Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. R-10)

Marginal note:Disclosure by Commission prohibited

• 45.47 (1) Except as authorized under subsection (2), no member, officer or employee of the Commission or other person acting on its behalf shall provide information to any person, or allow any person to have access to information, knowing that the information is privileged information to which he or she had access under subsection 45.4(2) or being reckless as to whether the information is such privileged information.

• Marginal note:Authorized disclosure

  (2) Every person who is otherwise prohibited from disclosing privileged information under subsection (1) may, if authorized by the Chairperson, disclose that information

  • (a) to the Attorney General of Canada or of a province if, in the opinion of the Chairperson, the information relates to the commission of an offence under federal or provincial law by a director, an officer or an employee of a government institution and there is evidence of such an offence and the information is required in criminal proceedings, either by indictment or on summary conviction, that have been commenced by the laying of an information or the preferring of an indictment, under an Act of Parliament;

  • (b) to the Minister other than in an annual report referred to in section 45.52;

  • (c) to the Commissioner if, in the opinion of the Chairperson, the information is required for the purpose of enabling the Commissioner to exercise his or her powers or perform his or her duties and functions under this Act; and

  • (d) to a former judge or other individual for the purposes of section 45.41.

• Marginal note:Disclosure of privileged information — proceedings

  (3) A member, officer or employee of the Commission or other person acting on its behalf shall not be required, in connection with any criminal, civil or administrative action or proceeding, to give or produce evidence relating to privileged information to which he or she had access under subsection 45.4(2).

• Marginal note:Application

  (4) Except as provided by any other Act of Parliament that expressly refers to it, this section applies despite any other Act of Parliament other than the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act.

• Marginal note:Application

  (5) This section applies despite subsection 13(1) of the Auditor General Act and subsection 79.4(1) of the Parliament of Canada Act.

Marginal note:Disclosure by former judge or other individual prohibited

45.48 A former judge or other individual appointed under subsection 45.41(1) shall not provide information to any person, or allow any person to have access to information, knowing that the information is privileged information to which he or she had access under subsection 45.41(3) or being reckless as to whether the information is such privileged information.

Rules

Marginal note:Rules

• 45.49 (1) Subject to the provisions of this Act and the regulations, the Commission may make rules respecting

  • (a) the sittings of the Commission;

  • (b) the fixing of the quorum for the performance of its duties and functions;

  • (c) the manner of dealing with matters and business before the Commission generally, including the practice and procedure before the Commission;

  • (d) the apportionment of the Commission’s work among its members; and

  • (e) the performance of the duties and functions of the Commission under this Act generally.

• Marginal note:Publication of proposed rules

  (2) A copy of each rule that the Commission proposes to make shall be published in the Canada Gazette and a reasonable opportunity shall be given to interested persons to make representations with respect to it.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (3) A proposed rule need not be published more than once, whether or not it has been amended as a result of any representations.

Immunity

Marginal note:Protection

• 45.5 (1) No criminal, civil or administrative action or proceeding lies against the members, officers or employees of the Commission, or any person acting on behalf or under the direction of the Commission, for anything done, reported or said in good faith in the exercise or purported exercise of any power, or the performance or purported performance of any duty or function, of the Commission or the Chairperson under this Act.

• Marginal note:No summons

  (2) A member, officer or employee of the Commission, or any person acting on behalf or under the direction of the Commission, is not a competent or compellable witness, in respect of any matter coming to the knowledge of the Commission or that person as a result of exercising a power or performing a duty or function of the Commission or the Chairperson, in any proceeding other than a prosecution for an offence under this Act, a prosecution for an offence under the Security of Information Act or a prosecution for an offence under section 132 or 136 of the Criminal Code.

Reporting

Marginal note:Special reports

• 45.51 (1) The Commission may, on the request of the Minister or on its own initiative, provide the Minister with a special report concerning any matter that relates to its powers, duties and functions under this Act.

