Effective today, May 1, 2018, the funding rules for Ontario defined benefit (DB) pension plans are fundamentally changed. Learn how they apply to your plan – and how your organization can prepare for implementation.
Practice Area: Pensions, Benefits & Compensation
Workplace Law in Canada: A Primer
This Guide provides American employers with an introduction to employment laws and regulations that affect businesses in Canada. It outlines an overview of the main differences between Canadian and U.S. workplace laws.
Nova Scotia Court of Appeal Finds Benefit Plan Can Exclude Medical Marijuana
The Nova Scotia Court of Appeal recently confirmed that an administrator of a benefit plan may choose what specific drugs and medications will be covered by a plan, and in particular, held that the exclusion of medical marijuana is not discriminatory under human rights legislation. In Canadian Elevator Industry Welfare Trust Fund v. Skinner, an…
Pension Funding Reform Continues: Taking Aim at Target Benefit Multi-Employer Pension Plans
Pension plans that meet the definition of specified Ontario multi-employer pension plans (SOMEPPs) are one step closer to having the option to convert accrued defined benefits (DB) to target benefits (TB) – and one step closer to a permanent exemption from solvency funding. If your organization participates in a SOMEPP, find out what this could mean for your organization in this FTR Now.
Spring 2018 Pension & Benefits Update
Overview In the last few years, reforms to pension and employment legislation have been coming at a break neck speed. More pension and benefit related cases than ever are working their way through the system. In the face of such change, employers and plan administrators must be ready to act, making adjustments to plan design…
Regulations Filed Supporting Discharge of Pension Plan Administrator Upon Purchase of Annuities
On April 3, 2018, the government filed O. Reg. 193/18 (Purchase of Pension Benefits From an Insurance Company – Section 43.1 of the Act) under the Pension Benefits Act (PBA), which complements the recent funding reforms announced for defined benefit pension (DB) plans (the Regulation). As previously discussed, the government proposed rules to support a discharge…
Ontario Budget 2018
On March 28, 2018, the Ontario government tabled its 2018 Budget, A Plan for Care and Opportunity and introduced Bill 31, the Plan for Care and Opportunity Act (Budget Measures), 2018. The Budget outlines key initiatives around retirement security and pension reform, healthcare, education, further initiatives to specifically address gender equality issues, representation of women, and more…
Court Orders Employee Who Breached Fiduciary Duty to Pay Former Employer $20 Million
An Ontario Court recently awarded damages of $20 million for breach of fiduciary duty to Atlas Copco Canada Inc. (Atlas), from a former employee, in Atlas Copco Canada Inc. v. Hillier. The employee (Defendant) had been employed with Atlas as a general manager of one of its divisions and later as a vice-president. The fraudulent…
Advantage CPD: Emerging Issues in University Governance and Academic Administration
This Advantage CPD session will provide University Counsel and Senior Academic Administrators with an overview of the latest legal developments affecting Universities.
OSFI Publishes Guidance Note for Member Choice DC Plan Default Investments
The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) has published a new Guidance Note providing its interpretation and expectations relating to the requirements for the default investment selected by the administrator. The Guidance Note (Default Option for Member Choice Defined Contribution Plans) relates to defined contribution (DC) accounts or additional voluntary contribution accounts in…