Bill C-32

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	Review Officers
Roster of review officers	243. The Minister shall establish and maintain a roster of review officers.
Chief Review Officer	244. (1) The Minister shall appoint one of the review officers as the Chief Review Officer to perform the functions of the Chief Review Officer as and when required.
Functions of Chief Review Officer	(2) The Chief Review Officer shall
	(a) perform administrative functions related to the work of review officers, including assigning review officers to conduct review hearings; and
	(b) in certain cases, conduct review hearings.
Absence, etc., of Chief Review Officer	(3) If the Chief Review Officer is absent or unable to act or if the office is vacant, any other review officer that is designated by the Minister shall perform the functions of the Chief Review Officer.
Term of members	245. (1) Review officers shall be appointed to hold office during good behaviour for a term of not more than three years, but may be removed by the Minister at any time for cause.
Re- appointment	(2) A review officer may be re-appointed.
Publication in Canada Gazette	246. The Minister shall publish the roster of review officers in the Canada Gazette.
Knowledge	247. A person is not eligible to be appointed as a review officer unless the person is knowledgeable about the Canadian environment, environmental and human health, administrative law or traditional aboriginal ecological knowledge .
Other employment	248. Review officers shall not accept or hold any office or employment inconsistent with their functions under this Act.
Remunera- tion and fees	249. (1) The Chief Review Officer shall be paid such remuneration as is fixed by the Governor in Council , and each other review officer is entitled to be paid such fees for that other review officer's services as are fixed by the Governor in Council .
Expenses	(2) Review officers are entitled to be paid
	(a) reasonable travel and other expenses incurred by them in the course of their duties under this Act while absent from their ordinary place of work; and
	(b) any other reasonable expenses incurred by them in the course of their duties under this Act.
Acting after expiry of term	250. If a person who is engaged as a review officer in respect of any matter ceases to be a review officer before rendering a decision in respect of the matter, the person may, with the authorization of the Chief Review Officer, continue, during a period of not more than 180 days, to act as a review officer in respect of the matter.
Secretary and other staff	251. The Minister may, at the request of the Chief Review Officer, make available to review officers any staff and other assistance that are necessary for the proper conduct of the business of review officers.
Government services and facilities	252. In performing their functions a review officer shall, where appropriate, make use of the services and facilities of departments, boards and agencies of the Government of Canada.
Immunity	253. No criminal or civil proceedings lie against a review officer for anything done or omitted to be done in good faith in performing any functions of a review officer under this Act.
Crown not relieved	254. Section 253 does not, by reason of section 10 of the Crown Liability and Proceedings Act, relieve the Crown of liability in respect of a tort or extracontractual civil liability to which the Crown would otherwise be subject.
Liability	255. Review officers are servants of Her Majesty in right of Canada for the purposes of the law of tort or of extracontractual civil liability.
	Reviews
Request for review	256. (1) Any person to whom an order is directed may, by notice in writing given to the Chief Review Officer within 30 days after receipt by the person of a copy of the written order or after the oral order is given, make a request to the Chief Review Officer for a review of the order.
Extension of period for request	(2) The Chief Review Officer may extend the period within which a request for a review may be made where, in the Chief Review Officer's opinion, it is in the public interest to do so.
Review	257. On receipt of a notice under subsection 256(1), the Chief Review Officer shall conduct a review of the order, including a hearing, or cause a review and hearing of the order to be conducted by a review officer assigned by the Chief Review Officer.
No automatic stay on appeal	258. (1) Subject to subsection (2), the request for a review by a review officer does not suspend the operation of an order.
Suspension on application	(2) A review officer may, on application made by a person subject to the order before the beginning of the hearing, suspend the operation of the order if the review officer considers it appropriate in the circumstances and, in that case, impose on all the persons subject to the order conditions that are reasonable in the circumstances and consistent with the protection of the environment and public safety.
Suspension of 180 day period	(3) Where the operation of an order is suspended under subsection (2), the period for which the order is issued is suspended until the review is completed.
Right to appear	259. All parties to the review, including the Minister, may appear in person or may be represented by counsel or by an agent.
