Underused Housing Tax Act — U-0.5 64
Search warrant 64 (1) A judge may, on ex parte application by the Minister, issue a warrant authorizing any person named in the warrant to enter and search any building, receptacle or place for any record or thing that may afford evidence of the commission of an offence under this Act and to seize the record or thing and, as soon as is practicable, bring it before, or make a report in respect of the record or thing to, the judge or, if that judge is unable to act, another judge of the same court, to be dealt with by the judge in accordance with this section. Evidence on oath (2) An application under subsection (1) must be supported by information on oath establishing the facts on which the application is based. Issue of warrant (3) A judge may issue a warrant referred to in subsection (1) if the judge is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds to believe that (a) an offence under this Act has been committed; (b) a record or thing that may afford evidence of the commission of the offence is likely to be found; and (c) the building, receptacle or place specified in the application is likely to contain a record or thing referred to in paragraph (b). Contents of warrant (4) A warrant issued under subsection (1) must refer to the offence for which it is issued, identify the building, receptacle or place to be searched and the person that is alleged to have committed the offence, and it must be reasonably specific as to any record or thing to be searched for and seized. Seizure (5) Any person that executes a warrant issued under subsection (1) may seize, in addition to the record or thing referred to in that subsection, any other record or thing that the person believes on reasonable grounds affords evidence of the commission of an offence under this Act and must, as soon as is practicable, bring the record or thing before, or make a report in respect of the record or thing, the judge that issued the warrant or, if that judge is unable to act, another judge of the same court, to be dealt with by the judge in accordance with this section. Retention (6) Subject to subsection (7), if any record or thing seized under subsection (1) or (5) is brought before a judge or a report in respect of the record or thing is made to a judge, the judge must, unless the Minister waives retention, order that it be retained by the Minister, that must take reasonable care to ensure that it is preserved until the conclusion of any investigation into the offence in relation to which the record or thing was seized or until it is required to be produced for the purposes of a criminal proceeding. Return of records or things seized (7) If any record or thing seized under subsection (1) or (5) is brought before a judge or a report in respect of the record or thing is made to a judge, the judge may, on the judge’s own motion or on summary application by a person with an interest in the record or thing on three clear days notice of application to the Deputy Attorney General of Canada, order that the record or thing be returned to the person from which it was seized or the person that is otherwise legally entitled to the record or thing, if the judge is satisfied that the record or thing (a) will not be required for an investigation or a criminal proceeding; or (b) was not seized in accordance with the warrant or this section. Access and copies (8) The person from which any record or thing is seized under this section is entitled, at all reasonable times and subject to any reasonable conditions that may be imposed by the Minister, to inspect the record or thing and, in the case of a document, to obtain one copy of the record at the expense of the Minister.