For many years lawyers, policy makers, scholars, and investors have debated the merits of, and the necessity for, a national securities regulator in Canada. Most have agreed that the status quo is unacceptable as a model of securities regulation. However, in December 2011 the Supreme Court of Canada, in the Reference Re Securities Act, held that a national securities act, as proposed by the federal government, would represent an intrusion by Parliament into provincial constitutional powers. The Court’s judgment raises the question of whether Canadian markets can continue to operate...