Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. O-7)

Administrative Monetary Penalties

Powers

Marginal note:Regulations

• 71.01 (1) The Governor in Council may make regulations

  • (a) designating as a violation that may be proceeded with in accordance with this Act

    • (i) the contravention of any specified provision of this Act or of any of its regulations,

    • (ii) the contravention of any direction, requirement, decision or order, or of any direction, requirement, decision or order of a specified class of directions, requirements, decisions or orders, made under this Act, or

    • (iii) the failure to comply with any term, condition or requirement of

      • (A) an operating licence or authorization or any specified class of operating licences or authorizations, or

      • (B) any approval, leave or exemption or any specified class of approvals, leave or exemptions granted under this Act;

  • (b) respecting the determination of, or the method of determining, the amount payable as the penalty, which may be different for individuals and other persons, for each violation; and

  • (c) respecting the service of documents required or authorized under section 71.06, 71.2 or 71.5, including the manner and proof of service and the circumstances under which documents are considered to be served.

• Marginal note:Maximum penalty

  (2) The amount that may be determined under any regulations made under paragraph (1)(b) as the penalty for a violation shall not be more than $25,000, in the case of an individual, and $100,000, in the case of any other person.

Marginal note:Powers

71.02 The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator may

• (a) establish the form of notices of violation;

• (b) designate persons or classes of persons who are authorized to issue notices of violation;

• (c) establish, in respect of each violation, a short-form description to be used in notices of violation; and

• (d) designate persons or classes of persons to conduct reviews under section 71.4.

Violations

Marginal note:Commission of violation

• 71.03 (1) Every person who contravenes or fails to comply with a provision, direction, requirement, decision or order, or term or condition the contravention of which, or the failure to comply with which, is designated to be a violation by a regulation made under paragraph 71.01(1)(a) commits a violation and is liable to a penalty of an amount to be determined in accordance with the regulations.

• Marginal note:Purpose of penalty

  (2) The purpose of the penalty is to promote compliance with this Act and not to punish.

Marginal note:Liability of directors, officers, etc.

71.04 If a corporation commits a violation, any director, officer, or agent or mandatary of the corporation who directed, authorized, assented to, acquiesced in or participated in the commission of the violation is a party to the violation and is liable to a penalty of an amount to be determined in accordance with the regulations, whether or not the corporation has been proceeded against in accordance with this Act.

Marginal note:Proof of violation

71.05 In any proceedings under this Act against a person in relation to a violation, it is sufficient proof of the violation to establish that it was committed by an employee, or agent or mandatary, of the person, whether or not the employee, or agent or mandatary is identified or proceeded against in accordance with this Act.

Marginal note:Issuance and service of notice of violation

• 71.06 (1) If a person designated under paragraph 71.02(b) believes on reasonable grounds that a person has committed a violation, the designated person may issue a notice of violation and cause it to be served on the person.

• Marginal note:Contents

  (2) The notice of violation shall

  • (a) name the person that is believed to have committed the violation;

  • (b) set out the relevant facts surrounding the violation;

  • (c) set out the amount of the penalty for the violation;

  • (d) inform the person of their right, under section 71.2, to request a review with respect the amount of the penalty or the facts of the violation, and of the prescribed period within which that right is to be exercised;

  • (e) inform the person of the manner of paying the penalty set out in the notice; and

  • (f) inform the person that, if they do not exercise their right to request a review or if they do not pay the penalty, they will be considered to have committed the violation and that they are liable to the penalty set out in the notice.

Rules About Violations

Marginal note:Certain defences not available

• 71.07 (1) A person named in a notice of violation does not have a defence by reason that the person

  • (a) exercised due diligence to prevent the commission of the violation; or

  • (b) reasonably and honestly believed in the existence of facts that, if true, would exonerate the person.

• Marginal note:Common law principles

  (2) Every rule and principle of the common law that renders any circumstance a justification or excuse in relation to a charge for an offence under this Act applies in respect of a violation to the extent that it is not inconsistent with this Act.

Marginal note:Continuing violation

71.08 A violation that is committed or continued on more than one day constitutes a separate violation for each day on which it is committed or continued.

Marginal note:Violation or offence

• 71.09 (1) Proceeding with any act or omission as a violation under this Act precludes proceeding with it as an offence under this Act, and proceeding with it as an offence under this Act precludes proceeding with it as a violation under this Act.

• Marginal note:Violations not offences

  (2) For greater certainty, a violation is not an offence and, accordingly, section 126 of the Criminal Code does not apply in respect of a violation.

Marginal note:Limitation or prescription period

71.1 No notice of violation is to be issued more than two years after the day on which the matter giving rise to the violation occurred.

Reviews

Marginal note:Right to request review

71.2 A person who is served with a notice of violation may, within 30 days after the day on which it is served, or within any longer period that the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator allows, make a request to that Commission for a review of the amount of the penalty or the facts of the violation, or both.

Marginal note:Correction or cancellation of notice of violation

71.3 At any time before a request for a review in respect of a notice of violation is received by the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator, a person designated under paragraph 71.02(b) may cancel the notice of violation or correct an error in it.

Marginal note:Review

• 71.4 (1) On receipt of a request made under section 71.2, the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator shall conduct the review or cause the review to be conducted by a person designated under paragraph 71.02(d).

• Marginal note:Restriction

  (2) The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator shall conduct the review if the notice of violation was issued by a person designated under paragraph 71.02(d).

Marginal note:Object of review

• 71.5 (1) The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator or the person conducting the review shall determine, as the case may be, whether the amount of the penalty for the violation was determined in accordance with the regulations or whether the person committed the violation, or both.

• Marginal note:Determination

  (2) The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator or the person conducting the review shall render a determination and the reasons for it in writing and cause the person who requested the review to be served with a copy of them.

• Marginal note:Correction of penalty

  (3) If the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator or the person conducting the review determines that the amount of the penalty for the violation was not determined in accordance with the regulations, the Commission or the person, as the case may be, shall correct the amount of the penalty.

• Marginal note:Responsibility

  (4) If the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator or the person conducting the review determines that the person who requested the review committed the violation, the person who requested the review is liable to the penalty as set out in the notice issued under section 71.06 or as set out in the determination if the amount of the penalty was corrected under subsection (3).

• Marginal note:Determination final

  (5) A determination made under this section is final and binding and, except for judicial review under the Federal Courts Act, is not subject to appeal or to review by any court.

• Marginal note:Federal Court

  (6) Despite section 28 of the Federal Courts Act, the Federal Court has exclusive original jurisdiction to hear and determine an application for judicial review of a determination made under this section by the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator.