Jan 29, 2019Condominiums & Construction Liens Registering construction liens against condominiums presents some unique challenges. This article will outline some of those challenges and present some check-lists that can be used to ensure…
Jamaica’s Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms: An ineffective safeguard for oppression At the signing of the Proclamation of the Constitution Act – and Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms – in April 1982, the Right Honourable Pierre Elliott…
Jan 24, 2019The Civil Trial in Ontario: The Culture Shift from the “Sport of Kings” Towards the “One Judge Model” Effective February 1, 2019, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice will implement the Provincial Civil Case Management Pilot – One Judge Model (the “Pilot”). Civil litigants may…
Jan 23, 2019Foiled by Fonts: How Expert Evidence on Fonts Demonstrated Trusts Were Shams The Ontario Superior Court of Justice recently reviewed the indicia of a sham trust in McGoey (Re).[1] Gerald McGoey, an undischarged bankrupt, and his wife, Kathryn McGoey,…
Jan 17, 2019What is the Reasonable Apportionment of Fault? The Case of the CNRL Emulsion Pipeline Failure In Canadian Natural Resources Limited v. Wood Group Mustang (Canada) Inc. (IMV Projects Inc.), 2018 ABCA 305, the Alberta Court of Appeal very recently dealt with an…
Jan 16, 2019Streamlining Growth Management – Proposed Amendments to the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, 2017 On January 15, 2019, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing announced proposed amendments to the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, 2017 (the “Growth Plan”)…
Jan 1, 2019Transportation Notes: Federal Government Proposes Air Passenger Protection Regulations The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) is seeking public review and comment on proposed Air Passenger Protection Regulations. The proposed regulations will establish a carrier’s minimum obligations toward…
Dec 19, 2018Summary of Bill 66 – Proposed Planning Act Changes On December 6, 2018, the Ontario Government introduced a bill entitled “Bill 66 – Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act, 2018″ (“Bill 66“). Also introduced at the same time was…
Dec 17, 2018Here One Minute, Gone the Next: BC Court of Appeal Overturns Chambers Judge’s Decision to Grant Leave to Appeal an Arbitral Award in Richmont Mines Inc. v. Teck Resources Limited In its recent decision in Richmont Mines Inc. v. Teck Resources Limited, the British Columbia Court of Appeal emphasized the strict limits on the availability of appeal…
Dec 10, 2018The Perils of Prediction: Lessons for Regulators in the Age of Big Data You’ve likely read one too many articles that start by telling you that big data is watching you and predicting what you will do or buy next.…
Dec 6, 2018Reminder to Ontario Corporations: Deadline to have your Real Property Register is December 10, 2018 In December 2016, new record keeping obligations were imposed by way of amendments to the Ontario Business Corporations Act (the “OBCA“); the Ontario Corporations Act (the “CA“); and the Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporations…
Dec 4, 2018Start Shredding: The Ultimate Limitation Period Is About to Extinguish Claims The Limitations Act, 2002 (“Act”) has been in force since January 1, 2004. However, section 15 of the Act, which establishes an ultimate limitation period of fifteen…
Nov 30, 2018Webinar: Breakfast with the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, Brian Beamish WeirFoulds hosted a breakfast seminar with the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, Brian Beamish, to discuss FIPPA, MFIPPA and PHIPA. Click here to access the webinar recording.…
Nov 29, 2018Webinar: Hot Topics in Employment Law Aisling Flarity, Sean Foran, Megan Mah and Daniel Wong from WeirFoulds, and Jason Mandlowitz of Mandlowitz Consulting take us through some current hot topics in employment law:…
Nov 27, 2018Contracts with Arbitration and Jurisdictional Clauses: Are They in Conflict? Contracts often contain both mandatory arbitration clauses and jurisdictional clauses that specify which courts have jurisdiction. These clauses need to be drafted carefully so that there is…
When can Directors of Charities be Compensated? The holiday season is a time to reconnect with family and friends and reflect on the year that has passed. It is also a time of year…
Nov 20, 2018Keys, Please: The Econolodge Park-and-Fly Conundrum On October 19, 2018, the Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in 3091 5177 Québec inc. (Éconolodge Aéroport) v. Lombard General Insurance Co. of Canada, 2018 SCC…
