Interpretation Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. I-21)

Short Title

Marginal note:Short title

1 This Act may be cited as the Interpretation Act.

Interpretation

Marginal note:Definitions

• 2 (1) In this Act,

  Act

  Act means an Act of Parliament; (loi)

  enact

  enact includes to issue, make or establish; (Version anglaise seulement)

  enactment

  enactment means an Act or regulation or any portion of an Act or regulation; (texte)

  public officer

  public officer includes any person in the federal public administration who is authorized by or under an enactment to do or enforce the doing of an act or thing or to exercise a power, or on whom a duty is imposed by or under an enactment; (fonctionnaire public)

  regulation

  regulation includes an order, regulation, rule, rule of court, form, tariff of costs or fees, letters patent, commission, warrant, proclamation, by-law, resolution or other instrument issued, made or established

  • (a) in the execution of a power conferred by or under the authority of an Act, or

  • (b) by or under the authority of the Governor in Council; (règlement)

  repeal

  repeal includes revoke or cancel. (Version anglaise seulement)

• Marginal note:Expired and replaced enactments

  (2) For the purposes of this Act, an enactment that has been replaced is repealed and an enactment that has expired, lapsed or otherwise ceased to have effect is deemed to have been repealed.

Application

Marginal note:Application

• 3 (1) Every provision of this Act applies, unless a contrary intention appears, to every enactment, whether enacted before or after the commencement of this Act.

• Marginal note:Application to this Act

  (2) The provisions of this Act apply to the interpretation of this Act.

• Marginal note:Rules of construction not excluded

  (3) Nothing in this Act excludes the application to an enactment of a rule of construction applicable to that enactment and not inconsistent with this Act.

Enacting Clause of Acts

Marginal note:Enacting clause

• 4 (1) The enacting clause of an Act may be in the following form:

  “Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:”.

• Marginal note:Order of clauses

  (2) The enacting clause of an Act shall follow the preamble, if any, and the various provisions within the purview or body of the Act shall follow in a concise and enunciative form.

Operation

Royal Assent

Marginal note:Royal assent

• 5 (1) The Clerk of the Parliaments shall endorse on every Act, immediately after its title, the day, month and year when the Act was assented to in Her Majesty’s name and the endorsement shall be a part of the Act.

• Marginal note:Date of commencement

  (2) If no date of commencement is provided for in an Act, the date of commencement of that Act is the date of assent to the Act.

• Marginal note:Commencement provision

  (3) Where an Act contains a provision that the Act or any portion thereof is to come into force on a day later than the date of assent to the Act, that provision is deemed to have come into force on the date of assent to the Act.

• Marginal note:Commencement when no date fixed

  (4) Where an Act provides that certain provisions thereof are to come or are deemed to have come into force on a day other than the date of assent to the Act, the remaining provisions of the Act are deemed to have come into force on the date of assent to the Act.

Day Fixed for Commencement or Repeal

Marginal note:Operation when date fixed for commencement or repeal

• 6 (1) Where an enactment is expressed to come into force on a particular day, it shall be construed as coming into force on the expiration of the previous day, and where an enactment is expressed to expire, lapse or otherwise cease to have effect on a particular day, it shall be construed as ceasing to have effect on the commencement of the following day.

• Marginal note:When no date fixed

  (2) Every enactment that is not expressed to come into force on a particular day shall be construed as coming into force

  • (a) in the case of an Act, on the expiration of the day immediately before the day the Act was assented to in Her Majesty’s name; and

  • (b) in the case of a regulation, on the expiration of the day immediately before the day the regulation was registered pursuant to section 6 of the Statutory Instruments Act or, if the regulation is of a class that is exempted from the application of subsection 5(1) of that Act, on the expiration of the day immediately before the day the regulation was made.

• Marginal note:Judicial notice

  (3) Judicial notice shall be taken of a day for the coming into force of an enactment that is fixed by a regulation that has been published in the Canada Gazette.

Regulation Prior to Commencement

Marginal note:Preliminary proceedings

7 Where an enactment is not in force and it contains provisions conferring power to make regulations or do any other thing, that power may, for the purpose of making the enactment effective on its commencement, be exercised at any time before its commencement, but a regulation so made or a thing so done has no effect until the commencement of the enactment, except in so far as may be necessary to make the enactment effective on its commencement.

Territorial Operation

Marginal note:Territorial operation

• 8 (1) Every enactment applies to the whole of Canada, unless a contrary intention is expressed in the enactment.

• Marginal note:Amending enactment

  (2) Where an enactment that does not apply to the whole of Canada is amended, no provision in the amending enactment applies to any part of Canada to which the amended enactment does not apply, unless it is provided in the amending enactment that it applies to that part of Canada or to the whole of Canada.

• Marginal note:Exclusive economic zone of Canada

  (2.1) Every enactment that applies in respect of exploring or exploiting, conserving or managing natural resources, whether living or non-living, applies, in addition to its application to Canada, to the exclusive economic zone of Canada, unless a contrary intention is expressed in the enactment.

• Marginal note:Continental shelf of Canada

  (2.2) Every enactment that applies in respect of exploring or exploiting natural resources that are

  • (a) mineral or other non-living resources of the seabed or subsoil, or

  • (b) living organisms belonging to sedentary species, that is to say, organisms that, at the harvestable stage, either are immobile on or under the seabed or are unable to move except in constant physical contact with the seabed or subsoil

  applies, in addition to its application to Canada, to the continental shelf of Canada, unless a contrary intention is expressed in the enactment.

