subsection (1) unless the prosecutor, before or on the laying of the information, enters into a recognizance with two sufficient sureties, in the amount of $500, and to the satisfaction of the court, to conduct the prosecution with effect and to pay the defendant his or her costs in case of acquittal.
Costs in cases of private prosecution	(3) In case of an information by a private prosecutor for an offence against this Act, if judgment is given for the defendant, he or she is entitled to recover from the prosecutor the costs incurred by him or her by reason of the proceedings, which costs shall be taxed by the proper officer of the court in which the judgment is given.
	Injunctions
Application for injunction	516. (1) If the Commissioner has reasonable grounds to believe that a person has committed, is about to commit or is likely to commit an act or omission that is contrary to this Act, the Commissioner may, during an election period, after taking into account the nature and seriousness of the act or omission, the need to ensure fairness of the electoral process and the public interest, apply to a competent court described in subsection 525(1) for an injunction described in subsection (2).
Court may issue injunction	(2) If the court, on application by the Commissioner under subsection (1), is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds to believe that a person has committed, is about to commit or is likely to commit an act or omission that is contrary to this Act, and that the nature and seriousness of the act or omission, the need to ensure fairness of the electoral process and the public interest justify the issuing of an injunction, the court may issue an injunction ordering any person named in the application to do one or both of the following:
	(a) refrain from committing any act that it appears to the court is contrary to this Act; and
	(b) do any act that it appears to the court is required by this Act.
Notice	(3) No injunction may be issued under subsection (2) unless at least 48 hours notice is given to each person named in the application or the urgency of the situation is such that service of notice would not be in the public interest.
	Compliance Agreements
Compliance agreements	517. (1) If the Commissioner believes on reasonable grounds that a person has committed, is about to commit or is likely to commit an act or omission that could constitute an offence under this Act, the Commissioner may enter into a compliance agreement, aimed at ensuring compliance with this Act, with that person (in this section and sections 518 to 521 called the ``contracting party'').
Terms and penalty	(2) A compliance agreement may contain any terms and conditions that the Commissioner considers necessary to ensure compliance with this Act.
Obligations of Commissioner	(3) Before entering into a compliance agreement, the Commissioner shall
	(a) advise the prospective contracting party of the right to be represented by counsel and give him or her an opportunity to obtain counsel; and
	(b) obtain the consent of the prospective contracting party to the publication of the agreement under section 521.
Admission of responsibility	(4) A compliance agreement may include a statement by the contracting party in which he or she admits responsibility for the act or omission that constitutes the offence.
Inadmissible in evidence	(5) The fact that a compliance agreement was entered into, and any statement referred to in subsection (4), are not admissible in evidence against the contracting party in any civil or criminal proceedings.
Effect of compliance agreement	(6) When a compliance agreement is entered into, any prosecution of the contracting party for an act or omission that led to it is suspended and, unless there is non-compliance with it, the Commissioner may not institute such a prosecution.
Renegotia- tion	(7) The Commissioner and the contracting party may renegotiate the terms of the compliance agreement at the request of the contracting party at any time before it is fully executed.
Copy to be provided	(8) The Commissioner shall provide the contracting party with a copy of a compliance agreement or renegotiated compliance agreement to which it is a party without delay after the agreement is entered into or renegotiated, as the case may be.
If agreement complied with	518. (1) If the Commissioner is of the opinion that the compliance agreement has been complied with, the Commissioner shall cause a notice to that effect to be served on the contracting party.
Effect of notice	(2) Service of the notice terminates any prosecution of the contracting party that is based on the act or omission in question and prevents the Commissioner from instituting such a prosecution.
If agreement not complied with	519. If the Commissioner is of the opinion that the contracting party has not complied with the compliance agreement, the Commissioner shall cause a notice of default to be served on the contracting party, informing him or her that the Commissioner may institute proceedings against them in respect of the original act or omission or, if such proceedings have been instituted and suspended by virtue of paragraph 517(6)(a), they may be resumed.
Dismissal of proceedings	520. The court shall dismiss proceedings instituted or resumed under section 519 if it is satisfied on a balance of probabilities that the contracting party has totally complied with the compliance agreement or, in the case of partial compliance and taking into account the contracting party's performance with respect to the agreement, is of the opinion that the proceedings would be unfair.
