Business
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September 04, 2024
Advanced waiver agreements in arbitrations
Coming to an agreement on the choice of arbitrator in international arbitration is not always easy. Conflicts abound that pose legal risks to the parties, including the eventual challenge of an award or a possible challenge to its enforcement under the New York Convention. Thus, parties will often turn to advance waiver agreements to cover any possible legal risk stemming from any pre-existing relationship or involvement in a subject matter arbitration that may give rise to a possible conflict of interest. However, while part autonomy rules in arbitration, the parties must respect the standards of impartiality and independence found in the enabling legislation, the institutional rules and the soft law instruments.
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September 04, 2024
Court: Shoppers Drug Mart breached franchise agreements in keeping $1.084B in allowances
Shopper’s Drug Mart breached agreements with its franchisees when it retained $1.084 billion in professional allowances received from generic drug manufacturers for direct patient services, the Ontario Court of Appeal has held.
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September 04, 2024
New measures to control Temporary Foreign Worker Program insufficient
The recent announcement regarding the Temporary Foreign Workers Program (TFWP) is a small step towards addressing a pressing problem.
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September 03, 2024
Unifor files application to represent Walmart warehouse workers in Mississauga
Canada's largest private-sector union has filed an application with the Ontario Labour Relations Board to represent workers at a Walmart warehouse in Mississauga, Ont.
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September 03, 2024
Toronto financial services firm faces possible class action over disclosure statements
A proposed shareholder class action has been launched against Toronto-based specialty financing firm Chesswood Group Ltd. subject to disclosure rules under the Ontario Securities Act.
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September 03, 2024
Managing increased U.S. immigration filing fees for cross-border companies
In April 2024, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) enacted dramatic increases to U.S. immigration filing fees, with many employment-based categories exceeding $1,000 in government fees per employee. For Canadian companies with cross-border workforces, such fees create a new burden to doing business in the United States.
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September 03, 2024
Regulator revokes builder’s licence for unauthorized home sales, financial mismanagement
Ontario’s home construction regulator has revoked the licence of Mariman Homes, a Hamilton-based construction company that entered into agreements to sell 108 homes without authorization and enrolment in Tarion’s warranty program, according to a release.
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September 03, 2024
B.C. Supreme Court upholds $350K damages award against influencer for defamatory videos
The B.C. Supreme Court recently issued a significant ruling in the case of I Buy Beauty LLC v. Dong, 2024 BCSC 815, awarding a beauty company $350,000 in damages after a YouTuber made a series of defamatory videos about the company and its products. In awarding such a large damages award, the court sought to compensate the plaintiffs, denounce the defendant’s conduct and deter other social media personalities from seeking to profit by saying increasingly scandalous things online.
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September 03, 2024
Consequences of arbitrating non-commercial disputes under Commercial Arbitration Act
Through the enactment of the Commercial Arbitration Act (the Act), the federal government adopted the 1985 version of the UNCITRAL Model Law, although with some significant changes. While arbitration is not a subject matter falling within federal constitutional jurisdiction, it is within the federal government’s jurisdiction to legislate with respect to the liability of the Crown and federal Crown agents.
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August 30, 2024
B.C. Court of Appeal upholds $16M penalty against CN Rail for starting 2015 wildfire
The British Columbia Court of Appeal has upheld previous decisions ordering the Canadian National Railway Company (CN) to pay British Columbia $16 million for the province’s efforts in putting out a wildfire that the company started.