Nov 19, 2018Supreme Court of Canada Refuses to Hear Appeal from Ontario Court of Appeal Decision Giving Ontario Municipalities More Independence Over Parkland On November 15, 2018, the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed applications for leave to appeal from a decision of a three-judge panel of the Ontario Court of…
Nov 14, 2018Three’s Company or Three’s a Crowd? Recent Guidance from the Courts on Third-Party Funding of Litigation Overview Third-party funding of litigation is a relatively new phenomenon in Canada. Under this type of funding arrangement, a third-party lender agrees to advance funds to a…
Nov 8, 2018The Laws They Are A’Changing (Again) – Backtrack on Bill 148: Proposed Reversals of Key Employment Law Changes in Ontario On October 23, 2018, the Ontario government introduced Bill 47, entitled Making Ontario Open for Business Act, which would repeal various sections of the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act,…
Nov 5, 2018Saving Face: Minority Shareholder Estée Lauder Granted Interim Relief in Oppression Application Against Deciem Beauty Group Toronto-based cosmetics company Deciem Beauty Group Inc. (“Deciem”) has been in the headlines following two recent decisions of the Commercial List,[1] in which the Ontario Superior Court…
Nov 1, 2018Privacy Breaches: New Mandatory Notification Requirements Under PIPEDA As of November 1st, 2018 new mandatory breach notification and record-keeping requirements under the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (“PIPEDA“) and the Breach of Security Safeguards Regulations came into…
Oct 29, 2018All that Glisters is Not Tolled, but is the Story Fully Told? On October 10th, 2018 the Ontario Court of Appeal released its decision dismissing the appeal in the case of National Money Mart Company v 24 Gold Group…
Oct 23, 2018A Relief for Lenders: Duty of Good Faith Performance of Contractual Obligations does not Require Lenders to Advance Additional Funds to Borrowers Since the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Bhasin v Hrynew1 confirmed the existence of a general duty to perform contracts in good faith, the Canadian legal and business communities…
A Matter of “Interest“ In a decision that raised concerns for lenders earlier this year, the Superior Court of Justice held, in Solar Power Network Inc. v. ClearFlow Energy Finance Corp.1, that…
The Enforceability of Guarantees given by Officers and Directors of Corporate Borrowers and Sophisticated Individuals As a mechanism for safeguarding the enforceability of a guarantee, it is common practice for commercial lenders to require that personal guarantors obtain independent legal advice with…
No Additional Consideration Required to Support Loan Amendments Private loan arrangements lead to more than their fair share of litigation proceedings. Their disputes often require the courts to apply long-standing legal principles to informal loan…
The Test for Unconscionability in Loan Agreements Not surprisingly, borrowers often view certain terms in loan and credit agreements as harsh, over-reaching or unusually generous for the lender. But at what point does a…
Priorities Matter – But That’s Not All That Matters! Often, when the parties to a financing are discussing priorities or intercreditor arrangements, there tends to be a simplistic view taken of these agreements. Once the competing…
Oct 22, 2018When the Deal Goes South: Deposits, Unconscionability, and Relief from Forfeiture Recent cases from the Ontario Court of Appeal address issues regarding deposits in failed purchase and sale transactions. An examination of these cases provides guidance regarding the…
Quick Question: Opinions on Amendments to Credit Agreements Q: Do I need an opinion from borrower’s counsel on an amendment to an existing credit agreement? A: Opinions from borrower’s counsel are routinely provided on the…
Oct 15, 2018Misnomers and Misdescriptions: The “Litigation Finger Test” to the Rescue! In the last month, the Court of Appeal decided two cases based on the “litigation finger test”.[1] The litigation finger test can assist a plaintiff in cases of misdescription…
Sep 24, 2018CSA Amendments to Simplify Reports of Exempt Distribution – Bulletin On July 19, 2018, the Canadian Securities Administrators (“CSA“) published final amendments (“Amendments“) to National Instrument 45-106 – Prospectus Exemptions (“NI 45-106“) and its related Companion Policy…
Sep 20, 2018Government “Policy” Decisions Do Not Always Trump Judicial Review A change in government and its policies can impact business dramatically, and often with unintended consequences. In some cases, the result is intended. In matters of a…
Sep 6, 2018Anti-SLAPP Legislation Tested at the Court of Appeal On August 30, 2018, the Ontario Court of Appeal released six unanimous decisions that address Ontario’s “anti-SLAPP” legislation.[1] SLAPPs – Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation – are…