Publication	521. The Commissioner shall publish, in the manner and form that he or she considers appropriate, a notice that sets out the contracting party's name, the act or omission in question and a summary of the compliance agreement.
	PART 20
	CONTESTED ELECTIONS
Means of contestation	522. (1) The validity of the election of a candidate may not be contested otherwise than in accordance with this Part.
No effect on rights and obligations	(2) The making of an application to contest an election does not affect any right or obligation of a candidate in that election.
Nul and void election	523. The election of a person is nul and void if, under section 65, the person was not eligible to be a candidate.
Contestation of election	524. (1) Any elector who was eligible to vote in an electoral district, and any candidate in an electoral district, may, by application to a competent court, contest the election in that electoral district on the grounds that
	(a) under section 65 the elected candidate was not eligible to be a candidate; or
	(b) there were irregularities, fraud or corrupt or illegal practices that affected the result of the election.
Exception	(2) An application may not be made on the grounds for which a recount may be requested under subsection 301(2).
Competent courts	525. (1) The following courts are competent courts for the purposes of this Part:
	(a) a court listed in subsection (2) that has jurisdiction in all or part of the electoral district in question; and
	(b) the Trial Division of the Federal Court.
Courts	(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(a), the courts are
	(a) in the Province of Ontario, the Superior Court of Justice;
	(b) in the Province of Quebec, the Superior Court;
	(c) in the Provinces of Nova Scotia and British Columbia, the Yukon Territory and the Northwest Territories, the Supreme Court;
	(d) in the Provinces of New Brunswick, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, the Court of Queen's Bench;
	(e) in the Provinces of Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland, the Trial Division of the Supreme Court; and
	(f) in Nunavut, the Nunavut Court of Justice.
Rules of procedure	(3) An application under section 524 shall be dealt with without delay and in a summary way. The court may, however, allow oral evidence to be given at the hearing of the application in specific circumstances.
Security, service of application	526. (1) An application must be accompanied by security for costs in the amount of $1,000, and must be served on the Attorney General of Canada, the Chief Electoral Officer, the returning officer of the electoral district in question and all the candidates in that electoral district.
Increase of security	(2) The court may, if it considers it just, increase the amount of the security.
Time limit	527. An application based on a ground set out in paragraph 524(1)(b) must be filed within 30 days after the later of
	(a) the day on which the result of the contested election is published in the Canada Gazette, and
	(b) the day on which the applicant first knew or should have known of the occurrence of the alleged irregularity, fraud, corrupt practice or illegal practice.
Withdrawal of application	528. An application may not be withdrawn without leave of the court.
Notice of appearance	529. Any person referred to in subsection 526(1) may, within 15 days after being served with the application, file with the court a notice of appearance if he or she wishes to take part in the proceedings.
Evidence	530. In a proceeding in relation to a contested election, the certificate of the returning officer is, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, sufficient evidence of the holding of the election and of any person named in the certificate having been a candidate.
Dismissal of application	531. (1) The court may at any time dismiss an application if it considers it to be vexatious, frivolous or not made in good faith.
Court's decision	(2) After hearing the application, the court may dismiss it if the grounds on which it is based are not established. If those grounds are established,
	(a) in the case of an application based on the ground mentioned in paragraph 524(1)(a), the court shall declare the election null and void; or
	(b) in the case of an application based on a ground mentioned in paragraph 524(1)(b), the court may annul the election.
Duties of court clerk	(3) The clerk of the court shall
	(a) send copies of the decision to the persons mentioned in subsection 526(1), to any intervenor and to the Speaker of the House of Commons; and
	(b) inform the Speaker of the House of Commons as to whether or not an appeal has been filed under subsection 532(1).
Informing House of Commons	(4) Except when an appeal is filed under subsection 532(1), the Speaker of the House of Commons shall communicate the decision to the House of Commons without delay.
Appeal	532. (1) An appeal from a decision made under subsection 531(2) lies to the Supreme Court of Canada on any question of law or fact, and must be filed within eight days after the decision was given.
Procedure	(2) The Supreme Court shall hear the appeal without delay and in a summary manner.
Copies of decision	(3) The registrar of the court shall send copies of the decision to the persons mentioned in subsection 526(1), to any intervenor and to the Speaker of the House of Commons.
Informing House of Commons	(4) The Speaker of the House of Commons shall communicate the decision to the House of Commons without delay.

Bill C-83

Commissioner of Canada Elections

Injunctions

Compliance Agreements

PART 20

CONTESTED ELECTIONS