Jed Friedman

Following a merits decision finding that the respondents breached Ontario securities law by failing to file required financial statements and failing to cooperate with an audit, the Ontario Securities Commission held a written hearing to determine sanctions and costs.

The Commission found that the respondents' conduct showed a complete disregard for the integrity of Ontario's capital markets and that they were fundamentally ungovernable.

The Commission ordered permanent market bans against both respondents, required the individual respondent to resign all director and officer positions, and ordered him to pay $129,845.66 in costs.

The Ontario Securities Commission held a hearing to consider whether to impose sanctions on Conrad Black and John Boultbee under the inter-jurisdictional enforcement provisions of the Securities Act, based on their criminal convictions for mail fraud and obstruction of justice in the United States, and Black's settlement with the SEC.

The Commission found that the US convictions arose from conduct related to securities and that the US proceedings met Canadian standards of fairness.

Concluding that sanctions were necessary for specific and general deterrence to protect Ontario's capital markets, the Commission ordered permanent bans prohibiting Black and Boultbee from acting as directors or officers of any issuer, registrant, or investment fund manager.

Staff's request for costs was denied.

The Ontario Securities Commission heard several procedural motions in a section 127(10) proceeding against the respondents.

The panel dismissed a respondent's motion to sever his case, finding substantial commonality in the allegations and no undue prejudice.

The panel also dismissed requests to vary the severance order and to adjourn the hearing pending an appeal.

Staff's motion for directions on the scope of admissible evidence was dismissed, with the panel declining to review witness statements a priori but cautioning against re-litigating matters decided in U.S. proceedings.

A motion to call a specific witness was also dismissed.

Conrad M. Black brought a motion to stay an Ontario Securities Commission proceeding seeking a reciprocal order under s. 127(10) of the Securities Act based on his U.S. fraud convictions.

Black argued the proceeding was an abuse of process and proposed that his interim undertaking remain in effect instead.

The Commission dismissed the stay motion, finding that a reciprocal order proceeding is an appropriate exercise of its statutory mandate to protect Ontario's capital markets and does not constitute an abuse of process.

The Commission also provided directions limiting the scope of evidence at the upcoming hearing to matters relevant to crafting a protective order, explicitly prohibiting the re-litigation of the U.S. proceedings.

The Ontario Securities Commission held a hearing on the merits regarding allegations that Moncasa Capital Corporation and its directing mind, John Frederick Collins, engaged in unregistered trading, illegal distribution, and securities fraud.

The respondents raised approximately $1.2 million from 57 investors by falsely claiming the funds would be used to purchase luxury Caribbean real estate.

In reality, the respondents operated a boiler room, misappropriated investor funds for personal use, and made numerous misrepresentations.

The Commission found that the respondents breached the registration and prospectus requirements of the Securities Act and engaged in fraud.

Collins was also found to have made false statements to Commission staff and was deemed liable for Moncasa's breaches as its sole director and officer.