Thank you.
I'd also like to thank the committee for the opportunity to appear here today. I expect I will echo much of what Mr. Varro has said on behalf of the federation.
I'd like to make two points, if I may, concerning the proposed legislation. The first concerns the special considerations that apply when including the legal profession in the fight against money laundering. Second, I'll address briefly the proposed expansion of information sharing with international authorities.
To begin, let me say that the Canadian Bar Association supports the objectives of Bill C-25 insofar as the bill aims to protect society against the threat and impact of money laundering. Indeed, as Mr. Varro has touched upon, the legal profession, through the various governing law societies that regulate it, has voluntarily and proactively adopted regulations to prohibit lawyers from accepting large amounts of cash. This is specifically to address those rare occasions when lawyers might unwittingly be drawn into an illegal scheme. In addition, the law societies are now considering ways to address the government's goal of having a client identification scheme.
Clearly, lawyers have shown their willingness to aid the government to fight money laundering. However, given the importance of an independent bar in the administration of justice, and given the fundamental significance of solicitor-client privilege, we believe the proper approach to ensuring lawyers' compliance is within the sphere of self-regulation. We therefore strongly support and indeed commend the government for recognizing the importance of solicitor-client privilege by explicitly removing legal counsel and legal firms from the reporting requirements of the legislation.
We are also pleased that the recent Senate committee report recommended that negotiations between the federation and the federal government continue, and that it recognized the proactive efforts of the profession to address concerns about money laundering through lawyers by self-regulatory mechanisms. However, one aspect of the Senate committee report that we do take issue with is the suggestion that lawyers are a major problem in the fight against money laundering. The report suggested that lawyers either knowingly participate in money laundering activities or are innocent pawns used by criminals in money laundering schemes. Frankly, we disagree with that assessment.
The overwhelming majority of lawyers in Canada adhere to the highest legal and ethical standards. Like all citizens, lawyers are bound by the Criminal Code and other statutes, and they are rightly exposed to criminal prosecution for any violation of the law. Lawyers are also subject to demanding professional codes of conduct and other law society requirements, and as we have heard, efforts are ongoing to strengthen those requirements.
Briefly, with respect to the information sharing issue, Bill C-25 proposes a significantly expanded regime for information sharing in proposed section 38.1, including sharing information with foreign governments based on a reasonable suspicion of involvement in money laundering. Recent experience has shown that unchecked information sharing can lead to gross violations of the human rights of innocent Canadian citizens. This experience highlights the need for effective independent oversight and the accountability of all Canadian security forces. Our point simply is that there should not be expanded information sharing until effective independent oversight and accountability are in place.
Again, thank you for the opportunity to address the committee. I, too, would be pleased to answer questions.