Insurance Companies Act (S.C. 1991, c. 47)

Marginal note:Appointing proxyholder

• 786 (1) A shareholder who is entitled to vote at a meeting of shareholders may, by executing a form of proxy, appoint a proxyholder or one or more alternate proxyholders, who are not required to be shareholders, to attend and act at the meeting in the manner and to the extent authorized by the proxy and with the authority conferred by the proxy.

• Marginal note:Execution of proxy

  (2) A form of proxy shall be executed by a shareholder or by a shareholder’s attorney authorized in writing to do so.

• Marginal note:Limit on authority

  (3) No appointment of a proxyholder provides authority for the proxyholder to act in respect of the appointment of an auditor or the election of a director unless a nominee proposed in good faith for the appointment or election is named in the form of proxy, a management proxy circular, a dissident’s proxy circular or a proposal under subsection 770(1).

• Marginal note:Required information

  (4) A form of proxy must indicate, in bold-face type, that the shareholder by whom or on whose behalf it is executed may appoint a proxyholder, other than a person designated in the form of proxy, to attend and act on the shareholder’s behalf at a meeting to which the proxy relates, and must contain instructions as to the manner in which the shareholder may do so.

• Marginal note:Validity of proxy

  (5) A proxy is valid only at the meeting in respect of which it is given or at a continuation of the meeting after an adjournment.

• Marginal note:Revocation of proxy

  (6) A shareholder may revoke a proxy

  • (a) by depositing an instrument in writing executed by the shareholder or by the shareholder’s attorney authorized in writing to do so

    • (i) at the head office of the insurance holding company at any time up to and including the last business day before the day of a meeting, or a continuation of a meeting after an adjournment, at which the proxy is to be used, or

    • (ii) with the chairperson of the meeting on the day of the meeting or a continuation of the meeting after an adjournment; or

  • (b) in any other manner permitted by law.

Marginal note:Deposit of proxies

• 787 (1) The directors may specify, in a notice calling a meeting of shareholders or a continuation of a meeting of shareholders after an adjournment, a time before which executed forms of proxy to be used at the meeting or the continued meeting must be deposited with the insurance holding company or its transfer agent.

• Marginal note:Time for deposit of proxies

  (2) The time specified for the deposit of forms of proxy may not precede the meeting or the continued meeting by more than forty-eight hours, excluding Saturdays and holidays.

Marginal note:Mandatory solicitation

• 788 (1) Subject to subsections (2) and 768(2), the management of an insurance holding company shall, concurrently with sending notice of a meeting of shareholders, send a form of proxy that is in accordance with the regulations to each shareholder entitled to receive notice of the meeting under section 767.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (2) The management of an insurance holding company is not required to send a form of proxy under subsection (1) if the insurance holding company

  • (a) is not a distributing insurance holding company; and

  • (b) has 50 or fewer shareholders who are entitled to vote at a meeting, two or more joint holders of a share being counted as one shareholder.

Marginal note:Soliciting proxies

• 789 (1) A person shall not solicit proxies unless a proxy circular that is in accordance with the regulations is sent to the auditor of the insurance holding company, to each shareholder whose proxy is solicited and, in the case set out in paragraph (b), to the bank as follows:

  • (a) in the case of solicitation by or on behalf of the management of an insurance holding company, a management proxy circular, either as an appendix to or as a separate document accompanying the notice of the meeting; and

  • (b) in the case of any other solicitation, a dissident’s proxy circular stating the purposes of the solicitation.

• Marginal note:Exception — limited solicitation

  (1.1) Despite subsection (1), a person may solicit proxies, other than by or on behalf of the management of the insurance holding company, without sending a dissident’s proxy circular, if the total number of shareholders whose proxies are solicited is 15 or fewer, with two or more joint holders being counted as one shareholder.

• Marginal note:Exception — solicitation by public broadcast

  (1.2) Despite subsection (1), a person may solicit proxies, other than by or on behalf of the management of the insurance holding company, without sending a dissident’s proxy circular if the solicitation is, in the prescribed circumstances, conveyed by public broadcast, speech or publication.

• Marginal note:Copy to Superintendent

  (2) A person who sends a management proxy circular or dissident’s proxy circular shall concurrently send to the Superintendent a copy of it together with the form of proxy, any other documents for use in connection with the meeting and, in the case of a management proxy circular, a copy of the notice of meeting.

