The Competition Bureau

What Is the Competition Bureau?

The Competition Bureau is an independent law enforcement agency responsible for the administration and enforcement of the Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, the Textile Labelling Act and the Precious Metals Marking Act. Its role is to promote and maintain fair competition so that Canadians can benefit from competitive prices, product choice and quality services. Headed by the Commissioner of Competition, the organization investigates anti-competitive practices and promotes compliance with the laws under its jurisdiction.

What Is the Competition Act?

The Competition Act is a federal law governing most business conduct in Canada. It contains both criminal and civil provisions aimed at preventing anti-competitive practices in the marketplace.

Criminal Offences

Price fixing: When competitors agree on the prices that they will charge their customers.

Bid-rigging: When, in response to a call or request for bids or tenders, one or more bidders agree not to submit a bid, or two or more bidders agree to submit bids that have been prearranged among themselves.

False or misleading representations: When materially false or misleading representations are made knowingly or recklessly to the public.

Deceptive telemarketing: When false or misleading representations to promote a product or business interest are made through interactive telephone calls.

Deceptive notice of winning a prize: When a notice, sent by any means, gives a recipient the impression of winning a prize and requires the recipient to incur a cost to obtain the prize.

Reviewable Matters

Abuse of dominant position: When a dominant firm engages in anti-competitive practices that substantially lessen competition in a market, or are likely to do so.

Exclusive Dealing, Tied Selling and Market Restrictions: (1) When a supplier requires or induces a customer to deal only, or mostly, in certain products; (2) requires or induces a customer to buy a second product as a condition of supplying a particular product; (3) requires a customer to sell specified products in a defined market.

Refusal to deal: When someone is substantially affected in his or her business, or is unable to carry on business, because of the inability to obtain adequate supplies of a product on usual trade terms.

Mergers: When all or part of one business is acquired by another. The Bureau has the authority to review any merger, regardless of its size. However, the Bureau must be notified in advance of proposed transactions when the value of the assets or the target firm exceeds $50 million or the value of the amalgamated company exceeds $70 million, and when the combined dollar value of the parties and their respective affiliates exceeds $400 million.

False or misleading representations: When false or misleading representations are made to the public.

Deceptive marketing practices: When a product is advertised at a bargain price and is not supplied in reasonable quantities; when a product is supplied at a price above the advertised price; when retailers make "regular price" claims without selling a substantial volume of the product, or offering the product, at that price or a higher price in good faith for a substantial period of time; or when a contest, lottery, or game of chance or skill is conducted without making adequate and fair disclosure of facts that affect the chances of winning.

What Is the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act?

The Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act requires that prepackaged consumer products bear accurate and meaningful labelling information to help consumers make informed purchasing decisions. The Act prohibits false or misleading representations and sets out specifications for mandatory label information such as the product's name, net quantity and dealer identity.

What Is the Textile Labelling Act?

The Textile Labelling Act requires that consumer textile articles bear accurate and meaningful labelling information to help consumers make informed purchasing decisions. The Act prohibits false or misleading representations and sets out specifications for mandatory label information such as the generic name of each fibre present and the dealer's full name and postal address or a CA identification number.

What Is the Precious Metals Marking Act?

The Precious Metals Marking Act provides for the uniform description and quality marking of articles made with gold, silver, platinum or palladium to help consumers make informed purchasing decisions. The Act prohibits markings that do not truly and correctly indicate precious metal content.

How Do I File a Complaint?

If you believe any of the laws under the Bureau's jurisdiction have been breached and you want to complain, you can telephone, fax, e-mail or write the Bureau at the numbers listed at the end of this publication.

How does the Bureau deal with complaints?

