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Public Prosecution Service of Canada
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Public Prosecution Service of Canada

www.ppsc-sppc.gc.ca

 

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Part One: Terms and Conditions

1.1 Principle

As a representative of the Director of Public Prosecutions, an Agent is expected to uphold the highest standards of personal and professional conduct. An Agent must at all times obey the law, be in compliance with federal government policies and act with integrity, fairness and impartiality.

1.2 Where no Provisions

The Director may adopt a new administrative and/or management policy or process should a situation or event occur that is not covered by these Terms and Conditions. However, such a new policy or process must not be inconsistent with the current Terms and Conditions.

1.3 Terminology

In these Terms and Conditions,

“Agent” refers to any private sector lawyer, being an active member of a provincial bar, who has entered into an Agreement with the Director of Public Prosecutions to conduct federal prosecutions, pursuant to ss. 7(2), and who is authorized to act under ss. 9(1) of the Director of Public Prosecutions Act.

“Ad Hoc Agent” refers to any Agent who has entered into an Agreement to conduct federal prosecution work on one specific matter or one specific set of cases.

“Agent Firm” refers to the legal entity, consisting of one or more Agents who have entered into an Agreement to conduct federal prosecutions. An Agent Firm may include any articling student, student-at-law, or paralegal authorized to assist Agents practicing in an association, a corporation, a partnership, or limited partnership.

Throughout this document, the term “Agent Firm” may refer to “Agent” if the circumstances dictate.

“Agent Supervisor” refers to the Public Prosecution Service of Canada counsel assigned as the Agent’s point of contact with respect to policy, legal, procedural, financial, or billing issues, and advice arising during the course of the Agreement.

“Agreement” refers to the Fixed-Term Agreement between the Agent and the Director of Public Prosecutions, together with the Acknowledgment signed by the Agent or all Agents within the Agent Firm, and Appendix A which sets out the statutes and judicial districts for which the Agent is responsible.

“Articling Student” refers to a graduate from a Canadian university law school program, authorized to assist an Agent or Ad Hoc Agent.

“Chief Federal Prosecutor” refers to the head federal prosecutor within the Public Prosecution Service of Canada regional office for a province or provinces.

“Contact Agent” refers to the Agent within an Agent Firm designated as the point of contact for all administrative and legal matters stemming from the Agreement and responsible for ensuring compliance with the Agreement.

“Director” refers to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

“iCase” refers to a web-based national application used to support the practice of law and the management and delivery of legal services to Government. It includes the following functions: case management, time management, document management, billing and operational reports.

“iCase Administrator” refers to a non-lawyer employed by an Agent Firm who has responsibility for entering and maintaining file and billing information in the iCase application.

“Indemnification” refers to payment or reimbursement of amounts paid as a result of a judgment or a cost award against an Agent or as a result of a monetary settlement of a claim or an action made or brought against an Agent that is pre-approved by the Director of Public Prosecutions.

“Legal assistance” includes the cost of the services of the Department of Justice Canada, a Crown agent or private counsel, as well as paralegal services and includes necessary travel costs, incidental costs, and the use of essential expert witnesses.

“Paralegal” refers to paralegals, certified or qualified, authorized to assist an Agent.

“Principal” or “Articling Principal” where applicable, refers to the Agent within an Agent Firm responsible for the direct supervision of articling students, students-at-law, and paralegals.

“Student-at-Law” refers to a student enrolled in a Canadian university law school program, authorized to assist an Agent.

1.4 Application of Terms and Conditions

The Terms and Conditions (T&C’s) set out the nature of the Agent’s relationship with the Public Prosecution Service of Canada (PPSC) as well as with other federal government departments or enforcement agencies that refer matters for prosecution. These Terms and Conditions also provide direction to all Agents on a number of important matters.

The Agreement, these Terms and Conditions, and their Schedules constitute the basis of the Agreement between the Agent and the Director. There are no other terms or conditions, express or implied, other than those in these documents. The Agent Supervisor may provide specific protocols or instructions from time-to-time. The Agent must, at all times, act within the scope of this Agreement and follow protocols and instructions provided by the Agent Supervisor.

These Terms and Conditions and their Schedules are subject to change. The Contact Agent will be notified of any changes and the timeframe in which the Agent Firm must comply with the changes. These documents, and their amendments, are available at the PPSC website: http://www.ppsc-sppc.gc.ca under “Publications”.

1.5 FPS Deskbook

The FPS Deskbook, as amended, contains the directives and guidelines that govern the conduct of federal prosecutions by all Agents.

1.6 Personal Conduct

The Contact Agent must notify the Agent Supervisor in writing if any individual within the Agent Firm is:

  • subject to any prosecutions or convictions under federal statutes, including the Criminal Code, or subject to personal or professional bankruptcy or insolvency, to any disciplinary proceedings before a law society or Bar, or is the subject of an investigation by any federal agency;
  • in default of a court order or decision, or a family support obligation; and
  • in contravention of any Act of Parliament or of the legislature of a province, or of any regulations made under any such Act.

These requirements exist at the time of acceptance and extend throughout the duration of the Agreement.

1.7 Authority to verify compliance

The Agent, upon submission of their application and throughout the duration of their Agreement, authorizes the PPSC to contact:

  • appropriate agencies to verify the Agent’s compliance with the personal conduct requirements of section 1.6;
  • federal enforcement agencies to verify the Agent’s compliance with federal statutes;
  • the Canada Revenue Agency to verify the Agent’s compliance with the Income Tax Act and other federal statutes under that Agency’s authority; and
  • the law society or Bar of his or her province or territory to verify the Agent’s status to practise law.

1.8 Employment Equity Requirements

The PPSC encourages a commitment to and implementation of the broad principles of employment equity in the workplace. Specific requirements differ depending on the size of the Agent Firm.

Consult Schedule A for further information on the PPSC’s “Work Equity Policy for Agents”.

1.9 Sanctions

Failure to comply with these Terms and Conditions or instructions from the Agent Supervisor may result in sanctions including:

  • reduction or disallowance of accounts;
  • initiation of a complaint before the appropriate professional disciplinary body;
  • initiation of a civil action against the Agent;
  • suspension or termination as Agent or Ad Hoc Agent; and
  • suspension or termination of the Agreement as an Agent Firm of the Director.

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Date Modified:
2010-08-18