2.1 Purpose, Scope, and Regulatory Structure of PSISA

In Ontario, private investigation is a regulated occupation. The Private Security and Investigative Services Act, 2005 (PSISA, S.O. 2005, c. 34) sets out who may work, how licences are granted and taken away, and what powers the regulator has to inspect and investigate. Syllabus section 2 expects detailed knowledge of these rules, including the consequences of non-compliance and the complaint procedures.

Legislative History

PSISA s. 52 provided a transition: a person licensed under PISGA when PSISA took effect was deemed licensed until the old licence expired.

Purposes of the Act

The ministry describes the PSISA as a statute meant to professionalize the industry, increase public safety and ensure practitioners are properly trained and qualified. In practice the Act does this through:

1. Entry standards — clean record, age, work entitlement, training and testing (s. 10);
2. Licence categories — six licence types and employer registration (ss. 4–5);
3. Conduct standards — a regulation-made Code of Conduct that is a condition of every licence (s. 53);
4. Accountability — public complaints, investigations, inspections, offences and penalties (Parts V and VII).

Who Administers the Act

• Ministry of the Solicitor General. The ministry's Private Security and Investigative Services Branch (PSISB) regulates the industry, sets training syllabi and testing, and runs compliance programs.
• ServiceOntario. It processes applications, renewals and changes for individual and agency licences on the ministry's behalf.
• The Registrar. The Lieutenant Governor in Council appoints the Registrar of Private Investigators and Security Guards, and may appoint deputy registrars (s. 3). The Registrar is the statutory decision-maker on licences.

The Six Types of Licences (s. 4)

1. A licence to act as a private investigator;
2. A licence to act as a security guard;
3. A licence to engage in the business of selling the services of private investigators;
4. A licence to engage in the business of selling the services of security guards;
5. A licence to act as both a private investigator and a security guard; and
6. A licence to engage in the business of selling the services of both.

A business that employs its own investigators or guards, but does not sell their services to the public, registers as an employer under s. 5 instead.

The Registrar's Licensing Powers

Due Process: From Registrar's Notice to Appeal

The PSISA builds in a two-stage review, and the exam often tests the order of the steps.

1. Registrar serves written notice of the proposal, with reasons      (s. 16(1)-(2))
2. Applicant/licensee may request, in writing, an opportunity
   to be heard before the REGISTRAR within 21 days of service           (s. 16(3))
3. Registrar hears the person within 90 days of the notice
   (or later with consent); counsel or an agent may attend              (s. 16(5)-(6))
4. Registrar decides; written reasons on request within 14 days        (s. 16(7))
5. Appeal to the LICENCE APPEAL TRIBUNAL within 21 days
   after service of the reasons                                        (s. 17(1))

Key details:

• If no request is made within 21 days, the Registrar may simply carry out the proposal (s. 16(4)).
• An appeal to the Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT) does not stay the Registrar's decision, and neither the Registrar nor the Tribunal can grant a stay (s. 17(2)).
• On appeal, the LAT may uphold, vary or set aside the decision, grant or restore a licence, or impose conditions (s. 17(5)).
• A refused applicant may reapply when new evidence is available or circumstances have materially changed (s. 18).

Investigators and Search Warrants (ss. 20–25)

The Registrar may appoint investigators. Police officers are investigators under the Act by virtue of their office (s. 20(3)). Investigations can follow a complaint or start without one (s. 21).

• A justice of the peace may issue a warrant to enter and search premises, including a dwelling, if there are reasonable grounds to believe the Act has been contravened (s. 22). The warrant expires within 30 days unless extended.
• In exigent circumstances, an investigator may act without a warrant, except in a dwelling (s. 23).
• An investigator may take possession of a licence that must be returned or is being misused (s. 25).

Inspectors and Compliance Inspections (ss. 26–29)

The Registrar also appoints inspectors to ensure compliance with the Act, the regulations and licence conditions. Inspectors carry a certificate of appointment and must produce it on request (s. 26).

Under s. 27, an inspector may, at any reasonable time and without a warrant, enter and inspect the premises of a licensee licensed to sell investigator or guard services. During an inspection the inspector may:

• examine money, valuables, documents, records and things relevant to the inspection;
• require anyone on the premises to produce them, and remove them for copying on giving a receipt;
• inquire into the licensee's transactions and assets; and
• use the business's data systems to produce readable records.

The limits matter as much as the powers. Without a warrant, an inspector may not enter any part of the premises used as a dwelling unless the occupier consents, and may not use force (s. 27(2)). If entry is refused, a justice of the peace may issue a warrant (s. 28). Obstructing an inspector or hiding records is prohibited (s. 27(6)).

The ministry's compliance program contacts new agencies after licensing, inspects agencies on a regular schedule (about every two years) and carries out unannounced or ad hoc inspections. Non-compliance must be corrected within 30, 60 or 90 days, depending on the issue.

Police Arrest Power for PSISA Contraventions (s. 29.1)

A police officer who finds a person apparently contravening the Act, or a prescribed provision of the regulations, may arrest that person without warrant if the person refuses to give their name and address or there are reasonable grounds to believe the name or address given is false.

Comparing the Three Oversight Tools