• Marginal note:Extra-territorial operation

  (3) Every Act now in force enacted prior to December 11, 1931 that expressly or by necessary or reasonable implication was intended, as to the whole or any part thereof, to have extra-territorial operation shall be construed as if, at the date of its enactment, the Parliament of Canada had full power to make laws having extra-territorial operation as provided by the Statute of Westminster, 1931.

Rules of Construction

Property and Civil Rights

Marginal note:Duality of legal traditions and application of provincial law

8.1 Both the common law and the civil law are equally authoritative and recognized sources of the law of property and civil rights in Canada and, unless otherwise provided by law, if in interpreting an enactment it is necessary to refer to a province’s rules, principles or concepts forming part of the law of property and civil rights, reference must be made to the rules, principles and concepts in force in the province at the time the enactment is being applied.

Marginal note:Terminology

8.2 Unless otherwise provided by law, when an enactment contains both civil law and common law terminology, or terminology that has a different meaning in the civil law and the common law, the civil law terminology or meaning is to be adopted in the Province of Quebec and the common law terminology or meaning is to be adopted in the other provinces.

Private Acts

Marginal note:Provisions in private Acts

9 No provision in a private Act affects the rights of any person, except as therein mentioned or referred to.

Law Always Speaking

Marginal note:Law always speaking

10 The law shall be considered as always speaking, and where a matter or thing is expressed in the present tense, it shall be applied to the circumstances as they arise, so that effect may be given to the enactment according to its true spirit, intent and meaning.

Imperative and Permissive Construction

Marginal note:“Shall” and “may”

11 The expression “shall” is to be construed as imperative and the expression “may” as permissive.

Enactments Remedial

Marginal note:Enactments deemed remedial

12 Every enactment is deemed remedial, and shall be given such fair, large and liberal construction and interpretation as best ensures the attainment of its objects.

Preambles and Marginal Notes

Marginal note:Preamble

13 The preamble of an enactment shall be read as a part of the enactment intended to assist in explaining its purport and object.

Marginal note:Marginal notes and historical references

14 Marginal notes and references to former enactments that appear after the end of a section or other division in an enactment form no part of the enactment, but are inserted for convenience of reference only.

Application of Interpretation Provisions

Marginal note:Application of definitions and interpretation rules

• 15 (1) Definitions or rules of interpretation in an enactment apply to all the provisions of the enactment, including the provisions that contain those definitions or rules of interpretation.

• Marginal note:Interpretation sections subject to exceptions

  (2) Where an enactment contains an interpretation section or provision, it shall be read and construed

  • (a) as being applicable only if a contrary intention does not appear; and

  • (b) as being applicable to all other enactments relating to the same subject-matter unless a contrary intention appears.

Marginal note:Words in regulations

16 Where an enactment confers power to make regulations, expressions used in the regulations have the same respective meanings as in the enactment conferring the power.

Her Majesty

Marginal note:Her Majesty not bound or affected unless stated

17 No enactment is binding on Her Majesty or affects Her Majesty or Her Majesty’s rights or prerogatives in any manner, except as mentioned or referred to in the enactment.

Proclamations

Marginal note:Proclamation

• 18 (1) Where an enactment authorizes the issue of a proclamation, the proclamation shall be understood to be a proclamation of the Governor in Council.

• Marginal note:Proclamation to be issued on advice

  (2) Where the Governor General is authorized to issue a proclamation, the proclamation shall be understood to be a proclamation issued under an order of the Governor in Council, but it is not necessary to mention in the proclamation that it is issued under such an order.

• Marginal note:Effective day of proclamations

  (3) A proclamation that is issued under an order of the Governor in Council may purport to have been issued on the day of the order or on any subsequent day and, if so, takes effect on that day.

• (4) [Repealed, 1992, c. 1, s. 88]

Oaths

Marginal note:Administration of oaths

• 19 (1) Where, by an enactment or by a rule of the Senate or House of Commons, evidence under oath is authorized or required to be taken, or an oath is authorized or directed to be made, taken or administered, the oath may be administered, and a certificate of its having been made, taken or administered may be given by

  • (a) any person authorized by the enactment or rule to take the evidence; or

  • (b) a judge of any court, a notary public, a justice of the peace or a commissioner for taking affidavits, having authority or jurisdiction within the place where the oath is administered.

• Marginal note:Where justice of peace empowered

  (2) Where power is conferred on a justice of the peace to administer an oath or solemn affirmation or to take an affidavit or declaration, the power may be exercised by a notary public or a commissioner for taking oaths.

Reports to Parliament

Marginal note:Reports to Parliament

20 Where an Act requires a report or other document to be laid before Parliament and, in compliance with the Act, a particular report or document has been laid before Parliament at a session thereof, nothing in the Act shall be construed as requiring the same report or document to be laid before Parliament at any subsequent session.

Corporations

Marginal note:Powers vested in corporations

• 21 (1) Words establishing a corporation shall be construed

  • (a) as vesting in the corporation power to sue and be sued, to contract and be contracted with by its corporate name, to have a common seal and to alter or change it at pleasure, to have perpetual succession, to acquire and hold personal property for the purposes for which the corporation is established and to alienate that property at pleasure;

  • (b) in the case of a corporation having a name consisting of an English and a French form or a combined English and French form, as vesting in the corporation power to use either the English or the French form of its name or both forms and to show on its seal both the English and French forms of its name or have two seals, one showing the English and the other showing the French form of its name;

  • (c) as vesting in a majority of the members of the corporation the power to bind the others by their acts; and

  • (d) as exempting from personal liability for its debts, obligations or acts individual members of the corporation who do not contravene the provisions of the enactment establishing the corporation.

