APPENDIX B — REGULATIONS SECTION SERVICE STANDARDS

Part 1 — Federal Regulations and the Regulations Section — An Overview (continued)

March 31, 1996

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QUALITY:
ACTIVITY: LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
SUB-ACTIVITY: EXAMINATION AND DRAFTING OF REGULATIONS

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STANDARD

1. We ensure a thorough legal examination of proposed regulations that is comprehensive and responsive to the needs of the client.
2. We draft regulations that are legally sound, clear, comprehensive and responsive to the needs of the client.

CLIENT

• Governor in Council
• Clerk of PCO
• regulatory authorities
• lawyers of regulatory authorities, including Department of Justice lawyers
• public at large

PRACTICE GUIDE

• The following practice guide applies to both standards
• meet with clients to
  • receive instructions
  • clarify policies and instructions
• evaluate the legal risks of making certain provisions in regulations
• propose solutions to legal and drafting issues in draft regulations, and instructions for the drafting of regulations
• examine draft regulations and instructions for the drafting of regulations as well as draft regulations from instructions, all in light of the legal requirements of the Statutory Instruments Act that regulations
  • be authorized by the statute under which they are made
  • not constitute an unusual or unexpected use of the authority pursuant to which they are made
  • not trespass unduly on existing rights and freedoms and not, in any case, be inconsistent with the purposes and provisions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Canadian Bill of Rights
• examine draft regulations and instructions for the drafting of regulations as well as draft regulations from instructions, all taking into account
  • the effect on the consistency of federal regulations
  • government policies, both legal and political
• advise and assist the client in the development of legislative schemes
• examine and draft regulations to ensure that the two language versions have the same legal effect, taking into account that Canada is a bijural country
• in units constituted to provide one-stop shopping, examine documents incorporated by reference in regulations to determine whether they are within the regulation-making authority and are consistent with the provisions of the regulations
• examine and draft regulations
  • in light of the drafting requirements of the Statutory Instruments Act, taking into account drafting practices in amending formulae, format and styles
  • taking into account the plain language policies of the government
• taking into account that Canada has two official languages and that each language version has equal force of law, examine and draft each language version of regulations to ensure that
  • it is clear and consistent within itself
  • it is consistent with the other language version
• where a bill and its regulations are developed at the same time, we will try, where possible, to assign the same drafters to both
• carry out jurisprudential, doctrinal and legislative research
• maintain a library of up-to-date materials on
  • the law in relation to regulations and statutory interpretation
  • grammar and terminology
• maintain up-to-date manuals of drafting practices and procedures
• through linguistic specialists
  • conduct documentary and grammatical research
  • give linguistic opinions
  • act as a resource centre for information on language matters
  • consult with specialists, in particular specialists in the Department of Justice, the Translation Bureau and the Canadian Permanent Committee on Geographical Names
• use computer technology in drafting and conducting research
• take an active role in
  • Access to the Law Committee
  • Plain Language Committees

PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

• feedback from clients
• comments of the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations
• comments and decisions of courts and tribunals
• clients' approval of drafts for stamping

INFORMATION SOURCE/MEASUREMENT TOOLS

• comments and letters from clients
• discussions with clients
• regular consultation meetings with clients
• number of positive comments and number of negative comments received on the client comment hotline
• client satisfaction questionnaires and surveys
• comments received as a result of prepublication of proposed regulations in Canada Gazette, Part I
• minutes and reports of the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations and Committee letters to clients
• decisions of courts and tribunals
• Work in Progress data
• documents such as memos and discussion drafts maintained on each file
• post mortem meetings with clients on particular files

 

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QUALITY:
ACTIVITY: LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
SUB-ACTIVITY: LEGAL ADVICE

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STANDARD

• 3. We ensure that the legal advice that we give is legally sound, clear, comprehensive and responsive to the needs of the client, in particular:
  • advice on issues pertaining to regulations
  • advice pertaining to our corporate counsel role

CLIENT

• Privy Council Office
  • Senior Personnel
  • Machinery of Government
  • Clerk of Privy Council
  • Assistant Clerk to the Privy Council (Orders in Council)
• Government House, including the Chief Herald
• regulatory authorities
• sections of the Department of Justice

PRACTICE GUIDE

• provide a specialist service in the field of regulations
• work together with specialist sections of the Department of Justice and other specialist services of the Public Service, where necessary
• evaluate the risks in pursuing certain actions and propose alternate solutions
• on request of the client or the Legislation Section, advise on the drafting of enabling provisions in draft bills
• examine and advise on Orders in Council
• advise the Registrar of the Canada Gazette on matters pertaining to the Statutory Instruments Act
• advise and assist the client in the development of legislative schemes
• monitor the quality and consistency of opinions by means of an internal opinion review committee
• maintain a data base of opinions given
• maintain a library of up-to-date materials on
  • the law in relation to regulations and statutory interpretation
  • grammar and terminology
• carry out jurisprudential, doctrinal and legislative research
• through linguistic specialists,
  • conduct documentary and grammatical research
  • give linguistic opinions
  • act as a resource centre for information on language matters
  • consult with specialists, in particular specialists in the Department of Justice, the Translation Bureau and the Canadian Permanent Committee on Geographical Names
• take into account the effect of our opinions on the body of federal legislation
• take into account government policies, both legal and political
• determine whether a particular text is subject to the regulatory process

PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

• requests from clients
• feedback from clients
• number of opinions given
• frequency of consultation by other sections of the Department of Justice of opinions given
• comments and decisions of courts and tribunals

INFORMATION SOURCE/MEASUREMENT TOOLS

• comments and letters from clients
• discussions with clients
• regular consultation meetings with clients
• number of positive comments and number of negative comments received on the client comment hotline
• client satisfaction questionnaires and surveys
• Work in Progress data
• documents such as memos maintained on file for each opinion
• decisions of courts and tribunals

 

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QUALITY:
ACTIVITY: LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
SUB-ACTIVITY: TRAINING

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STANDARD

• 4. We provide, on request, training in
  • the law respecting regulations
  • the interpretation of legislation
  • the drafting of regulations
  • the regulatory process

CLIENT

• officials of regulatory authorities
• Canadian Centre for Management Development
• Department of Justice lawyers

PRACTICE GUIDE

• develop training modules appropriate to the work of the client
• negotiate with clients the content and timing of training
• explain our role to clients

PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

• feedback from clients
• demand for training
• number of requests for training
• number of training sessions
• quality of drafts and instructions submitted

INFORMATION SOURCE/MEASUREMENT TOOLS

• comments and letters from clients
• discussions with clients
• regular consultation meetings with clients
• number of positive comments and number of negative comments received on the client comment hotline
• client satisfaction questionnaires and surveys
• feedback from drafters

 

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TIMELINESS:
ACTIVITY: EGISLATIVE SERVICES
SUB-ACTIVITY: ALL

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STANDARD

We strive to provide a timely service that accommodates governmental and departmental priorities and urgencies.

CLIENT

• Privy Council Office
  • Senior Personnel
  • Machinery of Government
  • Clerk of Privy Council
  • Assistant Clerk to the Privy Council (Orders in Council)
• Government House, including the Chief Herald
• regulatory authorities
• lawyers of regulatory authorities, including Department of Justice lawyers
• officials of the Canada Gazette
• regulatees
• public at large

PRACTICE GUIDE

• on request, provide assistance to clients in determining realistic time frames as early as possible in the client's planning process
• establish mutually acceptable deadlines with clients
• re-evaluate deadlines with clients when they introduce policy changes
• ensure that regulations are examined and drafted within deadlines agreed on with the client
• ensure that the advice we give is given within the time frame agreed on with the client
• follow government priorities set by Regulatory Affairs
• verify and confirm priorities with clients
• carry out the work in accordance with a portfolio system that identifies the lawyers responsible for the regulations of each regulatory authority

PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

• extent to which negotiated deadlines are met
• feedback from clients
• average turn-around time per file stamped in a year is less then the Cabinet-mandated 90 days
• average turn-around time per opinion given in a year

INFORMATION SOURCE/MEASUREMENT TOOLS

• comments and letters from clients
• discussions with clients
• regular consultation meetings with clients
• number of positive comments and number of negative comments received on the client comment hotline
• client satisfaction questionnaires and surveys
• Work in Progress data that shows turn-around time per file, per department and over all
• timekeeping data

 

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COMMUNICATION AND ACCESSIBILITY:
ACTIVITY: LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
SUB-ACTIVITY: ALL

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STANDARD

We treat our clients in a professional and business-like manner and aim to create a cooperative venture type of environment in our relations with our clients.

CLIENT

• officials of the Privy Council Office
  • Senior Personnel
  • Machinery of Government
  • Clerk of Privy Council
  • Assistant Clerk to the Privy Council (Orders in Council)
• officials of
  • Government House, including the Chief Herald
  • Canada Gazette
• regulatory authorities
• lawyers of regulatory authorities, including Department of Justice lawyers

PRACTICE GUIDE

• inform clients of the services provided by the Regulations Section and be flexible in the arrangements for the provision of those services to meet the clients' needs
• inform clients as to the names of the lawyers assigned responsibility for their files, and notify them promptly of any change in responsibility
• avoid, as far as possible, changing the lawyers responsible for a file
• where a bill and its regulations are developed at the same time, we will try, where possible, to assign the same drafters to both
• carry out the work in accordance with a portfolio system that identifies the lawyers responsible for the regulations of each regulatory authority
• keep clients informed of the status of the file
• explain the process internal to the Regulations Section:
  • co-drafting
  • equal attention to, and scrutiny of, both language versions
  • meetings to receive and clarify instructions and give advice
  • issuance of discussion drafts
  • editing
  • linguistic revision and comparison of English and French versions
  • stamping
  • opinion committee
  • consultation with specialist sections of the Department of Justice and other specialist services of the Public Service, where necessary
• maintain a co-operative attitude in working with clients and be open-minded to clients' suggestions and ideas
• explain changes to drafts and reasons for them
• keep clients informed of changes in priorities, drafting practices and regulatory procedures
• provide, where possible, a tracking system integrated with that of the client
• encourage the use of electronic transmission of instructions, drafts and memos
• take an active role in regulatory coordinators' meetings
• be courteous and helpful
• be accessible in person and by E-mail and voice mail during business hours and at other times by arrangement

PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

• feedback from clients

INFORMATION SOURCE/MEASUREMENT TOOLS

• comments and letters from clients
• discussions with clients
• regular consultation meetings with clients
• number of positive comments and number of negative comments received on the client comment hotline
• client satisfaction questionnaires and surveys

• [ Part 1 |
•  Table of Contents |
•  Appendix A |
•  Part 2 ]