• Marginal note:Exemption

  (2) When the Commission provides the report to the Minister, section 45.43 and subsection 45.44(2) do not apply in respect of any information referred to in subsection 45.39(3) or to privileged information, as defined in subsection 45.4(1), set out in the report.

Marginal note:Annual report

• 45.52 (1) The Chairperson shall, within three months after the end of each fiscal year, submit to the Minister a report of the activities of the Commission during that year and its recommendations, if any. The Minister shall cause a copy of the report to be tabled in each House of Parliament on any of the first 15 days on which that House is sitting after the day on which the Minister receives the report.

• Marginal note:Annual report — provinces

  (2) The Commission shall, for each fiscal year and in respect of each province the government of which has entered into an arrangement with the Minister under section 20, submit to the provincial minister who has the primary responsibility for policing in that province a report setting out the number and nature of complaints relating to conduct that occurred in that province and how those complaints were disposed of and identifying trends, if any. The Commission shall submit a copy of that report to the Minister and the Commissioner.

• Marginal note:Performance in relation to time limits

  (3) Every report must contain information respecting the Commission’s performance in relation to the service standards established under section 45.37.

PART VIIInvestigation, Review and Hearing of Complaints

Complaints

Marginal note:Complaints

• 45.53 (1) Any individual may make a complaint concerning the conduct, in the performance of any duty or function under this Act or the Witness Protection Program Act, of any person who, at the time that the conduct is alleged to have occurred, was a member or other person appointed or employed under Part I.

• Marginal note:Commission’s discretion

  (2) The Commission may refuse to deal with the complaint if, in the Commission’s opinion, the complaint

  • (a) has been adequately dealt with, or could more appropriately be dealt with, according to a procedure provided for under this Act or any other Act of Parliament;

  • (b) is trivial, frivolous, vexatious or made in bad faith; or

  • (c) is from an individual who

    • (i) is not an individual at whom the conduct was directed,

    • (ii) is not the guardian, tutor, curator, mandatary in case of incapacity or any other person authorized to act on behalf of the individual at whom the conduct was directed,

    • (iii) did not see or hear the conduct or its effects as a result of not being physically present at the time and place that the conduct or its effects occurred,

    • (iv) has not been given written permission to make the complaint from the individual at whom the conduct was directed, or

    • (v) has not suffered loss, damage, distress, danger or inconvenience as a result of the conduct.

• Marginal note:Complaints involving decisions made under Part IV

  (3) The Commission shall refuse to deal with a complaint concerning any decision under Part IV.

• Marginal note:Complaint by members or certain other persons

  (4) The Commission shall refuse to deal with a complaint made under subsection (1) by a member or other person appointed or employed under Part I if the complaint has been or could have been adequately dealt with, or could more appropriately be dealt with, according to a procedure provided for under this Act or any other Act of Parliament.

• Marginal note:National security

  (4.1) The Commission shall refuse to deal with a complaint concerning an activity that is closely related to national security and shall refer such a complaint to the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency.

• Marginal note:Notification of referral

  (4.2) The Commission shall notify the Commissioner if it refers a complaint to the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency. After doing so, it shall also notify the complainant of the referral.

• Marginal note:Time limit

  (5) The complaint shall be made within one year after the day on which the conduct is alleged to have occurred or any longer period permitted under subsection (6).

• Marginal note:Extension of time limit

  (6) The Commission or the Commissioner may extend the time limit for making a complaint if the Commission or the Commissioner, as the case may be, is of the opinion that there are good reasons for doing so and that it is not contrary to the public interest.

• Marginal note:Notice

  (7) If a complaint is made more than one year after the day on which the conduct is alleged to have occurred and the Commissioner does not extend the time limit for the making of the complaint, the Commissioner shall so notify the complainant and the Commission.

• Marginal note:Reception of complaint

  (8) A complaint shall be made to

  • (a) the Commission;

  • (b) any member or other person appointed or employed under Part I; or

  • (c) the provincial authority that is responsible for the receipt of complaints against police in the province in which the subject matter of the complaint arose.

