First Canadian Seniors’ Complaints Report: OBSI

On July 18, 2019, the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI) issued its first 2019 Seniors Report. Survey data gathered between 2017 and 2018 from over 1,400 case files highlights some of the unique challenges faced by seniors when accessing financial services and products. According to its news release, “Older Canadians experience different challenges with the financial services they use than younger Canadians.” Raising awareness of seniors’ issues is considered by OBSI to be Read more…

Locked-in retirement accounts the focus of July 2019 Pension Division Review Project Committee meeting

At this month’s meeting, the Pension Division Review Project Committee examined locked-in retirement accounts. British Columbia’s Pension Benefits Standards Act defines locked-in retirement account to mean “an RRSP that is prescribed to be a locked-in retirement account.” The regulation completes this definition by adding that “an RRSP is a locked-in retirement account if the RRSP includes locked-in money.” Locked-in retirement accounts are commonly created when an employee, who was a member of an employer’s pension plan, ceases Read more…

Results of IIROC National Survey Calls for More Protection for Vulnerable Investors

On June 21, 2019, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) published the results of its national survey, Awareness and Attitudes Related to Provisions to Protect Vulnerable Investors and Investment Firms/Advisors: Presentation of Key Findings. Survey data gathered between March 7th and 14th, 2019 from 1,000 Canadian investors covered a range of topics including awareness of regulatory tools and resources on available protection measures, uptake on the use of a trusted contact person, and Read more…

IIROC 2019 Policy Priority Updates and Vulnerable Investors

This post was co-authored by Valerie Le Blanc and Kristen Weedmark   On April 9, 2019, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) released the Policy Priorities—Update Report. The report outlines the policy priorities that IIROC anticipates implementing or publishing for comment over the next 12 months. The policy updates include:         Guidance clarifying the use of electronic signatures to evidence the execution of agreements, contracts, and contents or notifications to clients (effective March 26, Read more…

A closer look at the Report on Common Property, Land Titles, and Fundamental Changes for Stratas: Should all strata plans require the approval of an approving officer?

This post is the part of a series highlighting key recommendations in the Report on Common Property, Land Titles, and Fundamental Changes for Stratas. For other entries in the series, click here. Brief description of the issue Even though the deposit of a strata plan is considered to be a subdivision of land, the Strata Property Act currently allows many strata plans to be deposited without the approval of an approving officer. While bare-land strata Read more…