• Marginal note:Corporate name

  (2) Where an enactment establishes a corporation and in each of the English and French versions of the enactment the name of the corporation is in the form only of the language of that version, the name of the corporation shall consist of the form of its name in each of the versions of the enactment.

• Marginal note:Banking business

  (3) No corporation is deemed to be authorized to carry on the business of banking unless that power is expressly conferred on it by the enactment establishing the corporation.

Majority and Quorum

Marginal note:Majorities

• 22 (1) Where an enactment requires or authorizes more than two persons to do an act or thing, a majority of them may do it.

• Marginal note:Quorum of board, court, commission, etc.

  (2) Where an enactment establishes a board, court, commission or other body consisting of three or more members, in this section called an “association”,

  • (a) at a meeting of the association, a number of members of the association equal to,

    • (i) if the number of members provided for by the enactment is a fixed number, at least one-half of the number of members, and

    • (ii) if the number of members provided for by the enactment is not a fixed number but is within a range having a maximum or minimum, at least one-half of the number of members in office if that number is within the range,

    constitutes a quorum;

  • (b) an act or thing done by a majority of the members of the association present at a meeting, if the members present constitute a quorum, is deemed to have been done by the association; and

  • (c) a vacancy in the membership of the association does not invalidate the constitution of the association or impair the right of the members in office to act, if the number of members in office is not less than a quorum.

Appointment, Retirement and Powers of Officers

Marginal note:Public officers hold office during pleasure

• 23 (1) Every public officer appointed by or under the authority of an enactment or otherwise is deemed to have been appointed to hold office during pleasure only, unless it is otherwise expressed in the enactment, commission or instrument of appointment.

• Marginal note:Effective day of appointments

  (2) Where an appointment is made by instrument under the Great Seal, the instrument may purport to have been issued on or after the day its issue was authorized, and the day on which it so purports to have been issued is deemed to be the day on which the appointment takes effect.

• Marginal note:Appointment or engagement otherwise than under Great Seal

  (3) Where there is authority in an enactment to appoint a person to a position or to engage the services of a person, otherwise than by instrument under the Great Seal, the instrument of appointment or engagement may be expressed to be effective on or after the day on which that person commenced the performance of the duties of the position or commenced the performance of the services, and the day on which it is so expressed to be effective, unless that day is more than sixty days before the day on which the instrument is issued, is deemed to be the day on which the appointment or engagement takes effect.

• Marginal note:Remuneration

  (4) Where a person is appointed to an office, the appointing authority may fix, vary or terminate that person’s remuneration.

• Marginal note:Commencement of appointments or retirements

  (5) Where a person is appointed to an office effective on a specified day, or where the appointment of a person is terminated effective on a specified day, the appointment or termination is deemed to have been effected immediately on the expiration of the previous day.

Marginal note:Implied powers respecting public officers

• 24 (1) Words authorizing the appointment of a public officer to hold office during pleasure include, in the discretion of the authority in whom the power of appointment is vested, the power to

  • (a) terminate the appointment or remove or suspend the public officer;

  • (b) re-appoint or reinstate the public officer; and

  • (c) appoint another person in the stead of, or to act in the stead of, the public officer.

• Marginal note:Power to act for ministers

  (2) Words directing or empowering a minister of the Crown to do an act or thing, regardless of whether the act or thing is administrative, legislative or judicial, or otherwise applying to that minister as the holder of the office, include

  • (a) a minister acting for that minister or, if the office is vacant, a minister designated to act in the office by or under the authority of an order in council;

  • (b) the successors of that minister in the office;

  • (c) his or their deputy; and

  • (d) notwithstanding paragraph (c), a person appointed to serve, in the department or ministry of state over which the minister presides, in a capacity appropriate to the doing of the act or thing, or to the words so applying.

• Marginal note:Restriction as to public servants

  (3) Nothing in paragraph (2)(c) or (d) shall be construed as authorizing the exercise of any authority conferred on a minister to make a regulation as defined in the Statutory Instruments Act.

• Marginal note:Successors to and deputy of public officer

  (4) Words directing or empowering any public officer, other than a minister of the Crown, to do any act or thing, or otherwise applying to the public officer by his name of office, include his successors in the office and his or their deputy.

• Marginal note:Powers of holder of public office

  (5) Where a power is conferred or a duty imposed on the holder of an office, the power may be exercised and the duty shall be performed by the person for the time being charged with the execution of the powers and duties of the office.

Evidence

Marginal note:Documentary evidence

• 25 (1) Where an enactment provides that a document is evidence of a fact without anything in the context to indicate that the document is conclusive evidence, then, in any judicial proceedings, the document is admissible in evidence and the fact is deemed to be established in the absence of any evidence to the contrary.

• Marginal note:Queen’s Printer

  (2) Every copy of an enactment having printed thereon what purports to be the name or title of the Queen’s Printer and Controller of Stationery or the Queen’s Printer is deemed to be a copy purporting to be printed by the Queen’s Printer for Canada.

Computation of Time

Marginal note:Time limits and holidays

26 Where the time limited for the doing of a thing expires or falls on a holiday, the thing may be done on the day next following that is not a holiday.

