NFPMC General Rules of Procedure (SOR/82-641)

Short Title

1 These Rules may be cited as the NFPMC General Rules of Procedure.

Interpretation

2 In these Rules,

Act

Act means the Farm Products Agencies Act; (Loi)

affidavit

affidavit includes a written affirmation; (affidavit)

applicant

applicant means a party who submits an application or is so designated by the Council as such; (requérant)

application

application includes any application to the Council for the making of an order with respect to any matter relating to the objects of the Council as described in the Act and a Federal-Provincial Agreement or any matter relating to a complaint; (requête)

chairman

chairman means any person designated by the Council to act as the chairman of a hearing; (président)

complaint

complaint means a complaint received by the Council under paragraph 7(1)(f) of the Act; (plainte)

Federal-Provincial Agreement

Federal-Provincial Agreement means an agreement entered into pursuant to section 32 of the Act; (accord fédéral-provincial)

hearing

hearing means a public hearing held pursuant to section 8 of the Act; (audience)

interrogatory

interrogatory means any written request by a party for information or particulars made to another party that is answered in writing by that other party; (interrogatoire)

intervener

intervener means a person or party who files a statement in accordance with section 16; (intervenant)

intervention

intervention means a statement filed by an intervener in accordance with subsection 16(2); (intervention)

party

party means any party whether an applicant, intervener, or any other interested person including a corporation that is so named or designated by the Council as a party in relation to a hearing; (partie)

proceeding

proceeding means any inquiry, hearing or other procedure commenced by an application or a complaint to the Council or initiated by the Council of its own motion by a notice in accordance with section 9 of the Act; (instance)

Secretary

Secretary means

• (a) a person designated by the Council to act on its behalf in organizing the conduct of a proceeding, and

• (b) the person who acts as secretary at a hearing. (Secrétaire)

Application of Rules

• 3 (1) Subject to the Act and the regulations, these Rules apply to every proceeding before the Council held pursuant to section 8 of the Act.

• (2) The Council may, in any proceeding, direct either orally or in writing that a specified Rule shall not apply to that proceeding and may, during the proceedings make other Rules for the purpose of ensuring the expeditious conduct of the business of the Council and that proceeding.

Holiday

4 Whenever a time limit or deadline for the doing of a thing under these Rules falls on a Saturday or holiday, the thing may be done on the day next following that is not a holiday.

Applications

• 5 (1) Every applicant shall file with the Secretary an application in writing signed by himself or his agent.

• (2) Every application filed pursuant to subsection (1) shall

  • (a) contain a clear and concise statement of the facts, the grounds of the application on which the applicant relies and the nature of the order applied for or decision requested;

  • (b) be divided into consecutively numbered paragraphs each of which shall be confined as nearly as possible to a separate and distinct subject-matter and portion of the application;

  • (c) set out the name, address and telephone number of the applicant or the applicant’s agent;

  • (d) be signed by the applicant or his agent;

  • (e) where it is signed by an agent of the applicant, be accompanied by a copy of the document that authorizes the agent to act on behalf of the applicant;

  • (f) contain a list of any documents that explain or support the application;

  • (g) designate a place where the application may be made available for public inspection; and

  • (h) be filed with the Council in triplicate together with a copy of the documents listed in paragraph (f).

Additional Information

6 At any time after the filing of an application and before the disposition thereof by the Council, the Council may require any party to furnish the Council with such other information or documents as the Council requires to enable it to obtain a full and satisfactory understanding of the application, reply, intervention or submission.

Form of Documents

• 7 (1) All applications, reply, interventions, submissions or other documents made or submitted by any party in connection with any proceeding shall, unless special circumstances otherwise require, be of the uniform size of 21.5 cm wide by 28 cm long and be typewritten on only one side of the page.

• (2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), a complaint made pursuant to section 12 may be in any form.

