Canadian Lawyer 12.7.23 Canadian Lawyer TV interviewed Managing Partner Cliff Proudfoot, KC, about the firm’s recent achievements and how 2022 was the busiest year on record ...
Canadian Lawyer By Tim Wilbur Cecilia Barnes knew from an early age she wanted to be in business. She entered law school so she could work with entrepreneurs and business executives. When Barnes looked for opportunities after graduating, she focused on working in-house. “I thought, I've taken all of these courses in business and trademark and copyright. So, any company is going to be so excited to have me ...
Important new legislative changes impacting federally regulated employers will come into effect in 2021: the Pay Equity Act and a minimum wage requirement. Details on both these measures and how that will affect employers are examined below. Pay Equity Act The federal Pay Equity Act comes into effect on August 31, 2021. The Act applies to federally regulated employers who have 10 or more employees ...
B.C.’s Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry,[1] and the Public Health Agency of Canada,[2] have recommended that individuals who are not fully vaccinated[3] continue wearing masks in indoor public spaces. At the same time, public authorities are providing little to no guidance on how or when businesses can continue mask requirements ...
On July 1, 2021, B.C. moved into Step 3 of its COVID-19 Restart Plan. As part of this phase, B.C. employers are no longer required to maintain a WorkSafeBC approved COVID-19 Safety Plan. Instead, they are required to transition to a Communicable Disease Prevention Plan. What is a Communicable Disease Prevention Plan? It is a plan that outlines the steps an employer is taking to reduce the risk to their workers from communicable diseases in their workplace ...
Employers who are faced with employee requests for accommodation on the basis of family status may find that the response to such requests depends on the province of employment ...
With increasing numbers of Canadians being immunized each day against COVID-19, the question on many peoples’ minds is whether Canadians will be asked to prove they are vaccinated by way of a vaccine passport. Vaccine passports can take a range of forms, but the defining feature is a verified record of a person’s immunization status ...
Commercial landlords have, in the past year and a half, dealt with many novel issues in relation to COVID-19, often on an emergency basis. Few landlords have had to deal with both public health order violations and gang crime relating to the same tenant, as in a recent decision of the B.C. Supreme Court, Ivy Lounge West Georgia Limited Partnership v. TA F&B Limited Partnership, 2021 BCSC 997 ...
In May 2021, the total value of cryptocurrency globally surpassed USD $2.5 trillion, and continues its emergence as a new asset class.[1] Governments in Canada and around the world are updating regulatory requirements in response to the new innovations in financial technologies. Historically, there has been regulatory uncertainty surrounding cryptocurrencies in Canada ...
Virtual shareholder meetings have become ubiquitous for both public and private companies since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Canadian securities regulators, stock exchanges and federal and provincial governments quickly responded to accommodate electronic meetings where it was otherwise not permitted. In British Columbia, Ministerial Order No ...
Last year, we published a blog about things an employer should do before they terminate the employment of an employee. In recent years, employers are facing increasing claims for aggravated damages arising out of the manner in which the employer has carried out the termination of an employee’s employment. In order to minimize the possibility that aggravated damages will be awarded, here are our Do’s and Don’ts for employment termination meetings ...
As courts across Canada continue to see a rising trend in self-represented litigants, it becomes increasingly important for them to understand court rules and procedures to ensure access to justice. In the recent case of Blomer v Workers Compensation Board, the Alberta Court of Appeal considered whether the motions judge could correct the procedural missteps of the self-represented litigant ...
This blog post highlights certain amendments to British Columbia’s Real Estate Development Marketing Act (“REDMA”) Policy Statements 5 and 6 which came into effect May 1, 2021. Policy Statement 5 sets out circumstances under which a developer is deemed to have permission to begin early marketing of a real estate development before a building permit is issued for the development ...
The Government of B.C. has tabled legislation which, for now, entitles employees to three paid sick days for leave related to COVID-19. Employers will be required to pay employees their full wages (based on an average of the prior 30 days). The proposed law (Bill 13) also allows for a permanent paid sick leave to be prescribed in the future. The B.C ...
Amendments to National Instrument 31-103 Registration Requirements, Exemptions and Ongoing Registrant Obligations (“NI 31-103”) and the new requirements under Client Focused Reforms (“CFRs”) The Canadian Securities Administrators (“CSA”) have amended NI 31-103 to introduce new registrant conduct requirements, with the stated objective of better aligning the interests of registrants with the interests of their clients, improving outcomes for
As British Columbia battles the third wave of COVID-19, the government has introduced legislation[1] which, if passed, will provide employees with paid leave to get the COVID-19 vaccine. On April 1, 2021, the British Columbia government introduced an unpaid job-protected leave of absence for employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine, or to assist a dependent in getting vaccinated against COVID-19 ...
What options does one have when they discover that a term in a previously executed contract or written instrument was worded poorly, or incorrectly drafted? Generally, parties in this scenario may seek the remedy of rectification, which gives a court the equitable jurisdiction to rectify or correct the document so that it accords with the parties’ true agreement ...
As we look forward to returning to our normal routines, after we have all had the opportunity to be vaccinated, many people are wondering what permanent workplace changes will remain in place or will be introduced for workers; as well as the pets they either acquired or became more attached to during quarantine. I am certain my dog thinks I decided to stay home with him all day because he is so wonderful (which he is) ...
Mask wearing indoors has become a ubiquitous part of the COVID-19 experience. The B.C. government mandated mask wearing in November of 2020 for most indoor public settings. Those orders are premised on face coverings helping to prevent, respond to or alleviate the spread of COVID‐19, when used with other protective measures. Some members of our society have physical, cognitive, or psychological disabilities that make mask wearing unduly difficult or unsafe ...
In its highly anticipated judgment, the majority of the Supreme Court of Canada found the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act constitutional in a split 6-3 decision. The key issue before the court was whether the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (“GGPPA”) was constitutional. The majority decided that it was, because Parliament has jurisdiction to enact this law as a matter of national concern ...
In 2020, as offices and workplaces across Canada closed or reduced staffing capacity due to COVID-19, many Canadian workers who normally performed work at their employer’s worksite were suddenly required to work from home, either fully or partially. While this has not always been an easy transition, the silver lining is that such workers may be eligible for an income tax deduction in respect of their work-from-home situation ...
Now that we have persevered through one year of the COVID-19 pandemic, much has been written about pandemic fatigue and associated social isolation, mental stress, and anxiety. Employers may be seeing an increase in the incidence of mental illness claims in their workplaces ...
Workplace harassment is once again in the news given our former Governor General’s resignation from her post after a 132 page investigation report was issued following accusations of a toxic work environment at Rideau Hall. While the Government of Canada took the correct steps in hiring an independent investigator once the allegations surfaced, meeting with all witnesses, and then meeting with Ms ...
All indications are that the evolution of privacy laws and their impact will continue to evolve, perhaps even at a greater pace, in 2021. In celebrating Privacy Day, January 28, 2021, we would like to share four things businesses should be keeping their eyes on, and planning for, in 2021. 1. Significant changes to privacy legislation in Canada. Canadian federal and provincial governments have tabled and proposed sweeping changes to privacy laws in Canada ...
On February 1, 2021, amendments to B.C.’s Environmental Management Act will come into effect that will introduce new reporting requirements in relation to lands that have been used for specified commercial or industrial uses (the Stage 13 Amendments) ...
