The Alberta court of Appeal considered the question of whether an employee of a true independent contractor to Syncrude Canada was an employee, broadly stated of Syncrude, for the purposes of Alberta human rights legislation.
Blair Curtis has written an article for the upcoming BC Continuing Legal Education Employment Law Conference, tracing developments in the law of punitive damages for wrongful dismissal cases. The article traces recent decisions from Canadian courts where plaintiffs seek to recover extra damages for mental distress based on the conduct of an employer at … Continued
The court has scheduled the first Case Planning Conference for 2 hours on Tuesday, May 17, 2011. The hearing will be held before Justice McEwen, the judge assigned to the BCMA Benefits Administration Fee class action. The parties and the court will review various issues, including timelines for process up to the Certification hearing. Notice … Continued
In an article published on the Report on Business edition yesterday, the Globe and Mail describes the issues surrounding Mr. McCormick’s mandatory retirement complaint to the BC Human Rights Tribunal. Mr. McCormick succeeded in having the BC Human Rights Tribunal accept jurisdiction to hear his discrimination complaint, in spite of the employer’s submission that he … Continued
The Ontario Superior Court in Altman v. Steve’s Music, 2011 ONSC 1480 (CanLII) handed down an important decision in a wrongful dismissal case where the dismissed plaintiff sought and recovered substantial punitive damages.
The British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal’s ruled in McIntosh v. Metro Aluminum Products Ltd., that an employer and its owner were liable for substantial damages because of unwanted sexually suggestive text messages, sometimes referred to as “sexting”.
The Honourable Madam Justice Loo of the British Columbia Supreme Court recently dismissed a defence of just cause in a wrongful dismissal case, with a comprehensive and thoughtful analysis of recent leading cases which guide the court on subjects including just cause, fiduciary duty of employees, incompetence, conflict of interest, insubordination, condonation, conflict of interest, and quantification of damages for failiure to give reasonable notice.
The BC Supreme Court has today appointeded the Honourable Mr. Jusitice McEwen as Judidical Management Judge in respect of the BCMA Benefit Administration class action. Class Counsel are in the process of arranging a first appearance before the Judicial Management Judge to obtain directions as to the process to be followed leading up to the … Continued
I. Introduction Employers, employees, and their advisors are vitally interested in developments in the law relating to the appropriateness of salary continuance. These considerations have until recently created significant settlement difficulties in many instances. After termination, employers sometimes advance salary continuation offers, which are not accepted, and unilaterally pay continuance after dismissal. Employers then defend … Continued
On April 8, 2011 the BC Supreme Court registry entered (formalized) the order of Madam Justice Ballance setting out the process to be followed to assess the claims of persons entitled to share in the distribution of remaining funds. The actual order can be viewed by clicking the link below. The order was “pronounced” on … Continued
I have consulted with Blair and sought his legal advice on several occasions. I have been very happy with the results. Blair is an excellent communicator who advised me of my legal rights in a clear and understandable way. I was very pleased with his efficiency and professionalism. I highly recommend him.