• (3) The style of cause for each proceeding shall consist of the name of the applicant followed by a short phrase summarizing the nature of the order or decision sought.

• (4) Where an applicant referred to in subsection (3) carries on its undertaking in the name of a department, committee or division of the company, the name of the department, committee or division, as the case may be, may be substituted for that of the applicant for the purposes of any proceeding, except where a reference is intended to apply to the entire undertaking of the applicant.

Processing of Applications

• 8 (1) Where an application does not meet the requirements of these Rules, the Secretary shall notify the applicant of the deficiencies in the application and the application shall not be considered until it is in a form satisfactory to the Council and otherwise meets the requirements of these Rules.

• (2) Where an application is in a form satisfactory to the Council and otherwise meets the requirements of these Rules and the Council proposes to hold a hearing in respect of the application, the Secretary shall

  • (a) set the application down for hearing at such date and place as the Council directs; and

  • (b) publish a notice of the application, in such form as may be prescribed by the Council,

    • (i) in the Canada Gazette not less than 30 days before the day fixed for the commencement of the hearing, and

    • (ii) in one or more newspapers and farm journals in general circulation throughout Canada and in particular in those areas of Canada where, in the opinion of the Council, there are persons who are likely to be interested in the matters to be considered at the hearing.

Expedited Proceedings

• 9 (1) On or after the filing of an application, the applicant or any party who has filed a submission intervening in the application may apply in writing to the Council for an expedited proceedings order.

• (2) A copy of an application for an expedited proceedings order and such other documents and information as the Council may prescribe, together with an order of the Council setting out the persons to be served, shall be served on such persons within such time as is specified in the order.

• (3) Notice of an application for an expedited proceedings order in a form prescribed by the Council shall be given to such persons and in such manner as the Council directs.

• (4) A person who has been served with an order pursuant to subsection (2) and who intends to oppose or intervene in the application shall, within the time specified in the order of the Council, file with the Council and serve on the applicant his reply or submission.

• (5) A person who has been notified pursuant to subsection (3) and who intends to oppose or intervene in the application shall, within such time as is fixed by the Council in the notice, file with the Council and serve upon the applicant his reply or submission.

• 10 (1) Where an application is filed pursuant to subsection 9(1), the Council may make an expedited proceedings order.

• (2) Where the Council makes an expedited proceedings order, in hearing and determining the application to which the order relates, oral evidence relating to the application or relating to a reply or submission respecting the application shall not be presented to the Council unless the Council otherwise directs.

Notice of Application

• 11 (1) Except where the Council directs that an application may be heard and determined ex parte or makes an expedited proceedings order, the Council shall, as soon as possible after the filing of an application, set the application down for hearing.

• (2) Where an application has been set down for hearing, the Secretary shall forthwith notify the applicant of the time and place fixed for the hearing and shall by such notice, indicate the persons to whom and the time within which notice of the application shall be given.

• (3) The Secretary shall cause the notice referred to in subsection (2) to be published in accordance with subsection 8(2).

Complaints and Representations

• 12 (1) A person who is directly affected by the operations of the agency may make a complaint or representation to the Council in relation to those operations.

• (2) Where a complaint or representation made pursuant to subsection (1) is not directed to any application, the person making the complaint or representation may do so by delivering to the Secretary a brief written submission signed by him setting out the nature of his complaint or representation.

13 Where the Council determines that a complaint or representation made pursuant to section 12 constitutes an application, a submission or an intervention, it may require the person who made the complaint or representation to comply with the procedure relating to applications, submissions, or interventions, as the case may be.

14 Where, on the basis of a complaint or representation, the Council is satisfied that it is in the public interest to hold a hearing, the Secretary shall notify the person who made the complaint or representation to which the hearing relates and the person against whom it is made of the date and place of the hearing.

15 Where a complaint or representation is made on behalf of a group of persons, the person representing the group at a hearing shall file such evidence of his authority to speak for the group as the Council may require.

