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DOMESTIC TRADE / PROVINCIALREGULATIONE-CommerceThe basic legal framework governing e-commerce in Canada is outlined in theUniform Electronic Commerce Act(“UECA”). The UECA was designed toimplement the principles developed by theUnited Nations Commission on InternationalTrade Law, a global initiative that has beenhighly influential in Canada and otherinternational jurisdictions. The UECA ismodeled after the United Nation’s ModelLaw on e-commerce, which has developeda set of internationally acceptable rules andprinciples for e-commerce legislation.A central tenet of the UECA is the principleof “Electronic Equivalence,” which providesthat on-line transactions and electroniccontracts are given the same legal effect astheir traditional paper-based equivalents,provided that certain requirements are met.Although the UECA sets out the modelframework for e-commerce in Canada,enforcement of e-commerce laws andregulations is a matter of provincialjurisdiction.All of the Atlantic Canadian provinces haveenacted provincial legislation to facilitateelectronic contracts and e-commerce. InNew Brunswick, the Electronic TransactionsAct governs electronic commerce. In NovaScotia, Prince Edward Island andNewfoundland and Labrador the relevantlegislation is known as the ElectronicCommerce Act. Provincial e-commercestatutes across Canada are modeled afterthe UECA, ensuring relative consistency ine-commerce law across the provinces andfederally. Some of the shared centralfeatures of Atlantic Canadian e-commercelegislation include:Electronic information anddocuments, including contracts, arelegally recognized and are notinvalid or legally unenforceablesimply by virtue of beingcommunicated electronically.Where there is a legal requirementthat information be in writing, thisrequirement is satisfied by electronicinformation so long as theinformation is accessible andcapable of being retained forsubsequent reference.Where there is a legal requirementthat information be in a specifiednon-electronic form, this requirementis satisfied by electronic informationif it is provided in the same orsubstantially the same form as thenon-electronic form and isaccessible and capable of beingretained for subsequent reference.In other words, the electronicinformation should be recognizableas the form required by law.A legal requirement for a signaturewill generally be satisfied by anelectronic signature, with someexceptions.Electronic information is notconsidered to be capable of beingretained where the person providingthe electronic information prohibitsthe printing or storage of theinformation by the recipient.Trade and Business Conduct Regulation50