Marginal note:Clear days

• 27 (1) Where there is a reference to a number of clear days or “at least” a number of days between two events, in calculating that number of days the days on which the events happen are excluded.

• Marginal note:Not clear days

  (2) Where there is a reference to a number of days, not expressed to be clear days, between two events, in calculating that number of days the day on which the first event happens is excluded and the day on which the second event happens is included.

• Marginal note:Beginning and ending of prescribed periods

  (3) Where a time is expressed to begin or end at, on or with a specified day, or to continue to or until a specified day, the time includes that day.

• Marginal note:After specified day

  (4) Where a time is expressed to begin after or to be from a specified day, the time does not include that day.

• Marginal note:Within a time

  (5) Where anything is to be done within a time after, from, of or before a specified day, the time does not include that day.

Marginal note:Calculation of a period of months after or before a specified day

28 Where there is a reference to a period of time consisting of a number of months after or before a specified day, the period is calculated by

• (a) counting forward or backward from the specified day the number of months, without including the month in which that day falls;

• (b) excluding the specified day; and

• (c) including in the last month counted under paragraph (a) the day that has the same calendar number as the specified day or, if that month has no day with that number, the last day of that month.

Marginal note:Time of the day

29 Where there is a reference to time expressed as a specified time of the day, the time is taken to mean standard time.

Marginal note:Time when specified age attained

30 A person is deemed not to have attained a specified number of years of age until the commencement of the anniversary, of the same number, of the day of that person’s birth.

Miscellaneous Rules

Marginal note:Reference to provincial court judge, etc.

• 31 (1) Where anything is required or authorized to be done by or before a judge, provincial court judge, justice of the peace or any functionary or officer, it shall be done by or before one whose jurisdiction or powers extend to the place where the thing is to be done.

• Marginal note:Ancillary powers

  (2) Where power is given to a person, officer or functionary to do or enforce the doing of any act or thing, all such powers as are necessary to enable the person, officer or functionary to do or enforce the doing of the act or thing are deemed to be also given.

• Marginal note:Powers to be exercised as required

  (3) Where a power is conferred or a duty imposed, the power may be exercised and the duty shall be performed from time to time as occasion requires.

• Marginal note:Power to repeal

  (4) Where a power is conferred to make regulations, the power shall be construed as including a power, exercisable in the same manner and subject to the same consent and conditions, if any, to repeal, amend or vary the regulations and make others.

Marginal note:Forms

32 Where a form is prescribed, deviations from that form, not affecting the substance or calculated to mislead, do not invalidate the form used.

Marginal note:Gender

• 33 (1) Words importing female persons include male persons and corporations and words importing male persons include female persons and corporations.

• Marginal note:Number

  (2) Words in the singular include the plural, and words in the plural include the singular.

• Marginal note:Parts of speech and grammatical forms

  (3) Where a word is defined, other parts of speech and grammatical forms of the same word have corresponding meanings.

Offences

Marginal note:Indictable and summary conviction offences

• 34 (1) Where an enactment creates an offence,

  • (a) the offence is deemed to be an indictable offence if the enactment provides that the offender may be prosecuted for the offence by indictment;

  • (b) the offence is deemed to be one for which the offender is punishable on summary conviction if there is nothing in the context to indicate that the offence is an indictable offence; and

  • (c) if the offence is one for which the offender may be prosecuted by indictment or for which the offender is punishable on summary conviction, no person shall be considered to have been convicted of an indictable offence by reason only of having been convicted of the offence on summary conviction.

• Marginal note:Criminal Code to apply

  (2) All the provisions of the Criminal Code relating to indictable offences apply to indictable offences created by an enactment, and all the provisions of that Code relating to summary conviction offences apply to all other offences created by an enactment, except to the extent that the enactment otherwise provides.

• Marginal note:Documents similarly construed

  (3) In a commission, proclamation, warrant or other document relating to criminal law or procedure in criminal matters,

  • (a) a reference to an offence for which the offender may be prosecuted by indictment shall be construed as a reference to an indictable offence; and

  • (b) a reference to any other offence shall be construed as a reference to an offence for which the offender is punishable on summary conviction.

Powers to Enter Dwelling-houses to Carry out Arrests

Marginal note:Authorization to enter dwelling-house

34.1 Any person who may issue a warrant to arrest or apprehend a person under any Act of Parliament, other than the Criminal Code, has the same powers, subject to the same terms and conditions, as a judge or justice has under the Criminal Code

• (a) to authorize the entry into a dwelling-house described in the warrant for the purpose of arresting or apprehending the person, if the person issuing the warrant is satisfied by information on oath that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the person is or will be present in the dwelling-house; and

• (b) to authorize the entry into the dwelling-house without prior announcement if the requirement of subsection 529.4(1) of the Criminal Code is met.