Reply, Interventions or Submissions

• 16 (1) Where a respondent or an intervener intends to oppose or intervene in a proceeding, or wishes to make submissions where there is no application, and a hearing is to be convened by Council under subsection 8(2) of the Act, the respondent or intervener shall file with the Secretary, within the time specified in the notice for filing a reply, intervention or submission, a written statement containing his reply or submission, together with any supporting information or documents.

• (2) Every reply, intervention or submission referred to in subsection (1) shall be signed by the party making the reply, intervention or submission or by his agent, and

  • (a) shall contain a concise statement of the facts from which the nature of the respondent’s or intervener’s interest in the proceeding may be determined;

  • (b) may admit or deny any or all of the facts alleged by any other party in the proceeding;

  • (c) shall be divided into consecutively numbered paragraphs each of which shall be confined as nearly as possible to a distinct subject-matter;

  • (d) shall set out the name, address and telephone number of the respondent or intervener and his agent, if any;

  • (e) shall be signed by the respondent or intervener or his agent;

  • (f) shall, where it is signed by the agent of the respondent or intervener, be accompanied by a copy of the document that authorizes the agent to act on behalf of the respondent or intervener;

  • (g) shall contain a list of any documents that explain or support the reply, intervention or submission;

  • (h) shall state whether the intervener or respondent wishes to appear; and

  • (i) shall be filed in triplicate with the Secretary together with a copy of the documents listed in paragraph (g).

• (3) A respondent or an intervener shall serve a copy of his intervention or submission on such persons as the Council may specify.

17 A reply, intervention or submission shall be filed with the Secretary and served on the parties at least 20 days before the day fixed for the commencement of a hearing as set out in the notice thereof published pursuant to subsection 8(2) unless such notice of the Council otherwise directs.

18 Where a person who intends to reply to an intervention or submission fails to file his reply with the Secretary within the time specified in section 17 or the notice thereof, as the case may be, the hearing may commence and be determined without further notice to that person.

Reply to Interventions

19 The Council may, at any time prior to the termination of a proceeding, serve a true copy of a reply, intervention or submission on the parties.

• 20 (1) Within 10 days after a party is served with a copy of any reply, intervention or submission, that party may mail or deliver to the Secretary a reply thereto.

• (2) Where a reply referred to in subsection (1) is not mailed or delivered within the time specified in that subsection, the Secretary may refuse to accept it.

• 21 (1) A party in a reply referred to in section 20 may object to any application, reply, intervention or submission, stating the grounds of his objection and may admit or deny any or all the facts alleged in the document.

• (2) A reply shall be signed by the party or his solicitor and, where it is signed by his agent, it shall be accompanied by a copy of the document that authorizes the agent to act on behalf of the party.

Service and Filing

• 22 (1) Subject to subsection (2), service of any notice or other document shall be by personal service, in which case service shall be on the date of delivery, or by mail, in which case the date of service shall be the date the notice or other document is deposited in a post office.

• (2) Proof of service by affidavit shall, at the request of the Council, be filed with the Secretary in respect of any document required to be served.

• (3) Documents to be served on the Council may be personally served at its offices in the National Capital Region described in the schedule to the National Capital Act.

Verification by Affidavit, Proof of Notice

• 23 (1) The Council may at any time require the whole or any part of any application, reply, intervention or submission filed with the Secretary to be supported by affidavit or require proof of the fact that notice of or a copy of any such application, reply, intervention or submission has been given or sent in the manner required by these Rules, by giving notice to that effect to the person by or on behalf of whom the application, reply, intervention or submission was filed.

• (2) Where a person who has been notified in accordance with subsection (1) fails to comply with the terms of the notice, the Council may set aside the application, reply, intervention or submission or any part thereof that is not supported or proved in accordance with the notice.

• (3) Where in any case an affidavit referred to in subsection (1) is made as to belief, the grounds on which the belief is based shall be stated in the affidavit.