If it is determined that a complaint warrants further investigation, Bureau officers have a number of tools available to resolve competition issues. These tools are outlined in the Bureau's Conformity Continuum and include:

• public education, written opinions, information contacts, voluntary codes of conduct, written undertakings and prohibition orders;
• the legal authority with court authorization to search for and seize documents and other forms of evidence, to take sworn oral evidence and to demand the production of documents and records;
• the ability to refer criminal matters to the Director of Public Prosecutions, who then decides whether to prosecute before the courts;
• the power to bring civil matters before the Competition Tribunal or the courts depending on the issue;
• the authority to make presentations and intervene on matters of competition policy before federal and provincial boards, tribunals and commissions such as the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission and the National Transportation Agency.

The Bureau conducts its investigations in private and keeps confidential the identity of the source and the information provided. However, if someone has important evidence about breaches to any of the laws under the Bureau's jurisdiction, that person may be asked to testify in court or before the Competition Tribunal.

Written opinions

The Competition Bureau facilitates compliance with the law by providing various types of written opinions for a fee. Company officials, lawyers and others are encouraged to request an opinion on whether the implementation of a proposed business plan or practice would raise an issue under the Competition Act. These written opinions are binding on the Commissioner of Competition unless the material facts change. A written opinion will be based on information provided by the requestor and will take into account previous case law, prior opinions and the stated policies of the Bureau.

How is the Bureau structured?

• Civil Matters Branch reviews anti-competitive behaviour, such as abuse of dominant position, and restraints imposed by suppliers on customers, such as refusal to supply, exclusive dealing and tied selling. The Branch is also responsible for the Bureau's interventions before federal and provincial regulatory boards and tribunals.

• Compliance and Operations Branch oversees the Bureau's compliance program, enforcement policy, training program and client services. It also manages the Bureau's Information Centre, planning, resource management, administration and informatics activities.

• Criminal Matters Branch administers and enforces criminal provisions of the Competition Act, including those covering conspiracies that unduly lessen competition, bid-rigging, price discrimination, predatory pricing and price maintenance. The Branch carries out its enforcement activities through offices across the country.

• Fair Business Practices Branch administers and enforces the provisions of the Competition Act that cover false or misleading representations and deceptive marketing practices. Among these are provisions that deal with deceptive telemarketing, multi-level marketing and pyramid selling, as well as misrepresentations, such as general misleading statements, misleading ordinary price claims and promotional contests in which organizers inadequately disclose contest rules. The Branch also administers and enforces the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, the Precious Metals Marking Act and the Textile Labelling Act, collectively known as the standards-based statutes. The Branch carries out its investigations through enforcement activities through offices across the country.

• Economic Policy and Enforcement Branch provides economic advice and expertise as well as enforcement support to the Chief Economist and the Bureau.

• External Relations and Public Affairs Branch encompasses the International Affairs and Communications divisions as well as a stakeholder relations unit.  The Branch advances the Bureau's interests in international co-operation, negotiations and policy development. It also ensures that Canadian consumers, businesses, and the international community are aware of the Bureau's crucial contribution to competition in the marketplace and to the growth of the Canadian economy.

• Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Branch is responsible for the ongoing modernization of the Competition Act, for managing and coordinating all Bureau matters dealing with the parliamentary process, and for assisting the Bureau in matters related to policy and advocacy.

• Mergers Branch reviews merger transactions to assess whether a proposed merger is likely to prevent or substantially lessen competition.

The Bureau produces CD-ROMS and publications on various aspects of the Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, the Textile Labelling Act and the Precious Metals Marking Act. To find out more about our CD-ROMs and publications, contact the Information Centre:

Information Centre
Competition Bureau
50 Victoria Street
Gatineau QC K1A 0C9

Toll-free: 1-800-348-5358
National Capital Region: 819-997-4282
TDD (for hearing impaired): 1-800-642-3844
Fax: 819-997-0324
E-mail: compbureau@cb-bc.gc.ca
Web site: www.competitionbureau.gc.ca

This publication is only a guide. It provides basic information about the Competition Bureau and the acts it administers. For further information, you should refer to the full text of the acts or contact the Competition Bureau at one of the numbers listed above.

Cat. No. RG52-29/4-2003
ISBN 0-662-67712-9