Ontario’s Bill 70: The New Face of Pension Regulation Revealed

On November 16, 2016, the Ontario government introduced Bill 70, Building Ontario Up for Everyone Act (Budget Measures), 2016 (Bill 70). Bill 70 is omnibus legislation that includes various pension-related initiatives, including substantive changes to certain pension minimum standards…

The Canadian Bar Association Publishes an Article by Rachel Arbour and Andrea Yau

An article authored by Hicks Morley’s Rachel Arbour and Andrea Yau was published in the March 2014 edition of The Canadian Bar Association‘s National Pensions and Benefits Law Section Newsletter. The article entitled, “No deemed trust applied to plans wound up during CCAA” discusses the Ontario Superior Court of Justice’s decision in Re Grant Forest…

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…

Supreme Court of Canada to Render Indalex Decision on February 1, 2013

The Supreme Court of Canada has announced that it will render its decision in Sun Indalex Finance, LLC et al. v. United Steelworkers et al. (“Indalex“) on Friday, February 1, 2013. The appeal relates to a decision of the Court of Appeal for Ontario that granted “super-priority” to pension funding deficits in a Companies’ Creditors…

Super Priority for CCAA Charges Granted Preference Over Pension Deficits

On February 2, 2012, in On Re Timminco, the Commercial Court granted an order for “super priority” for an Administration Charge ($1,000,000) and Directors’ and Officers’ Charge ($400,000) in preference to other encumbrances, including pension deficits in Timminco’s pension plans (aggregate deficit is in excess of $11,000,000). Justice Morawetz found that federal insolvency legislation, specifically…

Ontario Court of Appeal Revisits Pension and Insolvency Principles: Indalex

INTRODUCTION On April 7, 2011, the Ontario Court of Appeal (the “Court”) released its decision in Re Indalex Limited. In this decision, the Court considers and revisits fundamental and established Canadian pension and insolvency law principles, making this decision required reading for members of pension committees, human resources professionals involved in pension plan administration, and…