Organized Crime - Legislative & Regulatory Tools

Organized Crime: A Global Issue | What is Organized Crime? | Impact
RCMP Organized Crime Strategy

Domestic

Over the past seven years, the Government of Canada has undertaken a number of measures to combat organized crime and enhance national security on the domestic front, through legislation and allocated funding. These measures have strengthened the ability of law enforcement to pursue criminal organizations and to enhance border security.

There is a progressive and rigorous road to creating policy and laws in response to ever-changing crimes. This is reflected in legislative changes on an almost annual basis. The issues relating to organized crime are all intertwined, and thus amendments are made on multiple levels. With organized crime being transnational in nature, the progress made domestically must be furthered by international laws and commitments. In addition, numerous provincial laws and municipal bylaws are aimed at preventing or curtailing the illegal activity of criminal groups (ie. landlord and tenant acts, highway traffic acts, zoning bylaws). These can have great impact at the community level.

Since 1997, several legislative and regulatory reforms have been undertaken on a number of fronts in order to expand and improve investigative powers of police agencies. These enhance their ability to protect the public as well as address capacity gaps by modernizing outdated and ineffective legislation. Statutory enactments contributing to the fight against organized crime include:

• Witness Protection Program Act (1996)
• Amendment to the Criminal Code (criminal organizations) and to amend other Acts in consequence (1997)
• Criminal Law Improvement Act (1997)
• Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (1997)
• New Extradition Act (1999)
• Amendment to Corrections and Conditional Release Act (1999)
• Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) Act (2000)
• Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (2002)
• Amendment to the Criminal Code (organized crime and law enforcement) (2001)
• Amendment to the Criminal Code (child sexual exploitation on the internet) (2002)
• Amendment to the Criminal Code (lawful access) (2005) *not yet in force.

International

Canada works in partnership with other countries to fight organized crime and other trans-national crimes. Efforts of the international community to develop international instruments to counter transnational organized crime reflect the recognition that the problem has become much more serious and borderless.

Globalization of economic systems, and developments in transportation and communications technologies have created enormous opportunities for human communication and economic development. However, they have also created significant new opportunities for organized crime. New forms of transnational cooperation between organized criminal groups emerged in the closing decades of the 20th Century.

Some of the prominent highlights of international efforts involve:

• Organized crime added to G-8 agenda (1995)
• Canada-U.S. Integrated Border Enforcement Teams (IBETs)
• United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (2002)
• Canada-U.S. Cross-Border Crime Forum
• G8 Strategy to Protect Children from Sexual Exploitation on the Internet (2003)
• Council of Europe on the Convention on Cybercrime