Annual Report March 31, 2012 - Chapter I

The Canadian International Trade Tribunal (the Tribunal) is an administrative tribunal operating within Canada's trade remedy system. It provides Canadian and international businesses with access to fair, transparent and timely processes for the investigation of trade remedy cases and complaints concerning federal government procurement and for the adjudication of appeals on customs and excise tax matters. At the request of the Government, the Tribunal provides advice in tariff, trade, commercial and economic matters.

In 2011-2012, the Tribunal issued more than 150 decisions and orders under its various mandates. The Tribunal members and staff successfully managed a substantial and complex caseload involving a total of 283 participants, 84 witnesses and more than 114,500 pages of official record.

The number of new anti-dumping investigations remained steady in 2011-2012 as compared to 2010-2011. The activities relating to public procurement complaints and appeals under the Customs Act, the Special Import Measures Act (SIMA) and the Excise Tax Act remained at significant levels throughout 2011-2012.

On October 20, 2011, Mr. Stephen A. Leach, who was previously a member of the Tribunal, was appointed Chairperson. Prior to his appointment, the two vice-chairpersons of the Tribunal, Mr. Serge Fréchette and Ms. Diane Vincent, each served as acting Chairperson on a rotational basis. The Tribunal would like to thank Mr. Fréchette and Ms. Vincent for their work and dedication during this transition period.

As part of the Tribunal's response to its Management Accountability Framework assessment, the Tribunal retained an independent research firm to conduct its first client satisfaction survey. The survey measured the level of client satisfaction with the Tribunal's services, tools and processes, and with clients' interaction with Tribunal staff. The Tribunal is pleased to report that the results were very positive and, where areas for improvement were noted, it will continue to look at ways to improve the delivery of its services to its users and stakeholders.

In 2011-2012, the Tribunal continued reviewing its Rules of Procedure to further streamline proceedings, reduce the paper burden imposed on parties and increase overall efficiency and transparency while preserving procedural fairness and the protection given to confidential information.

The Tribunal is proud to report that, for the first time, its annual report will be made available in an electronic format only. This initiative aligns with the Tribunal's priorities of becoming more environmentally responsible while, at the same time, reducing its operating costs. In the same vein, after successfully launching, in 2010, the electronic distribution to counsel and parties of its records in SIMA cases on an encrypted USB key, the Tribunal initiated a paperless pilot project where no hard copies of the case files were produced for Tribunal staff and members.

Trade Remedies

The Tribunal plays a significant role within Canada's trade remedy system. Under SIMA, the Tribunal determines whether the dumping and subsidizing of imported goods cause injury or threaten to cause injury to a domestic industry. During 2011-2012, the Tribunal issued decisions in three preliminary injury inquiries, one final injury inquiry and two expiry reviews. The estimated value of the Canadian market for the final injury inquiry and the expiry reviews for which decisions were rendered represented more than $2.8 billion and more than 1,200 direct jobs. The Tribunal also issued a determination in an interim review of its earlier findings pursuant to SIMA. At the end of the fiscal year, two final injury inquiries, one expiry review and two requests for interim review were in progress.

Procurement Review

During fiscal year 2011-2012, the Tribunal received 62 new procurement complaints and issued 61 decisions on whether to accept the complaints for inquiry. The Tribunal also issued final decisions in 12 cases that were accepted for inquiry and in 4 remanded cases, for a total of 77 decisions.

On August 15, 2011, the Tribunal's jurisdiction in respect of procurement review was expanded with the coming into force of the Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (CCOFTA), and changes were made to the Canadian International Trade Tribunal Procurement Inquiry Regulations.

Appeals

During fiscal year 2011-2012, a total of 76 new appeals were filed with the Tribunal pursuant to SIMA, the Customs Act and the Excise Tax Act. The Tribunal issued decisions in 33 appeals from decisions of the President of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) pursuant to the Customs Act and two decisions under SIMA.

Outreach Activities

During the fiscal year, Tribunal members and staff made presentations at meetings of various international, legal, administrative and academic bodies, including a trade remedy practice course in Chinese Taipei. The Tribunal hosted an official delegation from the European Union. Staff also made presentations to several government departments and agencies. In addition, the Tribunal made its expertise available to Canada's trade negotiators in the context of various trade agreements.

Caseload

The first table below contains statistics pertaining to the Tribunal's caseload for 2011-2012. The second table contains statistics relating to other case-related activities in 2011-2012. These statistics illustrate the complexity and diversity of the cases considered by the Tribunal.