Powers	260. (1) A review officer may summon any person to appear as a witness before the review officer and may order the witness to
	(a) give evidence orally or in writing; and
	(b) produce any documents and things that the review officer considers necessary or desirable for the purpose of performing any of the review officer's functions.
Fees for witnesses	(2) A witness who is served with a summons under subsection (1) is entitled to receive the fees and allowances to which persons who are summoned to appear as witnesses before the Federal Court are entitled.
Enforcement of summonses and orders	261. Any summons to a witness issued or order made under subsection 260(1) by a review officer may be made a summons to a witness or an order of the Federal Court or of the superior court of a province and is enforceable in the same manner as a summons to a witness or an order of that court.
Procedure	262. To make a summons issued or an order made under subsection 260(1) by a review officer a summons or an order of the Federal Court or of the superior court of a province, the usual practice and procedure of the court in such matters may be followed, or a certified copy of the summons or order may be filed with the registrar of the court and the summons or order thereupon becomes a summons or an order of the court.
Powers of review officer	263. The review officer, after reviewing the order and after giving all persons who are subject to the order, and the Minister, reasonable notice orally or in writing of a hearing and allowing a reasonable opportunity in the circumstances for those persons and the Minister to make oral representations, may
	(a) confirm or cancel the order;
	(b) amend or suspend a term or condition of the order, or add a term or condition to, or delete a term or condition from, the order; or
	(c) extend the duration of the order for a period of not more than 180 days less the number of days that have passed since the day on which the order was received by the person who is subject to the order, not counting the days during which the order was suspended under subsection 258(3).
Variation or cancellation of review officer's decision	264. At any time before a notice of appeal to the Federal Court is filed in relation to an order, the review officer may, on the review officer's own motion, after giving reasonable notice orally or in writing and allowing a reasonable opportunity in the circumstances for the person subject to the order to make oral representations, modify the decision of the review officer in respect of the order and exercise any of the powers of the review officer under section 263 in respect of the order.
Limitations on exercise of review officer's powers	265. A review officer shall not exercise any of the powers referred to in section 263 if doing so would result in
	(a) impairment or serious risk of impairment of the quality of the environment for any use that can be made of it;
	(b) injury or damage or serious risk of injury or damage to any property or to any plant or animal life; or
	(c) danger to the health or safety of any person.
Decision of review officer	266. The review officer shall, within five days after the completion of the review of an order, render a decision and give written reasons for doing so within 10 days after the completion of the review, and provide a copy of the decision and those reasons to all persons to whom the order was directed and to the Minister.
Rules	267. The Chief Review Officer may make rules
	(a) governing the practice and procedure in respect of the review of orders;
	(b) generally, for the work of review officers; and
	(c) for preventing trade secrets and information described in section 20 of the Access to Information Act from being disclosed or made public as a result of their being used as evidence before a review officer, including rules providing for hearings or parts of hearings to be held in public or private.
Orders and notices	268. Every order or varied order under section 263 or 264 or a copy of one and every notice under those sections shall be provided to the Minister and every person to whom the original order is directed and, where applicable, all other persons to whom the amended order is directed, in accordance with Part 11.
	Federal Court
Appeal to Federal Court	269. The Minister or any person to whom an order, as confirmed or varied by a review officer under section 263, is directed may, by filing a written notice of appeal within 30 days after the written reasons are provided by the review officer under section 266, appeal to the Federal Court - Trial Division from the decision of the review officer.
Standing on appeal to Federal Court	270. The Minister or the person to whom the order is directed, as the case may be, has the right, on an appeal to the Federal Court made under section 269, to be heard on all questions of fact and law.
Order not suspended	271. The filing of a notice of appeal under section 269 does not suspend the operation of an order, as confirmed or varied by a review officer.
	Offences and Punishment
Contraven- tion of the Act, the regulations or agreements	272. (1) Every person commits an offence who contravenes
