Employees Are Entitled To Bonus Payment After Termination
September 7, 2016 By Brad Smith The employment relationship is governed by the law of contract. But the common law also implies certain terms. One implied term is that if an employee is terminated without cause, the employee shall receive reasonable notice of termination. If the employer does not provide the notice, the termination is a […]
Federally Regulated Employers Now Require Just Cause For Dismissal: Wilson V. Atomic Energy Of Canada Ltd.
July 27, 2016 On July 14, 2016 the Supreme Court of Canada released its much-anticipated decision in Wilson v. Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd, providing a determination on the meaning of the Unjust Dismissal provisions of the Canada Labour Code (the “Code”). In short, unlike their provincial counterparts, federally regulated employers may not dismiss (or “fire”) a non-unionized employee without […]
The Employer’s Poor Financial Circumstances Are Not Important In Wrongful Dismissal
June 8, 2016 By Brad Smith “…an employer’s poor economic circumstances do not justify a reduction of the notice period to which an employee is otherwise entitled …” The Ontario Court of Appeal stated this on November 23, 2015 in Michela v. St. Thomas of Villanova Catholic School. Three employees were employed on successive year to year […]
Serving Up Equality In The Workplace: The Ontario Human Rights Commission Releases Policy Position On Gender-specific Dress Codes
June 8, 2016 On March 8, 2016, International Women’s Day, The Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) released a policy position calling for an end to discriminatory, sexualized dress codes that discriminate on the basis of sex and gender identity. Many Ontario employers, particularly in the food and beverage service industry, require female service staff and bartenders to […]
No Duty To Mitigate When Fixed Term Contract Of Employment
April 29, 2016 By Brad Smith In Bowes v. Goss Power Products Ltd. the Ontario Court of Appeal held that when an employee and employer agree to a specific period of notice and do not state the employee has a duty to mitigate, the employee does not have a duty to mitigate. On April 8, 2016 the Ontario Court […]
Jail For Health And Safety Breach: R. V. Kazenelson
January 20, 2016 By Brad Smith “… a significant term of imprisonment is necessary to reflect the terrible consequences of the offences and to make it unequivocally clear that persons in positions of authority in potentially dangerous workplaces have a serious obligation to take all reasonable steps to ensure that those who arrive for work in the […]
Explaining The Inquest Into The Deaths Of Seven First Nations Students In Thunder Bay
January 5, 2016 On October 5, 2015, the long-awaited Inquest into the deaths of seven First Nation students, who died while attending high school in Thunder Bay, Ontario, between 2000 and 2011, commenced pursuant to the Coroners Act. Weilers represented the Provincial Advocate for Children and Youth (now part of the Ontario Ombudsman) throughout the six […]
Social Host Liability: Risks And Responsibilities
December 31, 2015 By Brian Babcock NOTE TO READERS: This story was originally published on our website on November 5, 2006. The Childs case is still the latest word on social host liability from the Supreme Court of Canada. Several lower court judges have refused to dismiss cases involving social host liability at pretrial stages, because of the factual […]
Are You Considering Purchasing A Condominium Unit?
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]November 25, 2015 By Jonathon Clark With our increasingly busy lives these days, the maintenance-free lifestyle of condominium units becomes more appealing. Over the last ten years, there has been a huge boom in condominium construction in cities like Toronto and even Thunder Bay. When purchasing a condo, the purchaser has to be aware that although […]
So You Just Bought Some Vacant Land…
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]November 18, 2015 By Jonathon Clark Perhaps now you have big plans to cut down all of the timber on the property. Most people simply assume that they can harvest the timber on their property and either use it themselves or sell it for profit. These people may be surprised to learn that sometimes it is […]