Quebec’s financial watchdog cannot be compelled to exercise its discretionary power to conduct an investigation into the “moral character” of individuals seeking a money-services business license as it is at the “very heart” of its specialized jurisdiction, held the Quebec Court of Appeal.
The decision will likely have a reach beyond the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) and extend to Quebec administrative deciders such as the Autorité des marchés public, a rather new entity responsible for overseeing and managing public contracts between enterprises and Quebec government entities, according to litigators. The ruling may even make it far more tougher for individuals to challenge administrative deciders such as the AMF over their determinations concerning moral character.