Background
In 2013, the Oral Board of Examination shifted from assessing candidates’ knowledge to assessing their competencies. Board members were, and continue to be, able to recommend that a candidate be limited to either consumer or commercial filings where the board members determined that to be appropriate.
Process
The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy (OSB) is offering candidates the option of taking an Oral Board Examination that assesses their competencies in either a consumer or commercial context. To ensure that the candidate has a basic understanding of the other field, there would be one short answer question addressing the other area. An exam for a limited licence dealing with commercial matters will have two long questions and three short questions that deal with corporate issues and one short question that will deal with consumer issues. Similarly, an exam for a limited licence dealing with consumer matters will have two long and three short questions that deal with consumer issues and one short question that will deal with commercial issues.
A successful candidate would then receive a licence that is limited to the chosen area. If desired, the candidate could further develop their competencies in the alternative context and apply to sit a future Oral Board Examination to have the limitation removed, or, they could choose to continue as an LIT for only consumer or corporate matters. To choose this option, the candidate would make a request by email to osblicencebsf-bkhq@ised-isde.gc.ca to participate in the Oral Board of Examination held in the spring at the same time as other candidates that year. The application deadline is the last week of February and the normal fee would apply.
The areas that are assessed at the Oral Board of Examination are set out on the OSB’s website:
- Commercial bankruptcies, commercial proposals, commercial arrangements, Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, Wage Earner Protection Program Act
- Personal bankruptcies, consumer proposals, mediation, assessment, counselling
- Receiverships, interim receivers
- Meetings of creditors, meetings of inspectors
- Discharge of Licensed Insolvency Trustee (LIT), discharge of bankrupt
- Duties and powers of the LIT
- General administration of estates
- Preferences, transfers under value
- Realization of assets, distribution, classes of creditors
- Leases, landlord and tenant
We would propose the following areas for consumer licences:
- Personal bankruptcies, consumer proposals, mediation, assessment, counselling
- Meetings of creditors, meetings of inspectors
- Discharge of Licensed Insolvency Trustee (LIT), discharge of bankrupt
- Duties and powers of the LIT
- General administration of estates
- Preferences, transfers under value
- Realization of assets, distribution, classes of creditors
- And one short question addressing a commercial issue
And the following areas for commercial licences:
- Commercial bankruptcies, commercial proposals, commercial arrangements, Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, Wage Earner Protection Program Act
- Receiverships, interim receivers
- Meetings of creditors, meetings of inspectors
- Discharge of Licensed Insolvency Trustee (LIT), discharge of bankrupt
- Duties and powers of the LIT
- General administration of estates
- Preferences, transfers under value
- Realization of assets, distribution, classes of creditors
- Leases, landlord and tenant
- And one short question addressing a consumer issue
E-Filing and IMPACT are already set up to allow for restrictions to licences based on consumer and commercial limits.