	(a) a provision of this Act or the regulations;
	(b) an obligation or a prohibition arising from this Act or the regulations;
	(c) an order or a direction made under this Act;
	(d) an order, direction or decision of a court made under this Act; or
	(e) an agreement respecting environmental protection alternative measures within the meaning of section 295.
Penalties	(2) Every person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable
	(a) on conviction on indictment, to a fine of not more than $1,000,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than three years, or to both; and
	(b) on summary conviction, to a fine of not more than $300,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than six months, or to both.
False or misleading information, etc.	273. (1) Every person commits an offence who, with respect to any matter related to this Act or the regulations,
	(a) provides any person with any false or misleading information, results or samples; or
	(b) files a document that contains false or misleading information.
Penalties	(2) Every person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable
	(a) on conviction on indictment, to a fine of not more than $1,000,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than three years, or to both, if the offence is committed knowingly;
	(b) on summary conviction, to a fine of not more than $300,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than six months, or to both, if the offence is committed knowingly;
	(c) on conviction on indictment, to a fine of not more than $500,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than three years, or to both, if the offence is committed negligently; and
	(d) on summary conviction, to a fine of not more than $200,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than six months, or to both, if the offence is committed negligently.
Damage to environment and risk of death or harm to persons	274. (1) Every person is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction on indictment to a fine or to imprisonment for a term of not more than five years, or to both, who, in committing an offence under subsection 272(1) or 273(1),
	(a) intentionally or recklessly causes a disaster that results in a loss of the use of the environment; or
	(b) shows wanton or reckless disregard for the lives or safety of other persons and thereby causes a risk of death or harm to another person.
Criminal negligence	(2) Every person who, in committing an offence under subsection 272(1) or 273(1), shows wanton or reckless disregard for the lives or safety of other persons and thereby causes death or bodily harm to another person is subject to prosecution and punishment under section 220 or 221 of the Criminal Code.
Limitation period	275. (1) Proceedings by way of summary conviction in respect of an offence under this Act may be instituted at any time within, but not later than, two years after the time when the Minister became aware of the subject-matter of the proceedings.
Minister's certificate	(2) A document purporting to have been issued by the Minister, certifying the day on which the Minister became aware of the subject-matter of any proceedings, shall be received in evidence and, in the absence of any evidence to the contrary, the document shall be considered as proof of that fact without proof of the signature or of the official character of the person appearing to have signed the document and without further proof.
Continuing offence	276. Where an offence under this Act is committed or continued on more than one day, the person who committed the offence is liable to be convicted for a separate offence for each day on which it is committed or continued.
Construction of subsection 389(5) of Canada Shipping Act	277. Subsection 389(5) of the Canada Shipping Act is not to be construed so as to relieve any person from liability under this Act.
Regulations	278. The Governor in Council may make regulations prescribing the manner in which the proceeds or any part of the proceeds resulting from the payment of a fine or the execution of an order in relation to an offence under this Act shall be distributed in order to reimburse any person, government or body that has commenced the proceedings in respect of the offence for costs incurred by that person, government or body in respect of the prosecution of the offence.
Nearest court has jurisdiction for Division 3 of Part 7 offences	279. (1) Where an offence arising out of a contravention of Division 3 of Part 7 is committed by a person, whether or not the person is a Canadian citizen, in Canadian waters, the offence
	(a) is within the competence of and shall be tried by the court having jurisdiction in respect of similar offences in the territorial division nearest to the place where the offence was committed; and
	(b) shall be tried in the same manner as if it had been committed within that territorial division.
Where offence deemed to have been committed	(2) An offence to which subsection (1) applies is, for the purpose of that subsection, deemed to have been committed either in the place where the offence was actually committed or in the place in which the accused is found.

Bill C-32

Review Officers

Reviews

Federal Court

Offences and Punishment