An Act to amend the Criminal Code

Short title: Response to the Supreme Court of Canada Decision in R. v. Tse Act Bill C-55 (41-1) Status: Royal assent received Type: House Government Bill Sponsor: Rob Nicholson, Minister of Justice (Niagara Falls) Latest stage: Royal assent

Legislative

summary <div>A Legislative

Summary is currently being prepared for this bill by the Parliamentary Information and Research Service of the Library of Parliament. A pre-release version of this publication is available to parliamentarians and their staff, and can be obtained by submitting a request or contacting the Library of Parliament. Meanwhile, the following executive

summary is available.<br/><br/>On 11 February 2013, the Minister of Justice introduced Bill C-55,

An Act to amend the Criminal Code (Not Criminally Responsible Reform Act), in the House of Commons and it was given first reading.<br/><br/>In the decision of R. v. Tse, the Supreme Court of Canada found that a wiretap authority without a court authorization in situations of imminent harm could be justified under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. However, the Court declared that

Section 184.4 of the Criminal Code (interception in exceptional circumstances), which was enacted in 1993, was unconstitutional because it contained no accountability measures. The Supreme Court gave Parliament until April 13, 2013 to amend the provision to make it constitutionally compliant.<br/><br/>Bill C-55 amends the Criminal Code to provide, in response to the Supreme Court’s decision in R. v. Tse, safeguards related to the authority to intercept private communications without prior judicial authorization under

section 184.4 of that Act. Among other things it:<br/><br/>• requires the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness and the Attorney General of each province to report on the interceptions of private communications made under

section 184.4;<br/>• provides that a person who has been the object of such an interception must be notified of the interception within a specified period; <br/>• narrows the class of individuals who can make such an interception; and<br/>• limits those interceptions to offences listed in

section 183 of the Criminal Code.</div> House of Commons — First reading: Completed (2013-02-11) House of Commons — Second reading: Completed (2013-02-25) House of Commons — Consideration in committee: Completed (2013-03-07) House of Commons — Report stage: Completed (2013-03-18) House of Commons — Third reading: Completed (2013-03-20) Senate — Senate pre-study: Not completed Senate — First reading: Completed (2013-03-21) Senate — Second reading: Completed (2013-03-21) Senate — Consideration in committee: Completed (2013-03-26) Senate — Third reading: Completed (2013-03-26)

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