The Protection of Minority Investors and the Compensation of Their Losses in Canada

This Report prepared for the XIXth International Congress of Comparative Law analyses the protection of minority investors and the compensation of their losses in Canada. Focusing on publicly-traded corporations, it examines more specifically the legal regimes that deal with false and misleading disclosure on the part of issuers in primary and secondary markets. To do so, the Report first provides background on the legal and institutional features of securities trading and regulation in Canada. Second, it presents the place of public enforcement of securities regulation in Canada, emphasizing its growing importance in the last decade. Third, the Report reviews the private mechanisms that apply to enforce disclosure obligations. The discussion underlines the similarities and differences between the Canadian and the U.S. approaches in this respect.