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WHO IS JOHN DOE OR COMPANY X IN CANADA?


Online Newspaper Databases
Factiva: The only newspaper database that includes the big three Canadian dailies (Toronto Star; National Post; Globe and Mail)

Lexis: National Post, Toronto Star and affiliates, some Sun papers and some Hollinger Papers.
 
Infomart
This database has the largest number of Canadian papers and includes such biggies as The Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, Toronto Sun, Calgary Herald and more. Also includes some of the CTV and CBC transcripts.

Cedrom ñ Good French Canadian coverage, good Eastern Canada coverage and a few other smaller newspapers from across Canada. Also includes Toronto Star and affiliates and some community newspapers.

Addresses and telephone numbers:

http://canada411.sympatico.ca/
(does not include Alberta or Saskatchewan)

http://www.mytelus.com/search/simple.vm
Alberta

http://mysask.sympatico.ca/portal/index.jsp
Saskatchewan

http://in-142.infospace.com/info/reverse_ca.htm
InfoSpace Canada. Reverse look-up directory (can just type in a phone number). Can see neighbours, however, InfoBase is a better source.

InfoUSA (Infobase): Canadian content. We have it loaded on reference desk.

Property Searches

Must check each province. For Ontario:

Teranet: http://www.teranet.ca/ You can search title and register documents for about 80% of Ontario. You can also do Writ searches. Must search by Municipality. There is no way of searching the whole province in one search.

Lexis: Can search property and assessment records for Ontario from 1996-Dec. 7, 2000. Due to changes in Canadian Privacy legislation, more current information is not available in Lexis.

Lien Searches

Must check each province. For Ontario use Oncorp: http://www.oncorp.com/

Bankruptcies

All filings in Canada from 1978 to date. Contact the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy at 613-941-2863. Media must set up an account. Free for Canadian news sources.

Professional Licenses

www.searchsystems.net  
Choose Canada and then province. Can search for a wide variety of professions. The coverage varies by province but most search physicians (through the College of Physicians and Surgeons). Can also search for architects, veterinarians, insurance brokers.

Motor Vehicle/Driver Information (Ontario)

Not online. Must visit Ministry of Transportation offices at the southwest corner of Bay and Wellesley Streets in Toronto. Must search other provinces for licenses issued in those jurisdictions.

Birth, marriage, death, wills and divorce: 

Must search each province. For Ontario:

For more recent Toronto divorces, you can search the Toronto database on the 10th floor of 393 University Ave. in Toronto.

Archives of Ontario: www.archives.gov.on.ca and go to vital statistics. With the exception of some divorce hearings, the following information is not available online and must be retrieved in person.

Birth records: 1869-1904 (95 year privacy rule)

Marriage records: 1801-1919 (Note: There are many gaps in pre-1869 Marriage Records) (80 year privacy rule)

Death records: 1869-1929 (70 year privacy rule)

**Documents are considered ìclosedî after these years due to privacy legislation. You can get the information but only for legitimate reasons, i.e., you are a family member and need the death certificate. Or you need a copy of your own birth certificate.**

Wills: up to 1959 (after 1959 go to the courthouse in the County or District where the will was probated or the estate administered)

Divorce decrees: 1867-1972 (after 1972, a copy of a Divorce Certificate can be obtained from the court where the divorce was heard. Contact the Family Law Office of the Superior Court of Justice with the Ministry of the Attorney General at (416) 327-5542 for further information).

Criminal and Civil Cases

QuickLaw/Lexis
Includes provincial, federal & Supreme Court cases that have a written OR oral decision. For the most part, lower court decisions are not included in Quicklaw/Lexis. No equivalent to PACER in Canada.


Companies, Corporations

SEDAR: Depository site for the Canadian Securities Administrator. Public company filings and company/mutual fund profiles. 

Strategis Company Information: http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/sc_coinf/engdoc/homepage.html
Guide to chartered companies in Canada. Federally incorporated. You get the name, address, registration date, directors, and parent/subsidiary information. 

Financial Post Directory of Directors: 17,000 Canadian directors and executives of Canadian companies

Profile Canada: contains marketing and business intelligence on Canada's largest 35,000 companies with a focus on privately owned businesses

Equifax Commercial Law Records: Public information on commercial legal suits and judgments from courts across Canada.

Cancorp Plus: Directory information, for public and some private companies including the corporate legal name, address, fax and telephone numbers, officers, directors, auditors, banks, attorneys, subsidiaries, place and year of incorporation, and legal status. Filings information, including more than 300 possible financial components such as assets, liabilities, equity, revenue, cash flow, and share performance.

ONCORP:   http://www.oncorp.com/
Search for registered companies and partnerships in Ontario. Can also search liens. For companies incorporated in other provinces must search provincial equivalent.

INTERCORPORATE FAMILY MEMBERS
Lays out the corporate family. It shows investors, parents, and subsidiaries. If a company has international links, this will also be shown in the record.

Directories
Directory of Directors: Provides information on directors and executives of Canadian companies who reside in Canada.

Directories for Lawyers and Accountants: QuickLaw/Lexis

Directories for Lawyers: Lexis

Combs Canada Healthcare Directory: Lexis
Extensively covers various companies and agencies, which include both Government and Private, involved in the field of Healthcare. This directory provides details about the type of business, their services and products that they have to offer to their prospective clients.

Combs Telecommunications Directories: Lexis

Extensively covers various companies and agencies, which includes both Government and Private, involved in the field of Telecommunications. These directories provide details, about the type of business, details about their services and products that they have to offer to their prospective clients.

Combs Computer Directory: Lexis
Contains trade directories for Canada, Russia.

 

Registered Charities

List of Canadian Registered Charities

There are about 78,000 charities registered with the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency. The list of Canadian registered charities includes the charity name, Business Number (BN)/Registration number, mailing address, and designation type.

Joan Sweeney Marsh
Toronto Star Newspaper
Special Libraries Association 2004 Annual Conference
News Research Without Borders
Monday, June 7, 2004

This document is also available in a Word (.doc) format.


News Division Program, SLA 2004 Annual Conference
SLA News Division Home

Last Updated: 06/04/04
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