Definitions

Marginal note:General definitions

• 35 (1) In every enactment,

  Act

  Act, in respect of an Act of a legislature, includes a law of the Legislature of Yukon, of the Northwest Territories or for Nunavut; (loi provinciale)

  bank

  bank means a bank listed in Schedule I or II to the Bank Act; (banque)

  British Commonwealth

  British Commonwealth or British Commonwealth of Nations has the same meaning as Commonwealth; (Commonwealth, Commonwealth britannique, Commonwealth des nations ou Commonwealth des nations britanniques)

  broadcasting

  broadcasting means any radiocommunication in which the transmissions are intended for direct reception by the general public; (radiodiffusion)

  Canada

  Canada, for greater certainty, includes the internal waters of Canada and the territorial sea of Canada; (Canada)

  Canadian waters

  Canadian waters includes the territorial sea of Canada and the internal waters of Canada; (eaux canadiennes)

  Clerk of the Privy Council

  Clerk of the Privy Council or Clerk of the Queen’s Privy Council means the Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet; (greffier du Conseil privé ou greffier du Conseil privé de la Reine)

  commencement

  commencement, when used with reference to an enactment, means the time at which the enactment comes into force; (Version anglaise seulement)

  Commonwealth

  Commonwealth or Commonwealth of Nations means the association of countries named in the schedule; (Commonwealth, Commonwealth britannique, Commonwealth des nations ou Commonwealth des nations britanniques)

  Commonwealth and Dependent Territories

  Commonwealth and Dependent Territories means the several Commonwealth countries and their colonies, possessions, dependencies, protectorates, protected states, condominiums and trust territories; (Commonwealth et dépendances)

  contiguous zone

  contiguous zone,

  • (a) in relation to Canada, means the contiguous zone of Canada as determined under the Oceans Act, and

  • (b) in relation to any other state, means the contiguous zone of the other state as determined in accordance with international law and the domestic laws of that other state; (zone contiguë)

  continental shelf

  continental shelf,

  • (a) in relation to Canada, means the continental shelf of Canada as determined under the Oceans Act, and

  • (b) in relation to any other state, means the continental shelf of the other state as determined in accordance with international law and the domestic laws of that other state; (plateau continental)

  contravene

  contravene includes fail to comply with; (contravention)

  corporation

  corporation does not include a partnership that is considered to be a separate legal entity under provincial law; (personne morale)

  county

  county includes two or more counties united for purposes to which the enactment relates; (comté)

  county court

  county court[Repealed, 1990, c. 17, s. 26]

  diplomatic or consular officer

  diplomatic or consular officer includes an ambassador, envoy, minister, chargé d’affaires, counsellor, secretary, attaché, consul-general, consul, vice-consul, pro-consul, consular agent, acting consul-general, acting consul, acting vice-consul, acting consular agent, high commissioner, permanent delegate, adviser, acting high commissioner, and acting permanent delegate; (agent diplomatique ou consulaire)

  exclusive economic zone

  exclusive economic zone,

  • (a) in relation to Canada, means the exclusive economic zone of Canada as determined under the Oceans Act and includes the seabed and subsoil below that zone, and

  • (b) in relation to any other state, means the exclusive economic zone of the other state as determined in accordance with international law and the domestic laws of that other state; (zone économique exclusive)

  Federal Court

  Federal Court[Repealed, 2002, c. 8, s. 151]

  Federal Court — Appeal Division

  Federal Court — Appeal Division or Federal Court of Appeal[Repealed, 2002, c. 8, s. 151]

  Federal Court — Trial Division

  Federal Court — Trial Division[Repealed, 2002, c. 8, s. 151]

  Governor

  Governor, Governor General or Governor of Canada means the Governor General of Canada or other chief executive officer or administrator carrying on the Government of Canada on behalf and in the name of the Sovereign, by whatever title that officer is designated; (gouverneur, gouverneur du Canada ou gouverneur général)

  Governor General in Council

  Governor General in Council or Governor in Council means the Governor General of Canada acting by and with the advice of, or by and with the advice and consent of, or in conjunction with the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada; (gouverneur en conseil ou gouverneur général en conseil)

  Great Seal

  Great Seal means the Great Seal of Canada; (grand sceau)

  Her Majesty

  Her Majesty, His Majesty, the Queen, the King or the Crown means the Sovereign of the United Kingdom, Canada and Her or His other Realms and Territories, and Head of the Commonwealth; (Sa Majesté, la Reine, le Roi ou la Couronne)

  Her Majesty’s Realms and Territories

  Her Majesty’s Realms and Territories or His Majesty’s Realms and Territories means all realms and territories under the sovereignty of Her or His Majesty; (royaumes et territoires de Sa Majesté)

  herein

  herein used in any section shall be understood to relate to the whole enactment, and not to that section only; (Version anglaise seulement)

  holiday

  holiday means any of the following days, namely, Sunday; New Year’s Day; Good Friday; Easter Monday; Christmas Day; the birthday or the day fixed by proclamation for the celebration of the birthday of the reigning Sovereign; Victoria Day; Canada Day; the first Monday in September, designated Labour Day; National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, which is observed on September 30; Remembrance Day; any day appointed by proclamation to be observed as a day of general prayer or mourning or day of public rejoicing or thanksgiving; and any of the following additional days, namely,

  • (a) in any province, any day appointed by proclamation of the lieutenant governor of the province to be observed as a public holiday or as a day of general prayer or mourning or day of public rejoicing or thanksgiving within the province, and any day that is a non-juridical day by virtue of an Act of the legislature of the province, and

  • (b) in any city, town, municipality or other organized district, any day appointed to be observed as a civic holiday by resolution of the council or other authority charged with the administration of the civic or municipal affairs of the city, town, municipality or district; (jour férié)

  internal waters

  internal waters,

  • (a) in relation to Canada, means the internal waters of Canada as determined under the Oceans Act and includes the airspace above and the bed and subsoil below those waters, and

