Commissioners for Taking Affidavits Act Amendments

RECENT RESPONSES

Commissioners for Taking Affidavits act amendments

Can an OIC suspend and replace section 9 of the Commissioners for Taking Affidavits Act in keeping with the LSO’s interpretation that the provision “every oath and declaration shall be taken by the deponent in the presence of the commissioner or notary public” does not require a lawyer to be in the physical presence of the client. ​

Amendments to the Commissioners for taking Affidavits Act (COTA) were included in Bill 190, COVID-19 Response and Reforms to Modernize Ontario Act, 2020. Bill 190 was passed on May 12, 2020. Section 9 of the COTA, which was proclaimed on August 1, 2020, provides that every oath and declaration must be taken in the physical presence of the commissioner unless a regulation is made that permits the taking of an oath or declaration without being in the physical presence of the commissioner.  A regulation enabling remote commissioning came into force on August 1, 2020.