• Marginal note:Exemption by Superintendent

  (3) On the application of an interested person, the Superintendent may, on any terms that the Superintendent thinks fit, exempt the person from any of the requirements of subsection (1) and section 788, and the exemption may be given retroactive effect.

• Marginal note:Reporting exemptions

  (4) The Superintendent shall publish in a publication generally available to the public, a notice of a decision made by the Superintendent granting an exemption under subsection (3).

Marginal note:Attendance at meeting

• 790 (1) A person who solicits a proxy and is appointed proxyholder shall attend in person or cause an alternate proxyholder to attend every meeting in respect of which the proxy is valid, and the proxyholder or alternate proxyholder shall comply with the directions of the shareholder who executed the form of proxy.

• Marginal note:Rights of proxyholder

  (2) A proxyholder or an alternate proxyholder has the same rights as the appointing shareholder to speak at a meeting of shareholders in respect of any matter, to vote by way of ballot at the meeting and, except where a proxyholder or an alternate proxyholder has conflicting instructions from more than one shareholder, to vote at the meeting in respect of any matter by way of a show of hands.

• Marginal note:Vote by show of hands

  (3) Despite subsections (1) and (2) and unless a shareholder or proxyholder demands a ballot, if the chairperson of a meeting of shareholders declares to the meeting that, if a ballot were conducted, the total number of votes attached to shares represented at the meeting by proxy required to be voted against what, to the knowledge of the chairperson, would be the decision of the meeting on a matter or group of matters is less than 5% of all the votes that might be cast by shareholders in person or by proxy,

  • (a) the chairperson may conduct the vote in respect of that matter or group of matters by way of a show of hands; and

  • (b) a proxyholder or alternate proxyholder may vote in respect of that matter or group of matters by way of a show of hands.

Marginal note:Duty of intermediary

• 791 (1) Shares of an insurance holding company that are registered in the name of an intermediary or an intermediary’s nominee and not beneficially owned by the intermediary may not be voted unless the intermediary sends to the beneficial owner

  • (a) a copy of the notice of the meeting, annual statement, management proxy circular and dissident’s proxy circular and any other documents, other than the form of proxy, that were sent to shareholders by or on behalf of any person for use in connection with the meeting; and

  • (b) a written request for voting instructions except if the intermediary has already received written voting instructions from the beneficial owner.

• Marginal note:When documents to be sent

  (2) The intermediary shall send the documents referred to in subsection (1) without delay after they receive the documents referred to in paragraph (1)(a).

• Marginal note:Restriction on voting

  (3) An intermediary or a proxyholder appointed by them may not vote shares that the intermediary does not beneficially own and that are registered in the name of the intermediary or their nominee unless the intermediary or proxyholder, as the case may be, receives written voting instructions from the beneficial owner.

• Marginal note:Copies

  (4) A person by or on behalf of whom a solicitation is made shall on request and without delay provide the intermediary, at the person’s expense, with the necessary number of copies of the documents referred to in paragraph (1)(a).

• Marginal note:Instructions to intermediary

  (5) The intermediary shall vote or appoint a proxyholder to vote any shares referred to in subsection (1) in accordance with any written voting instructions received from the beneficial owner.

• Marginal note:Beneficial owner as proxyholder

  (6) If a beneficial owner so requests and provides an intermediary with the appropriate documentation, the intermediary shall appoint the beneficial owner or a nominee of the beneficial owner as proxyholder.

• Marginal note:Effect of intermediary’s failure to comply

  (7) The failure of an intermediary to comply with any of subsections (1) to (6) does not render void any meeting of shareholders or any action taken at the meeting.

• Marginal note:Intermediary may not vote

  (8) Nothing in this Subdivision gives an intermediary the right to vote shares that they are otherwise prohibited from voting.

Marginal note:Regulations

791.1 The Governor in Council may make regulations

• (a) respecting the powers that may be granted by a shareholder in a form of proxy;

• (b) respecting proxy circulars and forms of proxy, including the form and content of those documents; and

• (c) respecting the conditions under which an insurance holding company is exempt from any of the requirements of sections 786 to 791.