  • (b) in relation to any other state, means the waters on the landward side of the baselines of the territorial sea of the other state; (eaux intérieures)

  legislative assembly

  legislative assembly, legislative council or legislature[Repealed, 2014, c. 2, s. 14]

  legislative assembly

  legislative assembly or legislature includes the Lieutenant Governor in Council and the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, as constituted before September 1, 1905, and the Legislature of Yukon, of the Northwest Territories or for Nunavut; (législature ou assemblée législative)

  lieutenant governor

  lieutenant governor means the lieutenant governor or other chief executive officer or administrator carrying on the government of the province indicated by the enactment, by whatever title that officer is designated, and in Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut means the Commissioner; (lieutenant-gouverneur)

  lieutenant governor in council

  lieutenant governor in council means

  • (a) the lieutenant governor of the province indicated by the enactment acting by and with the advice of, by and with the advice and consent of, or in conjunction with, the executive council,

  • (b) in Yukon, the Commissioner of Yukon acting with the consent of the Executive Council of Yukon,

  • (c) in the Northwest Territories, the Commissioner of the Northwest Territories acting with the consent of the Executive Council of the Northwest Territories, and

  • (d) in Nunavut, the Commissioner; (lieutenant-gouverneur en conseil)

  local time

  local time, in relation to any place, means the time observed in that place for the regulation of business hours; (heure locale)

  military

  military shall be construed as relating to all or any part of the Canadian Forces; (militaire)

  month

  month means a calendar month; (mois)

  oath

  oath includes a solemn affirmation or declaration when the context applies to any person by whom and to any case in which a solemn affirmation or declaration may be made instead of an oath, and in the same cases the expression sworn includes the expression “affirmed” or “declared”; (serment)

  Parliament

  Parliament means the Parliament of Canada; (Parlement)

  person

  person, or any word or expression descriptive of a person, includes a corporation; (personne)

  proclamation

  proclamation means a proclamation under the Great Seal; (proclamation)

  province

  province means a province of Canada, and includes Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut; (province)

  radio

  radio or radiocommunication means any transmission, emission or reception of signs, signals, writing, images, sounds or intelligence of any nature by means of electromagnetic waves of frequencies lower than 3 000 GHz propagated in space without artificial guide; (radiocommunication ou radio)

  regular force

  regular force means the component of the Canadian Forces that is referred to in the National Defence Act as the regular force; (force régulière)

  reserve force

  reserve force means the component of the Canadian Forces that is referred to in the National Defence Act as the reserve force; (force de réserve)

  security

  security means sufficient security, and sureties means sufficient sureties, and when those words are used one person is sufficient therefor, unless otherwise expressly required; (caution ou cautionnement)

  standard time

  standard time, except as otherwise provided by any proclamation of the Governor in Council that may be issued for the purposes of this definition in relation to any province or territory or any part thereof, means

  • (a) in relation to the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Newfoundland standard time, being three hours and thirty minutes behind Greenwich time,

  • (b) in relation to the Provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, that part of the Province of Quebec lying east of the sixty-third meridian of west longitude, and that part of Nunavut lying east of the sixty-eighth meridian of west longitude, Atlantic standard time, being four hours behind Greenwich time,

  • (c) in relation to that part of the Province of Quebec lying west of the sixty-third meridian of west longitude, that part of the Province of Ontario lying between the sixty-eighth and the ninetieth meridians of west longitude, Southampton Island and the islands adjacent to Southampton Island, and that part of Nunavut lying between the sixty-eighth and the eighty-fifth meridians of west longitude, eastern standard time, being five hours behind Greenwich time,

  • (d) in relation to that part of the Province of Ontario lying west of the ninetieth meridian of west longitude, the Province of Manitoba, and that part of Nunavut, except Southampton Island and the islands adjacent to Southampton Island, lying between the eighty-fifth and the one hundred and second meridians of west longitude, central standard time, being six hours behind Greenwich time,

  • (e) in relation to the Provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta, the Northwest Territories and that part of Nunavut lying west of the one hundred and second meridian of west longitude, mountain standard time, being seven hours behind Greenwich time,

  • (f) in relation to the Province of British Columbia, Pacific standard time, being eight hours behind Greenwich time, and

  • (g) in relation to Yukon, Yukon standard time, being nine hours behind Greenwich time; (heure normale)

  statutory declaration

  statutory declaration means a solemn declaration made pursuant to section 41 of the Canada Evidence Act; (déclaration solennelle)

  superior court

  superior court means

  • (a) in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Supreme Court,

  • (a.1) in the Province of Ontario, the Court of Appeal for Ontario and the Superior Court of Justice,

  • (b) in the Province of Quebec, the Court of Appeal and the Superior Court in and for the Province,

  • (c) in the Province of New Brunswick, Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Alberta, the Court of Appeal for the Province and the Court of Queen’s Bench for the Province,

  • (d) in the Provinces of Nova Scotia, British Columbia and Prince Edward Island, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of the Province, and

  • (e) the Supreme Court of Yukon, the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories and the Nunavut Court of Justice,

  and includes the Supreme Court of Canada, the Federal Court of Appeal, the Federal Court and the Tax Court of Canada; (juridiction supérieure ou cour supérieure)

  telecommunications

  telecommunications means the emission, transmission or reception of signs, signals, writing, images, sounds or intelligence of any nature by any wire, cable, radio, optical or other electromagnetic system, or by any similar technical system; (télécommunication)

  territorial sea

  territorial sea,

  • (a) in relation to Canada, means the territorial sea of Canada as determined under the Oceans Act and includes the airspace above and the seabed and subsoil below that sea, and

  • (b) in relation to any other state, means the territorial sea of the other state as determined in accordance with international law and the domestic laws of that other state; (mer territoriale)

  territory

  territory means Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut; (territoires)

  two justices

  two justices means two or more justices of the peace, assembled or acting together; (deux juges de paix)

  United Kingdom

  United Kingdom means the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; (Royaume-Uni)

  United States

  United States means the United States of America; (États-Unis)

  writing

  writing, or any term of like import, includes words printed, typewritten, painted, engraved, lithographed, photographed or represented or reproduced by any mode of representing or reproducing words in visible form. (écrit)

• Marginal note:Governor in Council may amend schedule

  (2) The Governor in Council may, by order, amend the schedule by adding thereto the name of any country recognized by the order to be a member of the Commonwealth or deleting therefrom the name of any country recognized by the order to be no longer a member of the Commonwealth.

