On June 19, 2019, the Ontario Court of Appeal released its decision in Dawe v. Equitable Life Insurance Company, 2019 ONCA 512 (“Dawe”), finding that:
- only “exceptional circumstances” warrant a reasonable notice period in
The most common mistakes made in Quebec vacation policies
As employment counsel, we routinely work with employers to identify issues with their policies and practices as they relate to vacation (annual leave) and vacation pay under Quebec’s An act respecting labour standards (the “
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Canadian tax proposals target employee stock options
On June 17, 2019, Canadian Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau released draft legislation (first announced in the Federal Budget released on March 19, 2019) that will impact on the preferential tax treatment of employee stock
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Ontario Court of Appeal says “moral blameworthiness” a factor in sentencing for Occupational Health and Safety Act offences
In the recent decision in Ontario (Labour) v New Mex Canada Inc., the Ontario Court of Appeal found that it may be appropriate to impose harsher sentences for offences under the Occupational Health and
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BC appoints new Human Rights Commissioner
In late 2018, the BC government passed legislation re-establishing the British Columbia Human Rights Commission, which had been disbanded by the previous provincial government in 2002. The mandate of the new Commission is to promote
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Common law reasonable notice of termination for independent contractors?
In the recent decision in Cormier v 1772887 Ontario Limited, an Ontario Superior Court judge stated that in some circumstances it would be reasonable to consider an employee’s years of service as an independent
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Bill amending the Employment Standards Act, 2000 and Labour Relations Act, 1995 receives Royal Assent
On April 3, 2019 the Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act, 2019 (“Bill 66”) received Royal Assent.
The most significant change to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”) was the removal of the requirement that
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Important deadlines for new BC Employer Health Tax
The following deadlines are approaching for the new BC employer health tax:
- employers required to pay instalments in 2019 must register by May 15, 2019; and
- the first instalment payment must be paid by
Change is afoot for BC’s Employment Standards Act
The BC government has unveiled plans to significantly change the Employment Standards Act (“ESA”), which prescribes the minimum labour standards for regulated workplaces in BC. Bill 8 introduces amendments to a number of
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Cautionary notes on gun-jumping in M&A negotiations
When business competitors negotiate a potential merger or acquisition (large or small), they need to bear in mind the Competition Act (Canada). These rules are often overlooked. Certainly it is critical to use a
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