In Gannon v. Kinsdale Carriers, the Ontario Superior Court recently considered what constitutes “comparable employment” for the purpose of mitigation of reasonable notice damages. The plaintiff was employed by the defendant, a federally regulated trucking company, for 23 years. At the time of her termination from employment, the plaintiff held a role that included accounts…
Tag: Reasonable Notice
Beyond COVID-19: 2022 Year in Review – Cases and Legislation of Note
Employers and human resource professionals will undoubtedly remember 2022 as another year shaped by the pandemic.
But…there were also legal developments in 2022 that were not related to COVID-19. In this FTR Now, we look at some of the past year’s notable “non-pandemic” cases and legislative developments.
Court Finds ESA-Only Termination Clause Unenforceable Due To Wording of Conflict of Interest and Confidential Information Clauses
In Henderson v. Slavkin et al., the Ontario Superior Court of Justice found that a termination clause in an employment contract which limited entitlements upon termination to only the minimums required by the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) was unenforceable due to the wording of the provisions related to “confidential information” and “conflict of interest.”…
Appellate Court Confirms 26 Month Reasonable Notice Period in Case with Exceptional Circumstances
On March 14, 2022, in Currie v. Nylene Canada Inc., the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the decision of a trial judge to award a 26-month reasonable notice period to an employee following her without cause dismissal by the employer. The employer had appealed the trial judge decision to the Ontario Court of Appeal on…
Supreme Court of Canada Denies Leave to Appeal in Case Where Termination Clause in Employment Contract Found to be Unenforceable
On March 18, 2021, the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed an application for leave to appeal from a decision of the New Brunswick Court of Appeal, Abrams v. RTO Asset Management. In that case, the New Brunswick Court of Appeal (Court) held an employer could not assert that dismissal was for cause where the employer’s…
Court Awards 5 Months’ Notice to Plaintiff with 4.5 Months’ Service and Who Was Pregnant at Time of Dismissal
In a recent summary judgment decision, Nahum v. Honeycomb Hospitality Inc., the Ontario Superior Court awarded 5 months’ reasonable notice to a plaintiff with 4.5 months’ service. In doing so, the Court found that the fact that the plaintiff was 5 months pregnant at the time of termination was an “important factor” in assessing her…
Ontario Court of Appeal Comments on Notice Entitlements Following an Asset Transaction
In Manthadi v. ASCO Manufacturing, the Ontario Court of Appeal unanimously found that summary judgment was not appropriate in a case where a plaintiff was awarded 20 months’ reasonable notice damages after one month service with a company (Purchaser) that had bought the assets of her former employer (Vendor). The Court set aside the summary…
FTR Quarterly – Issue 15
In This Issue: Protection in the Face of Employee Fraud, Key Human Resources Decisions in in 2019 and Cases to Monitor in 2020 and more!
FTR Quarterly – Issue 14
In This Issue An Update on Reasonable Notice Periods An Update on Executive Compensation Through the Notice Period Featured Lawyer – Kimberly D. Pepper Featured Topic – Employment Law Featured Articles An Update on Reasonable Notice Periods By: Mitchell R. Smith and Evon Gayle Determining an employee’s reasonable notice upon termination of employment used to…
Appellate Court Considers Contractual Rights Upon Termination
The Court of Appeal recently considered the issue of an employee’s contractual rights versus his common law rights upon the termination of his employment. In Mikelsteins v. Morrison Hershfield Limited, the defendant employer appealed a partial summary judgment that had awarded the plaintiff, a former employee, an increased value for shares that had been bought…