Part III of the Canada Labour Code sets out the employment standards minimums for federally regulated employers. It was enacted in 1965 and had not been systematically reviewed since then. In December 2004, the federal government appointed Professor Harry Arthurs, a former Dean of Osgoode Hall Law School, to conduct a comprehensive review of Part III. Professor Arthurs issued his final report (324 pgs) on October 30, 2006 ...
The December 2006 SFC Enforcement Reporter provides a timely reminder that carrying out regulated activities without a licence is a highly risky endeavour in Hong Kong. This caps off a year where there were a number of significant enforcement actions for unlicensed dealing activities ...
In M&A transactions, the principal terms negotiated by the parties are usually the structure, price, representations, warranties and undertakings and indemnities. Whereas in most jurisdictions parties are at liberty to agree on these terms, in China the outcome of the negotiations between Chinese and foreign parties may not be as final as hoped for ...
Section 316 of the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases(1) (the “AIAOD”) makes an employer responsible to the CSST for a contractor’s (or subcontractor’s) unpaid assessments in respect of such contractor’s (or subcontractor’s) employees:“316. The Commission may demand payment of the assessment due by a contractor from the employer who retains his services ...
Foreign companies have always complained about the requirements and criteria associated with tendering for domestic infrastructure projects. The conservative attitude and lack of commercial awareness of bureaucrats and discriminatory qualification requirements have all contributed to warding off reputable international companies. Comments made by both the American and the European Chambers of Commerce in recent years have by and large recommended that international tendering be encouraged ...
The Ministry of Commerce (“MOFCOM”), the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, the State Administration of Taxation, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (“CSRC”) and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange jointly issued the Regulations Regarding the Acquisition of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors on 8 August 2006 ...
The Central Government of the People’s Republic of China (“Mainland”) and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (“Hong Kong”) jointly issued the Arrangement between the Mainland and Hong Kong for the Avoidance of Double Taxation on Income and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion on 21 August 2006 ...
The Ministry of Commerce (“MOFCOM”) promulgated the Supplementary Regulations Regarding the Establishment of Holding Companies by Foreign Investors on 26 May 2006. The Supplementary Regulations amend and supplement the Regulations on the Investment in and Establishment of Holding Companies by Foreign Business Entities, which became effective on 17 December 2004 (the “Holding Company Regulations”) (as discussed in the 2004.4 issue of China Legal Update) ...
The Central Government of the People’s Republic of China (“Mainland”) and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (“Hong Kong”) reached a further understanding regarding the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement between the Mainland and Hong Kong (“CEPA”) (as discussed in the July 2003 issue of China Legal Update) on 27 June 2006. This supplement, referred to as CEPA IV, further liberalises PRC market access for qualified Hong Kong service suppliers ...
The Government of Hong Kong and the Central Government of the People’s Republic of China (“Mainland”) signed An Arrangement on Reciprocal Enforcement of Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters by the Courts of the Mainland and of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region pursuant to Choice of Court Agreements between Parties Concerned on 14 July 2006 ...
The Ministry of Commerce issued the Notice on Further Improving the Work of Attracting Foreign Investment into the Logistics Sector on 20 April 2006. The Notice, which became effective on 31 March 2006, is the first major liberalisation in the PRC logistics sector since the 2002 Notice on Relevant Issues in the Work of Launching Pilot Projects for the Establishment of Logistics Enterprises with Foreign Investment (“Pilot Notice”) ...
The Ministry of Construction, Ministry of Commerce, National Development and Reform Commission, the People’s Bank of China, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange jointly issued the Opinions on Regulating the Entry into and the Administration of Foreign Investment in the Real Estate Market on 11 July 2006 ...
The Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation jointly issued the Notice on Adjustment of the Scope of the Tax Refund Policies for the Purchase of Domestically Manufactured Equipment by Foreign Investment Projects on 10 May 2006. The Notice revises the value-added tax (“VAT”) refund policy for the purchase of domestically manufactured equipment (“domestic equipment”), which is available to certain foreign investment projects ...
The State Administration of Foreign Exchange ("SAFE") issued the Notice on Adjusting the Policies on Foreign Exchange Control for Current Account Items on 14 April 2006. The Notice, which became effective on 1 May 2006, further relaxes foreign exchange control over current account items ...
The Ministry of Finance and State Intellectual Property Office jointly issued the Notice of on Several Issues Concerning Strengthening the Administration on Asset Valuation in Connection with Intellectual Property Rights on 19 April 2006. Mandatory valuation The Notice clarifies the circumstances in which an assets valuation of intellectual property rights (“IP rights”) is to be conducted ...
The “Chiasson”(4) appeal is making headlines as it has the potential to force corporations to review and perhaps re-write their drug-testing policies and procedures.Chiasson dealt with pre-employment drug testing. The Complainant had applied for and was offered a job as a receiving inspector at an oil sands project in Fort McMurray, Alberta. The offer of employment was subject to the results of a pre-employment medical and drug screening test ...
Human Resources and Skills Development/Service Canada (“HRSDC”) recently implemented Regional Occupations Lists (the “Lists”). The Lists are meant to “assist employers who are experiencing difficulty filling job vacancies due to labour market shortages ...
Cory Grams died while at work at a Maple Leaf Metal Industries Ltd. (“Maple Leaf”) plant in Edmonton, Alberta. His parents, as beneficiaries and administrators of his estate, claimed damages against Maple Leaf for $92,000 for negligence in failing to provide insurance coverage under an employment contract. A claim against the insurer, Zurich, was settled prior to trial. Mr ...
Effective December 12, 2006, mandatory retirement will no longer be generally permissible in Ontario, (as a result of amendments to the Ontario Human Rights Code). Employers will, however, still be allowed to enforce mandatory retirement polices if they can show that being younger than 65 (or another designated age) is a bona fide occupational requirement ...
On May 19, 2006, Act No. 214/2006, Coll. was announced in the Collection of Laws, which amends Act No. 455/1991, Coll., the Trade Licensing Act, as amended, and certain other acts; this act became effective on August 1, 2006 ...
The new LC is based on a different legal conception than the existing LC. Whereas the still valid LC is a mandatory legal regulation with no exceptions, the new code allows that the rights or obligations in labour-law relations are regulated differently than in the Labour Code, unless the code expressly prohibits or unless it results from the nature of the relevant provisions that it is impossible to deviate from such provisions ...
So-called black collective investmentThe legal regulation of collective investment was based on the fact the Collective Investment Act, similar to its predecessor, the Act on Investment Funds and Investment Companies, exclusively regulated the activities of investment funds and investment companies. The new amendment brings fundamental changes in this respect ...
The right to privacy occupies a prominent place in Quebec law. Both the Charter of human rights and freedoms(1) and the Civil Code of Québec(2) recognize this right. Moreover, it is acknowledged that deliberate interception of a private communication may infringe this right. Does this mean that any form of electronic recording in a work environment is prohibited? Absolutely not ...
The new provisions pertaining to psychological harassment that were added to the Act respecting labour standards(1) (hereinafter referred to as the “ARLS”) on June 1, 2004, have given rise to many arbitration awards and interpretations over the last two years that have expounded on the concept of psychological harassment ...
