PRIVACY POLICY
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BIRD RICHARD
508-130 Albert St,
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 5G4
T: 613-238-3772
F: 613-238-5955
DISCLAIMER
Before you send an e-mail to Bird Richard, please be aware that your communications with us through this message will not create a lawyer-client relationship with us. Do not send us any information that you or anyone else considers to be confidential or secret unless we have first agreed to be your lawyers in that matter. Any information you send us before we agree to be your lawyers cannot be protected from disclosure.
Supreme Court of Canada Ruling Prohibits Forum Shopping
/in Summer 2012 /by BirdRichardThe Supreme Court of Canada has clarified the test for determining whether a matter has been “appropriately dealt with” in another proceeding: the Court has confirmed that human rights tribunals cannot review human rights decisions of other administrative decision makers. In British Columbia (Workers’ Compensation Board) v. Figliola, three injured employees had received compensation payments […]
“Fire Me Once, Shame on You – Fire Me Twice ……!!” Arbitrator Finds Post-Discharge Termination is not Void Ab Initio
/in Summer 2012 /by BirdRichardIn a recent decision, successfully argued by Bird Richard, Arbitrator Frumkin held that an employer could terminate an employee who had already been discharged. The Grievor, a letter carrier, had been terminated for abusive conduct to a customer. At the disciplinary meeting, after being told that he was discharged and handed the discharge letter, the […]
Accommodation Efforts by Employees Results in Discipline
/in Fall 2012 /by BirdRichardWhen a training session was being conducted on the second floor of a local hardware store, a few employees realized that their wheelchair-bound colleague would be unable to attend. The colleague requested that they strap him in his wheelchair onto a forklift, in order to hoist him onto the second floor. They gladly obliged. At […]
Employer Liability to Provide Safe Workplace is a Perpetual One
/in Fall 2012 /by BirdRichardIn R. v. Corporation (City of Guelph), the Ontario Court of Justice declared that an employer’s duty to maintain a safe workplace is a continuing one to which no time limitations apply. In 2003, the City of Guelph undertook to construct a building in one of its parks. An architect and engineer were hired for […]
Employment Agreements Must Specify Duty to Mitigate
/in Fall 2012 /by BirdRichardA recent ruling of the Ontario Court of Appeal has clarified that where an employment agreement provides for a specific amount to be paid to the employee in the event of termination without cause and is silent with respect to mitigation, the employee will not be required to mitigate. The employee in this case, Peter […]
RCMP Members Right to Freedom of Association Not Violated
/in Fall 2012 /by BirdRichardIn June 2012, the Ontario Court of Appeal released its’ decision in the Mounted Police Assn. of Ontario v. Canada (Attorney General) case. The decision addresses the scope of section 2(d) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the “Charter”) which protects freedom of association, a controversial subject which has been addressed by the […]
Supreme Court Affirms Arbitrators’ Flexibility in Applying Legal Principles
/in Winter 2012 /by BirdRichardIn early December 2011, the Supreme Court of Canada once again confirmed that decisions of arbitrators should be given a high level of deference. The Court’s decision in Nor-Man Regional Health Authority Inc. v. Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals involved an arbitrator’s decision of a grievance disputing the interpretation of an article in the […]
Accessibility Standards post-January 1st, 2012 – Are you Compliant?
/in Winter 2012 /by BirdRichardThe Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 was enacted with the objective of making Ontario completely accessible to people with disabilities by the year 2025. In order to work towards this goal, various Accessibility Standards have been developed. The Customer Service Accessibility Standard The Customer Service Accessibility Standard requires businesses to ensure that the […]
Federal Court of Appeal Finds Tribunal Orders Hold Same Weight as Court Orders
/in Winter 2012 /by BirdRichardWhile the Supreme Court of Canada determined in Mowat that the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT, the “Tribunal”) does not have the authority to award costs, a recent decision of the Federal Court of Appeal has confirmed other powers of the Tribunal, finding that orders issued by the Tribunal carry the same weight as court […]
Supreme Court of Canada Confirms Canadian Human Rights Tribunal
/in Winter 2012 /by BirdRichardCannot Award Costs Donna Mowat filed a human rights complaint with the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC) alleging that she had been discriminated against by the Canadian Forces on the ground of sex, contrary to the Canadian Human Rights Act (CHRA). The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal found the complaint substantiated in part, and awarded damages […]