PART IV - SHARES, DEBENTURES AND CHARGES DIVISION 1 - PROSPECTUSES
Section 46. Civil liability for misstatements in prospectus.
(1) Subject to this section, each of the following persons shall be liable to pay compensation to all persons who subscribe for or purchase any shares or debentures on the faith of a prospectus for any loss or damage sustained by reason of any untrue statement therein, or by reason of the wilful non-disclosure therein of any matter of which he had knowledge and which he knew to be material, that is to say every person who -
(a) is a director of the corporation at the time of the issue of the prospectus;
(b) authorized or caused himself to be named and is named in the prospectus as a director or as having agreed to become a director either immediately or after an interval of time;
(c) is a promoter of the corporation; or
(d) authorized or caused the issue of the prospectus.
(2) Notwithstanding anything in subsection (1), where the consent of an expert is required to the issue of a prospectus and he has given that consent, he shall not by reason only thereof be liable as a person who has authorized or caused the issue of the prospectus except in respect of an untrue statement purporting to be made by him as an expert, and the inclusion in the prospectus of a name of a person as a trustee for debenture holders, auditor, banker, advocate or stock or share broker shall not for that reason alone be construed as an authorization by such person of the issue of the prospectus.
(3) No person shall be so liable if he proves -
(a) that, having consented to become a director of the corporation, he withdrew his consent before the issue of the prospectus, and that it was issued without his authority or consent;
(b) that the prospectus was issued without his knowledge or consent and he gave reasonable public notice thereof forthwith after he became aware of its issue;
(c) that after the issue of the prospectus and before allotment or sale thereunder he, on becoming aware of any untrue statement therein, withdrew his consent and gave reasonable public notice of the withdrawal and of the reason therefor; or
(d) that -
(i) as regards every untrue statement not purporting to be made on the authority of an expert or of a public official document or statement, he had reasonable ground to believe, and did up to the time of the allotment or sale of the shares or debentures believe, that the statement was true;
(ii) as regards every untrue statement purporting to be a statement made by an expert or to be based on a statement made by an expert or contained in what purports to be a copy of or extract from a report of valuation of an expert, it fairly represented the statement, or was a correct and fair copy of or extract from the report or valuation, and he had reasonable ground to believe and did up to the time of the issue of the prospectus believe that the person making the statement was competent to make it and that that person had given the consent required by section 45 to the issue of the prospectus and had not withdrawn that consent before delivery of a copy of the prospectus for registration, or, to that person's knowledge, before any allotment or sale thereunder; and
(iii) as regards every untrue statement purporting to be a statement made by an official person or contained in what purports to be a copy of or extract from a public official document, it was a correct and fair representation of the statement or copy of or extract from the document.
(4) Subsection (3) shall not apply in the case of a person liable, by reason of his having given a consent required of him by section 45, as a person who has authorized or caused the issue of the prospectus in respect of an untrue statement purporting to have been made by him as an expert.
(5) A person who apart from this subsection would under subsection (1) be liable, by reason of his having given a consent required by him by section 45, as a person who has authorized the issue of a prospectus in respect of an untrue statement purporting to be made by him as an expert shall not be so liable if he proves-
(a) that, having given his consent under section 45 to the issue of the prospectus, he withdrew it in writing before a copy of the prospectus was lodged with the Registrar;
(b) that, after a copy of the prospectus was lodged with the Registrar and before allotment or sale thereunder, he, on becoming aware of the untrue statement, withdrew his consent in writing and gave reasonable public notice of the withdrawal and of the reasons therefor; or
(c) that he was competent to make the statement and that he had reasonable ground to believe and did up to the time of the allotment or sale of the shares or debentures believe that the statement was true.
(6) Where -
(a) the prospectus contains the name of a person as a director of the corporation, or as having agreed to become a director, and he has not consented to become a director, or has withdrawn his consent before the issue of the prospectus, and has not authorized or consented to the issue thereof; or
(b) the consent of a person is required under section 45 to the issue of the prospectus and he either has not given that consent or has withdrawn it before the issue of the prospectus,
the directors of the corporation except any without whose knowledge or consent the prospectus was issued, and any other person who authorized or caused the issue thereof shall be liable to indemnify the person so named or whose consent was so required against all damages costs and expenses to which he may be made liable by reason of his name having been inserted in the prospectus or of the inclusion therein of a statement purporting to be made by him as an expert, or in defending himself against any action or legal proceeding brought against him in respect thereof.