Marginal note:Construction of telegraph

36 The expression telegraph and its derivatives, in an enactment or in an Act of the legislature of any province enacted before that province became part of Canada on any subject that is within the legislative powers of Parliament, are deemed not to include the word “telephone” or its derivatives.

Marginal note:Construction of year

• 37 (1) The expression year means any period of twelve consecutive months, except that a reference

  • (a) to a calendar year means a period of twelve consecutive months commencing on January 1;

  • (b) to a financial year or fiscal year means, in relation to money provided by Parliament, or the Consolidated Revenue Fund, or the accounts, taxes or finances of Canada, the period beginning on April 1 in one calendar year and ending on March 31 in the next calendar year; and

  • (c) by number to a Dominical year means the period of twelve consecutive months commencing on January 1 of that Dominical year.

• Marginal note:Governor in Council may define year

  (2) Where in an enactment relating to the affairs of Parliament or the Government of Canada there is a reference to a period of a year without anything in the context to indicate beyond doubt whether a financial or fiscal year, any period of twelve consecutive months or a period of twelve consecutive months commencing on January 1 is intended, the Governor in Council may prescribe which of those periods of twelve consecutive months shall constitute a year for the purposes of the enactment.

Marginal note:Common names

38 The name commonly applied to any country, place, body, corporation, society, officer, functionary, person, party or thing means the country, place, body, corporation, society, officer, functionary, person, party or thing to which the name is commonly applied, although the name is not the formal or extended designation thereof.

Marginal note:Affirmative and negative resolutions

• 39 (1) In every Act,

  • (a) the expression subject to affirmative resolution of Parliament, when used in relation to any regulation, means that the regulation shall be laid before Parliament within fifteen days after it is made or, if Parliament is not then sitting, on any of the first fifteen days next thereafter that Parliament is sitting and shall not come into force unless and until it is affirmed by a resolution of both Houses of Parliament introduced and passed in accordance with the rules of those Houses;

  • (b) the expression subject to affirmative resolution of the House of Commons, when used in relation to any regulation, means that the regulation shall be laid before the House of Commons within fifteen days after it is made or, if the House is not then sitting, on any of the first fifteen days next thereafter that the House is sitting and shall not come into force unless and until it is affirmed by a resolution of the House of Commons introduced and passed in accordance with the rules of that House;

  • (c) the expression subject to negative resolution of Parliament, when used in relation to any regulation, means that the regulation shall be laid before Parliament within fifteen days after it is made or, if Parliament is not then sitting, on any of the first fifteen days next thereafter that Parliament is sitting and may be annulled by a resolution of both Houses of Parliament introduced and passed in accordance with the rules of those Houses; and

  • (d) the expression subject to negative resolution of the House of Commons, when used in relation to any regulation, means that the regulation shall be laid before the House of Commons within fifteen days after it is made or, if the House is not then sitting, on any of the first fifteen days next thereafter that the House is sitting and may be annulled by a resolution of the House of Commons introduced and passed in accordance with the rules of that House.

• Marginal note:Effect of negative resolution

  (2) Where a regulation is annulled by a resolution of Parliament or of the House of Commons, it is deemed to have been revoked on the day the resolution is passed and any law that was revoked or amended by the making of that regulation is deemed to be revived on the day the resolution is passed, but the validity of any action taken or not taken in compliance with a regulation so deemed to have been revoked shall not be affected by the resolution.

References and Citations

Marginal note:Citation of enactment

• 40 (1) In an enactment or document,

  • (a) an Act may be cited by reference to its chapter number in the Revised Statutes, by reference to its chapter number in the volume of Acts for the year or regnal year in which it was enacted or by reference to its long title or short title, with or without reference to its chapter number; and

  • (b) a regulation may be cited by reference to its long title or short title, by reference to the Act under which it was made or by reference to the number or designation under which it was registered by the Clerk of the Privy Council.

• Marginal note:Citation includes amendment

  (2) A citation of or reference to an enactment is deemed to be a citation of or reference to the enactment as amended.

Marginal note:Reference to two or more parts, etc.

• 41 (1) A reference in an enactment by number or letter to two or more parts, divisions, sections, subsections, paragraphs, subparagraphs, clauses, subclauses, schedules, appendices or forms shall be read as including the number or letter first mentioned and the number or letter last mentioned.

• Marginal note:Reference in enactments to parts, etc.

  (2) A reference in an enactment to a part, division, section, schedule, appendix or form shall be read as a reference to a part, division, section, schedule, appendix or form of the enactment in which the reference occurs.

• Marginal note:Reference in enactment to subsections, etc.

  (3) A reference in an enactment to a subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, clause or subclause shall be read as a reference to a subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, clause or subclause of the section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph or clause, as the case may be, in which the reference occurs.

