Between the USMCA, the updated Patent Act and the newly written Trademarks Act, lots has changed When and if the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) is ratified by all parties, US attorneys and in-house counsel seeking to prosecute or enforce their clients’ intellectual property rights in Canada will notice its impact immediately. The agreement, which is […]
A Nova Scotia arbitrator has ruled that sex addiction isn’t a disability that employers must accommodate, especially where the condition doesn’t affect the employee’s ability to perform their duties. The arbitrator, Augustus Richardson, also expressed doubt that a condition called “sex addiction” existed, noting it wasn’t generally recognized by an accredited professional body such as the American […]
Canada’s new Commissioner of Competition, Matthew Boswell, appointed just four months ago, has taken little time to make his mark as a man of his word. By initiating the first contested merger challenge since 2015, the first merger challenge ever involving software companies, the first involving a private equity company, and a rare challenge to […]
Canadians seeking extensions may experience lengthy delay The preferential status accorded Canadians in the renewal of “Blanket L” work permits in the United States appears to have ended abruptly. U.S. Blanket L petitions allow large multinationals to obtain blanket approval for temporary intracompany cross-border transfers for their employees. “For over 20 years, Canadians seeking Blanket […]
The impact of climate change on the insurance industry has made it a vocal supporter of remedial measures. “The insurance industry, which so often gets bad press, is leading the charge and deserves a shout-out,” says John Olah of Beard Winter LLP in Toronto. Earlier this month, the Insurance Bureau of Canada called on the […]
“But for” language is behind much of the confusion surrounding the causation analysis in medical malpractice cases, particularly those involving delayed diagnosis allegations, says a veteran practitioner. “‘But for’ is meant to encapsulate an event that causes or contributes to the harm,” says Paul Harte of Harte Law in Richmond Hill, Ontario. “But juries get […]
The Supreme Court of Canada’s June judgment in 1068754 Alberta Ltd. v. Québec (Agence de Revenue) means that tax evaders will have no more luck hiding their assets extra-provincially than they currently do internationally. “This was an extraordinary 9-0 decision ensuring tax authorities that they will be able to get information out of any Canadian province just […]
Connolly and Connolly Obagi LLP, a recent decision from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, eases some of the uncertainty surrounding what amounts to “exceptional circumstances” that entitle plaintiffs’ counsel to add costs recovered to their contingency fees in non-medical malpractice cases. “Connolly is a significant case in clarifying this whole area of the law,” […]
The deafening silence from in-house counsel and their professional associations about the Ford government’s $130 million in cuts to Legal Aid Ontario is nothing less than shameful. While it’s true that the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) has launched a social media campaign (#LegalAidMatters) to rally the profession to the cause, and all 13 CBA branch […]
Even with a bedrock of legal principle at stake, Ecuadorean villagers’ battle with Chevron had equities at its heart “I looked at the stuff and said yes.” That is Alan Lenczner’s succinct summary of the advice he gave to a group of Ecuadorean plaintiffs who consulted his firm, Lenczner Slaght Royce Griffin Smith LLP, about […]