In-House Counsel
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August 08, 2024
Employer’s conduct found to repudiate otherwise valid contract
The recent decision in Klyn v. Pentax Canada Inc., 2024 BCSC 372, (Klyn) from the Supreme Court of British Columbia should cause even further intestinal discomfort for employers as it demonstrates the court’s ever-growing protection of employees. As I noted a few months ago, the line of cases stemming from Waksdale v. Swegon North America Inc., 2020 ONCA 391, and Dufault v. The Corporation of the Township of Ignace, 2024 ONSC 1029, appear to be a cautionary beacon for all employers to not only have proper contracts in place to properly protect them but to also act in accordance with those contracts in a good faith manner.
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August 08, 2024
Why workcations could be the redefining moment for maintaining a work-life balance
In today's evolving work environment, the concept of “workcations” — blending work with vacation — has gained significant popularity as more employees seek the flexibility to work remotely from vacation destinations.
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August 07, 2024
Job prescreening decision by Toronto police not judicially reviewable: Ontario Court of Appeal
Ontario’s top court has ruled that a prescreening decision by Toronto police as part of a hiring process for a special constable position was not judicially reviewable because it is not of a sufficiently public character.
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August 07, 2024
Competition Bureau seeks public comment on interim approach to property controls
The Competition Bureau is seeking public comment on its interim enforcement approach with respect to competitor property controls following recent changes to the Competition Act, which enhanced the bureau’s power to tackle anticompetitive agreements.
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August 07, 2024
Commission amends storage terms for OPG's Pickering nuclear waste management facility
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) has granted a request by Ontario Power Generation's (OPG) to change the licensed storage terms for its Pickering Waste Management Facility (PWMF), despite opposition from First Nations.
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August 07, 2024
Court affirms Ontario Energy Board’s exclusive jurisdiction in substation dispute
The Ontario Superior Court has dismissed an application concerning a dispute over whether certain property developers or a municipal electricity distributor should be required to pay for a new municipal substation, finding that the Ontario Energy Board has exclusive jurisdiction over the matter.
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August 07, 2024
Detecting, avoiding deceptive design patterns: Insights from 2024 privacy sweep
In a recent review of over 1,000 websites and apps, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC), in conjunction with its global counterparts, found that nearly all had at least one deceptive design element that potentially violated privacy requirements.
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August 07, 2024
What you need to know about appealing interpretations of your business contract
Lower courts are best positioned to wade through the evidence of what the parties intended when drafting their contract. That’s why appellate courts will only reluctantly intervene in a previous judicial interpretation of a commercial agreement.
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August 06, 2024
Canada brings new measures to reduce foreign worker use in the country
In an announcement today, Canada said it has made clear that the temporary foreign worker (TFW) program “cannot be used to circumvent hiring talented workers in Canada” and that the government “will take further action to weed out misuse and fraud within the system.”
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August 06, 2024
Value of property a key to proving breach of contract
In cases where sellers have failed to complete a binding agreement for the sale of property, the buyers may understandably assume that they have a valid claim for breach of contract. Buyers should nevertheless carefully assess the prospect and evidentiary burden of proving that damages resulted from the breach. A key factor in such an assessment should be the value of the property as of the date of the breach of contract, as demonstrated by the trial decision in 2511899 Ontario Inc. v. 2221465 Ontario Inc., 2024 ONSC 4159.