• Marginal note:Assistance

  (9) The Commission shall, on the request of an individual who wishes to make a complaint, arrange for the provision of assistance to that individual in making the complaint.

• Marginal note:Acknowledgement and notification

  (10) As soon as feasible after a person or entity referred to in subsection (8) receives a complaint, the person or entity shall acknowledge the complaint in writing to the complainant and shall provide written notice of the complaint to the Commissioner and to the entities referred to in paragraphs (8)(a) and (c).

• Marginal note:Covert operations

  (11) The Commission and the Force are authorized to acknowledge a complaint or otherwise deal with a complainant in a manner that does not reveal, or from which may not be inferred, information concerning

  • (a) whether a place, person, agency, group, body or other entity was, is or is intended to be the object of a covert investigation or a covert collection of information or intelligence; or

  • (b) the identity of any person who is, has been or is intended to be engaged in a covert collection of information or intelligence.

Marginal note:Notice

45.54 As soon as feasible after being notified of a complaint, the Commissioner shall notify in writing the member or other person whose conduct is the subject matter of the complaint of the substance of the complaint unless, in the Commissioner’s opinion, to do so might compromise or hinder any investigation that is being or may be carried out in respect of the complaint.

Withdrawal of Complaints

Marginal note:Withdrawal

• 45.55 (1) A complainant may withdraw a complaint at any time by sending a written notice to the Commission.

• Marginal note:Assistance

  (2) The Commission shall, on the request of an individual who wishes to withdraw a complaint, arrange for the provision of assistance to that individual in withdrawing the complaint.

• Marginal note:Notice of withdrawal

  (3) As soon as feasible after the Commission receives a notice that a complaint has been withdrawn, the Commission shall give written notice of the withdrawal to the Commissioner and the provincial authority that is responsible for the receipt of complaints against police in the province in which the subject matter of the complaint arose.

• Marginal note:Notice to member or other person

  (4) When the Commissioner receives a notice under subsection (3), he or she shall notify in writing the member or other person whose conduct is the subject matter of the complaint that the complaint has been withdrawn.

• Marginal note:Investigation or hearing into withdrawn complaint

  (5) Despite the withdrawal of the complaint, the complaint may be the subject of an investigation, review or hearing conducted under this Part.

• Marginal note:Preservation of evidence

  (6) The Commissioner shall ensure the protection and preservation of any evidence relating to a withdrawn complaint.

• Marginal note:Regulations

  (7) The Governor in Council may make regulations respecting the period during which the evidence is to be protected and preserved.

Informal Resolution

Marginal note:Informal resolution

• 45.56 (1) As soon as feasible after being notified of a complaint, the Commissioner shall consider whether the complaint can be resolved informally and, with the consent of the complainant and the member or other person whose conduct is the subject matter of the complaint, may attempt to resolve it informally.

• Marginal note:Inadmissibility

  (2) An answer or statement made in the course of attempting to resolve a complaint informally, by the complainant or the member or other person whose conduct is the subject matter of the complaint, may be used or received against that person only in

  • (a) a prosecution under section 132 or 136 of the Criminal Code; or

  • (b) a civil or administrative proceeding regarding an allegation that with intent to mislead the witness gave the answer or statement knowing it to be false.

• Marginal note:Agreement to informal resolution in writing

  (3) The terms of every informal resolution of a complaint as well as the agreement of the complainant and the member or other person whose conduct is the subject matter of the complaint to those terms shall be signified in writing. A copy of everything so signified in writing is to be provided to the Commission.

• Marginal note:Regulations

  (4) The Governor in Council may make regulations prescribing the categories of complaints that are not to be resolved informally by the Commissioner.

• Marginal note:Clarification

  (5) For greater certainty, nothing in this section prevents the Commission from informally resolving a complaint of which it is seized.