Central Agencies Portfolio Evaluation

2. Description of the Central Agencies Portfolio

This section includes a brief description of the Portfolio, including its components and resources.

2.1. Overview

The CAP manages legal issues related to the central agency functions of the federal government. More specifically, the Portfolio:

The CAP is responsible for providing legal advisory services, including providing legal opinions, risk analyses, and legal training and seminars to clients and employees. It also provides litigation services before all court levels and administrative and inquiry bodies. The Portfolio offers legislative services including drafting tax legislation, regulations and statutory instruments, and provides support to clients that are working with the LSB on legislation and regulations. It supports policy development and provides legal services related to clients’ governance and internal operations. In addition, it provides legal advice in connection with compliance investigations and proceedings, protection of confidential financial information, and consumer education programs.

Ultimately, the Portfolio is expected to deliver high-quality legal support and services to its client departments and agencies, in accordance with the Department of Justice Act.Footnote 6 This work is expected to contribute to the Department’s strategic outcome “A federal government that is supported by high-quality legal services”.Footnote 7 A detailed description of the CAP’s logic model is included in Appendix A.

2.2. Portfolio Components

2.2.1. Assistant Deputy Minister’s Office (ADMO)

The Assistant Deputy Minister (ADM) holds a senior management position in two departments — a unique, dual role. As head of the CAP, the ADM is part of the Department of Justice with all seven of the CAP LSUs reporting to her. In addition, she carries the responsibilities of the ADM of the Finance Canada Law Branch. As chief legal advisor to the Department of Finance, the ADM is a member of the client executive team, and oversees the work of four divisions, including the General Legal Services Division and the Tax Counsel Division (both of which are also LSUs within the CAP), the Values and Ethics Division, and the Access to Information and Privacy Division, which are exclusively Department of Finance organizations.Footnote 8

2.2.2. Departmental Legal Services Units

Each CAP LSU provides legal services to its respective client department, agency or office. Responsibilities for each CAP LSU are presented below.

Department of Finance – General Legal Services (GLS)

GLS provides specialized legal and strategic advice to the Department of Finance, and the federal government as a whole, on a variety of matters, including the regulatory framework governing banks and other federally regulated financial institutions; Canadian payment systems; domestic and international borrowings by the federal government; the financial management of the Government of Canada; securities regulation; the Customs Tariff, trade remedies, and financial services trade; federal transfers to provinces and territories; and privatization initiatives. Additionally, GLS provides legal support in connection with the federal government’s fiscal policy, most notably during the preparation of the federal budget, and in the drafting of legislation to implement budget measures where necessary. As well, GLS provides legal advice and assistance to the Department of Finance on a variety of financial and commercial transactions and legislative initiatives of other federal departments or agencies when they could have a significant impact on the fiscal framework. Finally, GLS provides legal advisory and litigation support services with respect to significant litigation implicating the Department of Finance or affecting its business lines and the fiscal framework.

Department of Finance – Tax Counsel Division (TCD)

TCD provides advice on the legal consequences and implications of tax policy decisions and prepares amendments to tax legislation and related statutory instruments. Responsibilities include providing legal support throughout the financial cycle, mainly to the Tax Policy Branch (Finance), on proposals for inclusion in the federal budget and the Update of Economic and Fiscal Projections, as well as providing advice on parliamentary processes, procedures and conventions as they relate to money bills. Support is also provided in drafting budget implementation legislation and regulations. The Division is tasked with examining proposed statutory instruments under the Statutory Instruments Act, monitoring court decisions in tax matters for purposes inter alia of litigation risk management, and following developments in provincial law. TCD provides legal support in relation to tax agreements with provinces (including agreements for the harmonization of Provincial Sales Tax with the Goods and Services Tax), territories and Indigenous groups.

Public Service Commission (PSC) Legal Services Unit

The PSC LSU provides legal advisory services in connection with employment law. The Unit provides specialized legal advice and services to the PSC as well as to other LSUs across the federal government, which include providing legal opinions on the Public Service Employment Act (PSEA), the Public Service Employment Regulations, the Political Activities Regulations, the Public Service Official Languages Exclusion Order, and the interrelation of those pieces of legislation with other relevant legislation in the area of employment law, such as the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Employment Equity Act, the Canadian Human Rights Act, the Financial Administration Act, the Official Languages Act, and the Access to Information and Privacy Acts.

PSC LSU counsel provide:

The provision of these legal services requires an understanding not only of the PSC’s responsibilities, but also of those with related responsibilities, including Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS), the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer, and deputy heads.

Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) Legal Services Unit

The TBS LSU provides legal advice to the Treasury Board (TB), the President of the TB, and the TBS in relation to the TB’s role as “management board” and “budget office” for the Government of Canada and “employer” for the core public administration. In addition, the LSU provides specialized legal advice services to the Canada School of Public Service and is consulted regularly by other LSUs from departments across government. TBS LSU counsel are responsible for conducting labour and employment law litigation involving the TB, as the employer and deputy heads of all departments, taking into account Justice’s responsibility to protect the whole-of-government legal interests.Footnote 9 Legal advice is provided in regard to policy development and other initiatives of the clients, the identification and assistance in the management of legal risks, and the enactment of legislation. Legal advice and litigation support are provided on a broad range of areas that relate to the TB’s mandate, including public management law, commercial and corporate law, pensions, access to information and privacy, procurement, official languages, and public expenditures.Footnote 10 The LSU is responsible for the conduct of labour and employment litigation, mainly before the PSLREB and other administrative tribunals, the Federal Court, the Federal Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court of Canada.

