Canada

Not a lawyer, but this seems (1) a ridiculous response by the Alberta Government, and (2) perhaps unnecessary wording in an amendment, since misleading claims are already covered under the Competition Act?

The amendment to the competition act reads:

(b.‍1) makes a representation to the public in the form of a statement, warranty or guarantee of a product’s benefits for protecting or restoring the environment or mitigating the environmental, social and ecological causes or effects of climate change that is not based on an adequate and proper test, the proof of which lies on the person making the representation; (b.‍2) makes a representation to the public with respect to the benefits of a business or business activity for protecting or restoring the environment or mitigating the environmental and ecological causes or effects of climate change that is not based on adequate and proper substantiation in accordance with internationally recognized methodology, the proof of which lies on the person making the representation; or

And the current text of the Act reads:

Misrepresentations to public 74.01 (1) A person engages in reviewable conduct who, for the purpose of promoting, directly or indirectly, the supply or use of a product or for the purpose of promoting, directly or indirectly, any business interest, by any means whatever (a) makes a representation to the public that is false or misleading in a material respect (b) makes a representation to the public in the form of a statement, warranty or guarantee of the performance, efficacy or length of life of a product that is not based on an adequate and proper test thereof, the proof of which lies on the person making the representation;

So.... my non-legal viewpoint is that making a misleading representation to the public is already covered by the competition act. The new wording clarifies the scope to explicitly include environmental misrepresentation (which seems completely fair given the amount of greenwashing we see - from consumer products through to natural resource extraction). The only potential challenge appears to be the "internationally recognized methodology", especially where a methodology doesn't exist. But in that case, perhaps companies should just refrain from making potentially misleading claims.

The Alberta government is just following its playbook once again of trying to position the feds as the enemy of Alberta... Because that's easier for them, than actually coming up with good ideas.