Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act

International Criminal Court

10. The Criminal Code applies, with any modifications that the circumstances require, in respect of a search or a seizure under this Act, except to the extent that the Criminal Code is inconsistent with this Act.

11. (1) When the Minister approves a request of a state or entity to have a search or a seizure, or the use of any device or investigative technique or other procedure or the doing of any other thing to be described in a warrant, carried out regarding an offence, the Minister shall provide a competent authority with any documents or information necessary to apply for a search warrant or other warrant.

(2) The competent authority who is provided with the documents or information shall apply ex parte for a search warrant or other warrant to a judge of the province in which the competent authority believes that evidence may be found.

12. (1) A judge of a province to whom an application is made under subsection 11(2) may issue a search warrant authorizing a peace officer named therein to execute it anywhere in the province, where the judge is satisfied by statements under oath that there are reasonable grounds to believe that

(a) an offence has been committed;

(b) evidence of the commission of the offence or information that may reveal the whereabouts of a person who is suspected of having committed the offence will be found in a building, receptacle or place in the province; and

(c) it would not, in the circumstances, be appropriate to make an order under subsection 18(1).

(2) A judge who issues a search warrant under subsection (1) may subject the execution of the warrant to any conditions that the judge considers desirable, including conditions relating to the time or manner of its execution.

(3) A judge who issues a search warrant under subsection (1) shall fix a time and place for a hearing to consider the execution of the warrant as well as the report of the peace officer concerning its execution.

(4) A search warrant issued under subsection (1) may be in Form 5 in Part XXVIII of the Criminal Code, varied to suit the case, and must

(a) set out the time and place for the hearing mentioned in subsection (3);

(b) state that, at that hearing, an order will be sought for the sending to the state or entity of the records or things seized in execution of the warrant; and

(c) state that every person from whom a record or thing is seized in execution of the warrant and any person who claims to have an interest in a record or thing so seized has the right to make representations at the hearing before any order is made concerning the record or thing.

(5) A peace officer who executes a search warrant issued under subsection (1) shall, before entering the place or premises to be searched or as soon as practicable thereafter, give a copy of the warrant to any person who is present and appears to be in charge of the place or premises.

(6) A peace officer who, in any unoccupied place or premises, executes a search warrant issued under subsection (1) shall, on entering the place or premises or as soon as practicable thereafter, cause a copy of the warrant to be affixed in a prominent place within the place or premises.

13. A peace officer who executes a warrant issued under section 12 may in addition seize any thing that he believes on reasonable grounds will afford evidence of, has been obtained by or used in or is intended to be used in, the commission of an offence against an Act of Parliament, and sections 489.1 to 492 of the Criminal Code apply in respect of any thing seized pursuant to this section.

13.1 (1) A judge of the province to whom an application is made under subsection 11(2) may, in a manner provided for by the Criminal Code, issue a warrant, other than a warrant referred to in section 12, to use any device or other investigative technique or do anything described in the warrant that would, if not authorized, constitute an unreasonable search or seizure in respect of a person or a person's property.

(2) A warrant issued under subsection (1) may be obtained, issued and executed in the manner prescribed by the Criminal Code, with any modifications that the circumstances may require.

(3) Despite subsection (2), subsections 12(3) and (4) and sections 14 to 16 apply in respect of a warrant issued under subsection (1), and any sections of the Criminal Code inconsistent with those provisions do not apply.

14. (1) A peace officer who executes a warrant issued under section 12 shall, at least five days before the time of the hearing to consider its execution, file with the court of which the judge who issued the warrant is a member a written report concerning the execution of the warrant and including a general description of the records or things seized, other than a thing seized under section 13.
(2) The peace officer shall send a copy of the report to the Minister forthwith after its filing.
15. (1) At the hearing to consider the execution of a warrant issued under section 12, after having considered any representations of the Minister, the competent authority, the person from whom a record or thing was seized in execution of the warrant and any person who claims to have an interest in the record or thing so seized, the judge who issued the warrant or another judge of the same court may
(a) where the judge is not satisfied that the warrant was executed according to its terms and conditions or where the judge is satisfied that an order should not be made under paragraph (b), order that a record or thing seized in execution of the warrant be returned to
(i) the person from whom it was seized, if possession of it by that person is lawful, or
(ii) the lawful owner or the person who is lawfully entitled to its possession, if the owner or that person is known and possession of the record or thing by the person from whom it was seized is unlawful; or
(b) in any other case, order that a record or thing seized in execution of the warrant be sent to the state or entity mentioned in subsection 11(1) and include in the order any terms and conditions that the judge considers desirable, including terms and conditions
(i) necessary to give effect to the request mentioned in that subsection,
(ii) with respect to the preservation and return to Canada of any record or thing seized, and
(iii) with respect to the protection of the interests of third parties.
(2) At the hearing mentioned in subsection (1), the judge may require that a record or thing seized in execution of the warrant be brought before him.

16. No record or thing seized that has been ordered under section 15 to be sent to the state or entity mentioned in subsection 11(1) shall be so sent until the Minister is satisfied that the state or entity has agreed to comply with any terms or conditions imposed in respect of the sending abroad of the record or thing.

Article 93
Other forms of cooperation
1. States Parties shall, in accordance with the provisions of this Part and under procedures of national law, comply with requests by the Court to provide the following assistance in relation to investigations or prosecutions:
(h) The execution of searches and seizures