The federal government has fixed March 1, 2013 as the day Division 7 Part 4, sections 304 to 308 and 310 to 312 and sections 685 and 687 to 695 of the Jobs, Growth and Long-term Prosperity Act (“JGLPA”) come into force. Division 7 Part 4 of the JGLPA consolidates the Privacy Codes of the…
Practice Area: Pensions, Benefits & Compensation
British Columbia Introduces PRPP Legislation
On February 28, 2013, the government of British Columbia introduced Bill 16, Pooled Registered Pension Plans Act. If passed, Bill 16 would authorize pooled registered pension plans (“PRPPs”) to be made available to provincially-regulated employees and self-employed persons in British Columbia, subject to the requirements set out in the federal Pooled Registered Pension Plans Act…
Regulation under Section 80.1 of the Pension Benefits Act Proposed
The Ontario government has proposed a new regulation relating to pension asset transfers made under section 80.1 of the Pension Benefits Act (“Act”). Proposed content for this regulation was previously posted for consultation in July 2011. This regulation is required before section 80.1 of the Act comes into effect. Once proclaimed into force, that section…
Arbitrator Considers Employer’s Ability to Collectively Bargain Changes to Retiree Benefits
In TRW Canada Ltd. and Thompson Products Employees’ Assn. (Retiree Benefits) (Re), collectively bargained changes to vested retiree benefits were found to have been made without lawful authority. The changes had been proposed by the employees’ association (“Association”), following a particularly hard round of collective bargaining, and after the employer threatened to close one of…
Carrigan v. Carrigan Estate Update: Ontario Pension Regulator Supports Common-Law Spouse’s Appeal
As first discussed in our FTR Now of November 7, 2012 “Ontario Court of Appeal Decision Rewrites the Pension Pre-Retirement Death Benefit Regime“, the decision in Carrigan v. Carrigan Estate fundamentally altered the interpretation of spousal rights and priorities relating to payment of pre-retirement death benefits. The Court of Appeal awarded the pre-retirement death benefit payable under…
Susan Nickerson Quoted in Canadian Lawyer
Hicks Morley’s Susan Nickerson was quoted in the February 2013 edition of Canadian Lawyer. In an article entitled, “The pension conundrum”, Susan comments on a British Columbia case where two employees won a wrongful dismissal claim which focused entirely on projected losses associated with their pensions. Susan states, “the concept of being in a pension…
Rachel Arbour Interviewed by the Canadian Bar Association’s National TV
Hicks Morley’s Rachel Arbour was recently interviewed by the Canadian Bar Association’s National TV. In the interview, Rachel answers questions regarding the Indalex ruling and explains what it means to companies that sponsor and administer defined benefit pension plans. Watch the interview. Read our FTR Now which summarizes the Supreme Court’s decision in Indalex.
Supreme Court of Canada Weighs in on Plan Deficits and the Fiduciary Duty of Pension Plan Administrators in an Insolvency: Sun Indalex Finance, LLC v. United Steelworkers
INTRODUCTION On February 1, 2013, the Supreme Court of Canada issued its highly anticipated decision in Sun Indalex Finance, LLC v. United Steelworkers, largely overturning the 2011 Ontario Court of Appeal decision. The Supreme Court upheld an expansive definition of the deemed trust under the Ontario Pension Benefits Act (“PBA”) and struck down a constructive…
Supreme Court of Canada Renders Decision in Indalex
Today, the Supreme Court of Canada rendered its long-awaited decision in Sun Indalex Finance, LLC v. United Steelworkers. The decision contains important findings with respect to, among other matters, the fiduciary duties of plan administrators, the reach of the statutory deemed trust provisions of the Ontario Pension Benefits Act, and the priority given to pension…
Indalex Pension Decision to be Rendered Friday
On Friday, February 1, 2013, the Supreme Court of Canada will be rendering its decision in Sun Indalex Finance, LLC et al. v. United Steelworkers et al. The appeal relates to an April 2011 decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal which granted “super-priority” to pension funding deficits in a Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act proceeding….