Publications

December 1, 2012

AMF Investigations: The duty to answer an investigator and his jurisdiction to rule on objections (continued)

With regard to our In Fact and In Law Express newsletter of July 2012, entitled ‘‘AMF Investigations: The duty to answer an investigator and his jurisdiction to rule on objections’’, please be informed that, on December 20, 2012, the Supreme Court dismissed Fournier’s (…)

December 1, 2012

Due diligence and commercial leases

Generally speaking, the acquisition of rental property requires a due diligence process that is usually focused on building and property conditions, property titles and lease analysis. During this phase, the purchaser will primarily be concerned about a possible right of first refusal to acquire (…)

November 1, 2012

New consumer protection measures for prepaid credit cards

This publication was authored by Luc Thibaudeau, former partner of Lavery and now judge in the Civil Division of the Court of Québec, District of Longueuil. On October 24, 2012, the Harper government announced its intentions to enact new regulations to protect consumers who use prepaid credit cards (…)

November 1, 2012

TSX amends director election rules and proposes a majority voting requirement

Issues surrounding the election of directors of public companies gained the attention of Canadian securities regulators in the last years due to concerns expressed by large institutional investors that current Canadian rules regarding the election of directors were not democratic nor aligned with (…)

November 1, 2012

Hypothecary Claims, Factoring and Priorities

In a recent decision, the Superior Court ruled in favour of GE, Commercial Distribution Finance Canada ('GE') in a dispute against the National Bank of Canada ('NBC'). Both institutions had a common client, New World Zanotti Transblock Inc. ('Zanotti'), which had granted to each of them a hypothec (…)

November 1, 2012

The Metron Construction Corp. Case: Another conviction for criminal negligence in the area of occupational health and safety

Since the adoption of Bill C-45 amending certain provisions of the Criminal Code in March of 2004, employers have had to take on increased responsibility in the area of occupational health and safety. Indeed, the effect of sections 22.1 and 217.1 of the Criminal Code is to facilitate the laying of (…)

October 1, 2012

Professional liability insurance and gross fault: the Court of Appeal sings a different tune (new version)

Following the important judgment rendered by the Court of Appeal on August 2, 2012, the Court has ruled once again, on September 27, 2012, on the exclusions for gross fault with respect to professional liability insurance. In addition, the decision confirmed, as provided in the Civil Code, that an (…)

October 1, 2012

The « Critical Supplier » in Québec Jurisprudence and a Québec Perspective on INDALEX

The Critical Supplier in Québec jurisprudence Superior Court refuses to import INDALEX decision into Québec Law.

October 1, 2012

CCAA: Is the termination of employment contracts subject to section 32 CCAA?

On August 30, 2011, Hart Stores Inc./Magasins Hart inc. (hereinafter 'Hart'), filed for protection under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (hereinafter the 'CCAA'). As part of the restructuring, Hart closed down 32 out of 92 points of sale and laid off 640 out of 1,600 employees. Included in (…)

October 1, 2012

Does an employer have the right to forbid the recording of cell phone conversations by employees?

In the era of smartphones and their ever-increasing sophisticated applications, it may be difficult for an employer to control what employees do with their cell phones while at work. What is the extent of an employer’s powers when an employee makes use of his personal cell phone? Does an (…)

October 1, 2012

Creditors suspected of wishing to eliminate a competitor: The Court refuses to annul their votes against a plan of arrangement

On May 14, 2012, the Honourable Normand Gosselin, J.S.C., ruled on an amended motion seeking the sanction of a plan of arrangement concerning a debtor, Norgate Métal Inc. ('Norgate'). The judgment is special in that Norgate asked the Court to annul some of the votes that had been cast against the (…)

October 1, 2012

The Court of Appeal rules on the scope of section 59 of the Labour Code with respect to a definitive business closure

The Québec Court of Appeal rendered an important decision on the legality of termination of employment for some 190 employees of the Wal-Mart store in Jonquière. In the context of several proceedings, which were filed to obtain compensation for those job losses, the United Food and Commercial (…)

October 1, 2012

Investment and Financial Security Advisors: Respect your clients’ goals and document your files!

Two recent decisions of the Court of Appeal remind us of the duty on investment advisors and financial security advisors to know their client and the correlative duty of information. In both cases, the Court of Appeal held that the advisor had breached his duty to know his client, assess the (…)