On April 28, 2005, the Chambre des notaires du Québec filed a petition to declare unconstitutional and of no force and effect requirements issued by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) under sections 231.2 and 231.7 as well as subsection 5 of section 232(1) of the Income Tax Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. 1 (5th Supp.) (ITA) to obtain documents or information prima facie protected by professional secrecy ...
The U.S. Supreme Court began its new 2010-2011 term on October 4, 2010 with a number of employment-related cases on the docket, many of which have already been orally argued, that could potentially impact employers concerning such matters as arbitration, retaliation, immigration, and employee benefits ...
Signaling a possible further relaxation of the strict in-person non-immigrant visa interview requirements, the U.S. Embassy in London has indicated that beginning in December the Visa Reissuance Program may be extended to include key business categories such as “H” and “L” and exchange visitors/students under “J” and “F.” The U.S ...
On July 28, 2010, the Tribunal administratif du Québec (“TAQ”) confirmed a decision of the Régie des rentes du Québec (the “Régie”) which had refused to register adverse amendments(1) made to a pension plan despite the consent given to the amendments by the sole member of the plan.(2)The purpose of the amendments was, on the one hand, to replace the 2% pension benefit formula with a 1 ...
Last August 3, the Honourable Paul Mayer of the Superior Court of Québec dismissed the motion for authorization to institute a class action filed by Mr. Michel Dell’Aniello (“Dell’Aniello”) against Vivendi Canada Inc. (“Vivendi”), the succ essor of his former employer (Seagram) ...
Underscoring that PERM (Program Electronic Review Management) is a system of bright-line rules that leave little, if any, opportunity to correct errors once an application is filed, the Department of Labor (DOL) held on October 27, 2010 that the failure to include the business name on the Notice of Filing (Notice) is fatal to the entire PERM labor certification application ...
Recent Federal Circuit Decision on Section viii Carve Outs and Inducement By C. Kyle Musgrove, Partner On November 1, 2010, a divided 2-1 panel of the Federal Circuit issued a decision in AstraZeneca LP v. Apotex, Inc. that addresses inducement of infringement in the context of a Section viii "carve out" under 21 U.S.C. § 355(j)(2)(A)(viii) and 21 C.F.R. § 314.92(a)(1) ...
The new filing fees announced by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) earlier this year will go into effect on November 23, 2010. Anticipating these changes, which include fee increases and reductions, is important not only to budget planning for sponsors but also for ensuring that your petition is not rejected by the USCIS mailroom as “improperly filed ...
by Peter R. RichCompanies seeking business in the heart of the Marcellus Shale natural gas reserves will find a skilled and experienced workforce. However, as any business owner knows, mistakes made in the hiring process can be costly. With that in mind, we offer the following comments on five specific aspects of Pennsylvania and West Virginia law that are applicable to hiring ...
The Obama-appointed NLRB has now issued its first significant batch of decisions1 serving notice, as is typical in the transition from one administration to the next, of a shift in the interpretation of the labor laws. The decisions include a new standard regarding secondary boycotts and union bannering; potential reconsideration of prior precedent; and a differing application of the law to facts than the predecessor NLRB ...
Coast Mountain Bus Company Ltd. v. National Automobile, Aerospace, Transportation and General Workers of Canada (CAW-Canada), Local 111, 2010 BCCA 447 (B.C.C.A.) In a recent case, the British Columbia Court of Appeal found that Coast Mountain Bus Company’s attendance management program discriminated against employees with disabilities and was not justified on the basis of bona fide occupational requirements ...
Before heading into the pre-election recess, the Senate passed the Veterans’ Benefits Act of 2010 on September 28, 2010. See H.R. 3219, 111th Cong. (2d Sess. 2010). The Act, which passed in the House over one year ago, is a compromise measure between the House and the Senate and encompasses several veterans’ benefits bills. Of notable importance to employers is the Act’s expansion of employee protection under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (“USERRA”) ...
On August 27, 2010, the National Labor Relations Board (the “Board”) issued its long-awaited decision in United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, Local Union No. 1506, 355 NLRB No. 159 (2010) – a case that had been pending before the Board since March 2004 - holding that bannering at a secondary employer’s place of business was not an unfair labor practice. The Facts Four non-union employers, Eliason & Knuth, Delta/United Specialties, Enterprise Interiors, Inc ...
Interest about the relevance of buyer power for competition has been growing in the last decades, as the markets of retail distribution were subject to a process of consolidation, if at different speed, in most European countries ...
Spotlight on Corporate Governance One of the impacts of the global financial crisis on the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been an increased spotlight on corporate governance standards in the UAE. The Ministry of Economy published Ministerial Resolution No. 518 of 2009 (MR 518) which provides for enhanced corporate governance rules and discipline standards for UAE Public Joint Stock Companies (PJSC) ...
Dear Sirs, We would like to inform you that Federal law “On amendments to Code of administrative offences of the Russian Federation and the Federal law «On industrial safety of dangerous production facilities» dated July 23, 2010 N 171-FZ will come into force on January 1, 2011 (hereinafter – the Law) ...
Can the parties to an individual employment contract include a clause stipulating that the employee must reimburse his training costs to the employer if he resigns?Upon hiring and throughout the course of employment, employers often require employees to receive training. There are various reasons why employers want their employees to undergo training sessions, such as for safety purposes, special functions, technological changes, requirements of a supplier, etc ...
As Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis informed a convention of safety engineers last year, “Make no mistake about it: The Department of Labor is back in the enforcement business.” In 2010, current OSHA enforcement statistics confirm this promise and reveal unprecedented levels of enforcement ...
Despite entering into arbitration agreements with their employees, employers all too often find themselves in court adverse to the very employees who have signed an arbitration agreement. The U.S. Supreme Court recently issued three arbitration decisions that have important implications for employers seeking to avoid the inside of a courtroom. First, in Stolt-Nielsen S.A. v. AnimalFeeds International Corp ...
On March 18, 2010, administrative judge Richard Hudon, of the Comission des lésions professionnelles (hereinafter, the “Comission”), rendered a very interesting decision in the case of Côté et Traverse Rivière‑du‑Loup St‑Siméon (2010 QCC LP 2074) by ruling that section 56 of the Act respecting Industrial accidents and occupational diseases (hereinafter, the “ARIA OD”) is discriminatory within the meaning of the Charter of human rights and freed
Technology, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the U.S. Supreme Court. Its current mission: to explore strange new electronic communication devices; to boldly go where no court has gone before ...
Most patent applicants can now accelerate the examination of a select number of patent applications in exchange for abandoning an equal number of unexamined, pending applications, according to an announcement issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“PTO”) on June 24, 2010 ...
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) is seeking public comment on a proposed three-track patent examination initiative that would provide applicants with greater control over the speed at which their applications are examined. The proposed initiative aims to reduce overall pendency of patent applications by providing applicants with alternative timing systems for the examination of their patent applications ...
Government contractors and subcontractors now have a new, unsavory obligation. On January 30, 2009, President Obama signed Executive Order 13496 – which requires government contractors and subcontractors to post a notice informing employees of their right to engage in concerted, collective activity. On May 20, 2010, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued its Final Rule to implement Executive Order 13496 ...
Dear Sirs, The Government of the Russian Federation approved the draft bill on amendments to Code on administrative offences of the Russian Federation and Federal Law “On legal status of foreign citizens in the Russian Federation”. According to this draft bill the liability for a foreign citizen will be imposed on the host party ...