Marginal note:Restraining order

• 792 (1) If a form of proxy, management proxy circular or dissident’s proxy circular contains an untrue statement of a material fact or omits to state a material fact that is required to be contained in it or that is necessary to make a statement contained in it not misleading in light of the circumstances in which the statement is made, an interested person or the Superintendent may apply to a court and the court may make any order it thinks fit including

  • (a) an order restraining the solicitation or the holding of the meeting, or restraining any person from implementing or acting on a resolution passed at the meeting, to which the form of proxy, management proxy circular or dissident’s proxy circular relates;

  • (b) an order requiring correction of any form of proxy or proxy circular and a further solicitation; and

  • (c) an order adjourning the meeting.

• Marginal note:Notice of application

  (2) Where a person other than the Superintendent is an applicant under subsection (1), the applicant shall give to the Superintendent notice of the application and the Superintendent is entitled to appear and to be heard in person or by counsel.

Restrictions on Voting

Meaning of eligible votes

• 793 (1) In this section, eligible votes means the total number of votes that may be cast by or on behalf of shareholders on a vote of shareholders or a vote of holders of a class or series of shares, as the case may be, in respect of any particular matter, calculated without regard to subsection (2).

• Marginal note:Restriction

  (2) At a meeting of shareholders of an insurance holding company in respect of which subsection 927(4) applies, no person and no entity controlled by any person may, in respect of any vote of shareholders or holders of any class or series of shares of the company, cast votes in respect of any shares beneficially owned by the person or the entity that are, in aggregate, more than 20 per cent of the eligible votes that may be cast in respect of that vote.

• Marginal note:Proxyholders

  (3) No person who is a proxyholder for a person or for an entity controlled by a person may cast votes to which the proxy relates that the person or entity may not cast by reason of subsection (2).

• Marginal note:Exception

  (4) Subsections (2) and (3) do not apply in respect of a vote held under section 852.

• Marginal note:Validity of vote

  (5) A vote in respect of a particular matter is not invalid merely because a person voted contrary to subsection (2) or (3).

• Marginal note:Disposition of shareholdings

  (6) If, with respect to any insurance holding company, a person contravenes subsection (2) or (3), the Minister may, by order, direct the shareholder of the shares to which the contravention relates or any person controlled by that shareholder to dispose of any number of shares of the insurance holding company beneficially owned by any of those persons that the Minister specifies in the order, within the time specified in the order and in the proportion, if any, as between the shareholder and the persons controlled by that shareholder that is specified in the order.

• Marginal note:Restriction on voting rights

  (7) If the Minister makes an order under subsection (6), the person to whom the order relates may not, in person or by proxy, exercise any voting rights that are attached to shares of the company beneficially owned by the person.

• Marginal note:Subsection (7) ceases to apply

  (8) Subsection (7) shall cease to apply in respect of a person when the shares to which the order relates have been disposed of.

• Marginal note:Reliance on number in notice

  (9) For the purpose of this section, a person is entitled to rely on the number of eligible votes set out in a notice of a meeting under subsection 767(2).

• Marginal note:Designation of persons

  (10) For the purpose of this section, the Minister may, with respect to a particular insurance holding company, designate two or more persons who are parties to an agreement, commitment or understanding referred to in section 9 to be a single person.

SUBDIVISION 3Directors and Officers

Duties

Marginal note:Duty to manage

• 794 (1) Subject to this Act, the directors of an insurance holding company shall manage or supervise the management of the business and affairs of the insurance holding company.

• Marginal note:Specific duties

  (2) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), the directors of an insurance holding company shall

  • (a) establish an audit committee to perform the duties referred to in subsections 829(3) and (4);

  • (b) establish procedures to resolve conflicts of interest, including techniques for the identification of potential conflict situations and for restricting the use of confidential information;

  • (c) designate a committee of the board of directors to monitor the procedures referred to in paragraph (b); and

  • (d) establish investment and lending policies, standards and procedures in accordance with section 968.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (3) Paragraph (2)(a) does not apply to the directors of an insurance holding company if

  • (a) all the voting shares of the insurance holding company are beneficially owned by a Canadian financial institution described by any of paragraphs (a) to (d) of the definition financial institution in subsection 2(1); and

  • (b) the audit committee of the Canadian financial institution referred to in paragraph (a) performs for and on behalf of the insurance holding company all the functions that would otherwise be required to be performed by the audit committee of the insurance holding company under this Part.