New Brunswick is on its way to becoming the fifth province to give the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) new legal authority to more effectively and consistently enforce its rules in the province.
With the introduction of Bill 9, New Brunswick joins Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, Quebec and Alberta – provinces where legislation already gives IIROC the full “enforcement toolkit” intended to strengthen the regulator’s effectiveness and improve investor protection.
In New Brunswick alone, IIROC currently oversees more than 300 investment advisors working in 85 offices across the province. Across the country, IIROC regulates more than 29,000 registered representatives at more than 170 investment dealer firms.
The full toolkit gives IIROC the ability to enforce fine collection through the courts and the authority to collect and present evidence during investigations and at disciplinary hearings. The legislation also protects the regulator from malicious lawsuits while it is acting in good faith to carry out its public interest mandate to protect investors.
In its fact sheet outlining the different provincial legislative efforts which give the regulator its authority, IIROC says it will continue to actively seek similar legal authority across Canada “to ensure a consistent level of investor protection from coast to coast.”