As part of its contribution to the Economic Action Plan 2012, the Department announced that the delivery of legal advisory services in relation to labour and employment law and access to information and privacy law will be streamlined and concentrated in two centres of expertise. One of the centres — the Centre for Labour and Employment Law (CLEL) — is co-located with the TBS LSU and began operations in January 2015. The CLEL provides guidance and expertise to counsel throughout the Department with a goal of providing more efficient advice in this area of law.

Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) Legal Services Unit

The OSFI LSU provides specialized legal services to support OSFI in carrying out its mandate to supervise federally regulated financial institutions and federally registered private pension plans to ensure that they are in sound financial condition. The Unit’s work includes legal advisory as well as legislative drafting and litigation support activities. This includes providing legal opinions on issues such as the Bank Act, the Insurance Companies Act, the Trust and Loan Companies Act, the Cooperative Credit Association Act, the Pension Benefits Standards Act, 1985, and the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions Act. The LSU offers legal advice and legal services, including providing legal advice on the interpretation of statutes, regulations and other legal instruments; preparing draft legislation, regulations, contracts, and other legal documents; and providing support to litigation lawyers acting on behalf of the OSFI.

Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) Legal Services Unit

FINTRAC is an independent agency that collects, analyzes, assesses and discloses information to assist with the detection, prevention and deterrence of money laundering and the financing of terrorist activities. The FINTRAC LSU assists with the development of laws and regulations related to FINTRAC’s mandate and provides legal advisory services related to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act and itsRegulations,as well as administrative law and criminal law. In this context, the LSU provides services including the:

Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) Legal Services Unit

The FCAC LSU provides legal advisory services to the Agency on the interpretation and application of the consumer protection provisions of the Bank Act, the Insurance Companies Act, the Trust and Loan Companies Act, the Cooperative Credit Associations Act, and the associated regulations. The Unit also provides legal advice in connection with compliance investigations and proceedings, protection of confidential financial information, as well as the Agency’s consumer education programs, such as financial literacy programs.Footnote 11

2.3. Resources

Table 1 presents the actual expenditures of the CAP over the last five fiscal years.Footnote 12 During this period, the expenditures of the Portfolio decreased by 0.22%.

Table 1: CAP — Year-over-year Actual Expenditures ($)
Expenditures 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 % Change
Salary before Employee Benefit Plan 15,231,075 15,778,671 15,041,639 15,678,670 15,149,801 -0.53%
Employee Benefit Plan @ 20% 2,681,828 2,649,684 2,575,998 2,750,629 2,712,027 1.13%
Sub-total: Salary expenditures 17,912,903 18,428,355 17,617,637 18,429,29 17,861,828 -0.29%
Operating and maintenance 452,894 612,590 479,774 386,097 462,931 2.22%
Total annual expenditures 18,365,797 19,040,945 18,097,411 18,815,396 18,324,759 -0.22%

Source: Financial Situation Reports for CAP.

As of March 31, 2015, the CAP had a total of approximately 88 full-time equivalents (FTEs) in the categories shown in Table 2.Footnote 13 Between 2010-11 and 2014-15, if regional FTEs are not considered, the CAP had a decrease of 3.8 FTEs.

Table 2: CAP Human Resources (FTEs)
FTEs 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 % Change
Counsel (LP & LC)
ADMO 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.09 3.98 32.8%
LSUs
Finance (GLS and TCD) 21.22 22.92 21.54 21.65 20.97 -1.2%
FCAC 1.00 0.56 1.00 1.00 0.84 -16.1%
FINTRAC 3.90 3.32 3.37 3.91 2.93 -25.0%
OSFI 2.91 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.25 11.7%
PSC 11.07 10.40 9.58 9.10 9.83 -11.2%
TBS 39.45 41.86 39.24 39.22 37.60 -4.7%
CAP LSUs sub-total 79.55 82.07 77.73 77.88 75.42 -5.2%
ADMO and LSU sub-total 82.55 85.07 80.73 80.97 79.40 -3.8%
Regional sub-total (includes ECs) No data No data 5.91 9.75 5.83 N/A
Support Staff
ADMO 2.63 3.74 4.40 2.45 2.97 12.9%
LSUs 0.58 0.36 0.72 0.57 0.24 -58.5%
Support staff total 3.21 4.10 5.12 3.02 3.21 0.0%
TOTAL FTEs N/A N/A 91.76 93.52 88.44 N/A

Sources: Regional data are from Cost Recovery Process Improvement. For all other data: FY 2010-11 are from the Financial Situation Report March 31, 2011 and FY 2011-15 are from Salary Forecasting Tool.

Note: The FTEs for the regional offices include paralegals. The paralegals used by CAP LSUs are employees of the client and not Justice; therefore, they are not included.