• Marginal note:Reference to regulations

  (4) A reference in an enactment to regulations shall be read as a reference to regulations made under the enactment in which the reference occurs.

• Marginal note:Reference to another enactment

  (5) A reference in an enactment by number or letter to any section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, clause, subclause or other division or line of another enactment shall be read as a reference to the section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, clause, subclause or other division or line of such other enactment as printed by authority of law.

Repeal and Amendment

Marginal note:Power of repeal or amendment reserved

• 42 (1) Every Act shall be so construed as to reserve to Parliament the power of repealing or amending it, and of revoking, restricting or modifying any power, privilege or advantage thereby vested in or granted to any person.

• Marginal note:Amendment or repeal at same session

  (2) An Act may be amended or repealed by an Act passed in the same session of Parliament.

• Marginal note:Amendment part of enactment

  (3) An amending enactment, as far as consistent with the tenor thereof, shall be construed as part of the enactment that it amends.

Marginal note:Effect of repeal

43 Where an enactment is repealed in whole or in part, the repeal does not

• (a) revive any enactment or anything not in force or existing at the time when the repeal takes effect,

• (b) affect the previous operation of the enactment so repealed or anything duly done or suffered thereunder,

• (c) affect any right, privilege, obligation or liability acquired, accrued, accruing or incurred under the enactment so repealed,

• (d) affect any offence committed against or contravention of the provisions of the enactment so repealed, or any punishment, penalty or forfeiture incurred under the enactment so repealed, or

• (e) affect any investigation, legal proceeding or remedy in respect of any right, privilege, obligation or liability referred to in paragraph (c) or in respect of any punishment, penalty or forfeiture referred to in paragraph (d),

and an investigation, legal proceeding or remedy as described in paragraph (e) may be instituted, continued or enforced, and the punishment, penalty or forfeiture may be imposed as if the enactment had not been so repealed.

Marginal note:Repeal and substitution

44 Where an enactment, in this section called the “former enactment”, is repealed and another enactment, in this section called the “new enactment”, is substituted therefor,

• (a) every person acting under the former enactment shall continue to act, as if appointed under the new enactment, until another person is appointed in the stead of that person;

• (b) every bond and security given by a person appointed under the former enactment remains in force, and all books, papers, forms and things made or used under the former enactment shall continue to be used as before the repeal in so far as they are consistent with the new enactment;

• (c) every proceeding taken under the former enactment shall be taken up and continued under and in conformity with the new enactment in so far as it may be done consistently with the new enactment;

• (d) the procedure established by the new enactment shall be followed as far as it can be adapted thereto

  • (i) in the recovery or enforcement of fines, penalties and forfeitures imposed under the former enactment,

  • (ii) in the enforcement of rights, existing or accruing under the former enactment, and

  • (iii) in a proceeding in relation to matters that have happened before the repeal;

• (e) when any punishment, penalty or forfeiture is reduced or mitigated by the new enactment, the punishment, penalty or forfeiture if imposed or adjudged after the repeal shall be reduced or mitigated accordingly;

• (f) except to the extent that the provisions of the new enactment are not in substance the same as those of the former enactment, the new enactment shall not be held to operate as new law, but shall be construed and have effect as a consolidation and as declaratory of the law as contained in the former enactment;

• (g) all regulations made under the repealed enactment remain in force and are deemed to have been made under the new enactment, in so far as they are not inconsistent with the new enactment, until they are repealed or others made in their stead; and

• (h) any reference in an unrepealed enactment to the former enactment shall, with respect to a subsequent transaction, matter or thing, be read and construed as a reference to the provisions of the new enactment relating to the same subject-matter as the former enactment, but where there are no provisions in the new enactment relating to the same subject-matter, the former enactment shall be read as unrepealed in so far as is necessary to maintain or give effect to the unrepealed enactment.

Marginal note:Repeal does not imply enactment was in force

• 45 (1) The repeal of an enactment in whole or in part shall not be deemed to be or to involve a declaration that the enactment was previously in force or was considered by Parliament or other body or person by whom the enactment was enacted to have been previously in force.

• Marginal note:Amendment does not imply change in law

  (2) The amendment of an enactment shall not be deemed to be or to involve a declaration that the law under that enactment was or was considered by Parliament or other body or person by whom the enactment was enacted to have been different from the law as it is under the enactment as amended.

• Marginal note:Repeal does not declare previous law

  (3) The repeal or amendment of an enactment in whole or in part shall not be deemed to be or to involve any declaration as to the previous state of the law.

• Marginal note:Judicial construction not adopted

  (4) A re-enactment, revision, consolidation or amendment of an enactment shall not be deemed to be or to involve an adoption of the construction that has by judicial decision or otherwise been placed on the language used in the enactment or on similar language.

Demise of Crown

Marginal note:Effect of demise

• 46 (1) Where there is a demise of the Crown,

  • (a) the demise does not affect the holding of any office under the Crown in right of Canada; and

  • (b) it is not necessary by reason of the demise that the holder of any such office again be appointed thereto or, having taken an oath of office or allegiance before the demise, again take that oath.

• Marginal note:Continuation of proceedings

  (2) No writ, action or other process or proceeding, civil or criminal, in or issuing out of any court established by an Act is, by reason of a demise of the Crown, determined, abated, discontinued or affected, but every such writ, action, process or proceeding remains in full force and may be enforced, carried on or otherwise proceeded with or completed as though there had been no such demise.