Tsatsi v College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan, 2018 SKCA 53, held that a physician’s defamation claim against his regulator, his employer, and the government, should be dismissed as a result of the defences of truth and qualified pr...

The internet facilitates world wide access to professional services. This in turn raises significant jurisdictional issues for regulators. If an individual or a company resides in jurisdiction “A” and provides professional services over the...

In Facey v Bantrel Management Services Co., 2019 AHRC 4 the Alberta Human rights Tribunal made a watershed costs award against a complainant. Tribunal Chair Langlois-Klassen acknowledged in her decision that costs should only be awarded against a compl...

Recent cases dealing with the protected human rights ground of “family status” provide employers with some additional guidance (and confusion) regarding the scope of their obligations, as courts, arbitrators and tribunals continue to try to...

Effective June 1, 2019, Transport Canada has new rules for flying drones in Canada. These new regulations hope to enhance predictability for businesses and  improve the safety from drone operations relating to aviation and the Canadian public. ...

On Monday May 27, the UCP-led Government of Alberta introduced Bill 2: An Act to Make Alberta Open for Business. Bill 2 passed its first reading and is aimed at reversing some of the legislative changes made by the NDP during its time in government. If...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (May 27, 2019) – Field Law is proud to announce that Kevin Feth, QC a former partner in the firm’s Edmonton office, has been appointed a Justice of the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta. Kevin’s appointment...

Restrictive covenants operate outside of – and in addition to – municipal zoning bylaws. The obligations associated with restrictive covenants “run with the land” and are binding on any future buyer of the property.Historically,...

The Use of "Time is of the Essence" Clauses in Commercial Real Estate Repurchase Options The ONCA provided some guidance and analysis on both “time is of the essence” clauses as well as the availability of specific performance ...

Local Alberta breweries Elite Brewing (visited, love the carbon fibre bar) and Bow River Brewing have been on the receiving end of a cease and desist letter from the City of Calgary over a beer label for Fort Cal...

Canadian private companies have seen much newsworthy tax reform in recent years. Changes to the tax rules on investment income earned by Canadian-controlled private corporations (CCPCs) result in various pitfalls where there is more than $50,000 of inv...

Last week the new provincial government announced its intention to require Alberta post-secondary institutions to enact policies about free speech on campus. While no specific proposals were released, and the Minister of Advanced Education said he inte...

Professional regulators should be aware that “the political winds are blowing.” Some say that a real storm is brewing while others claim that this is simply a short-lived squall of the type that regularly buffet the good ship “Self-Re...

Join Field Law and Shawn Hemens, a Chartered Business Valuator specializing in quantifying personal injury and business loss claims, for a seminar discussing: The types of financial statements that a lawyer and or adjustor will be provided in suppo...

The Women's Intellectual Property Networking Group of the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada presents:Trailblazers: An Evening to Celebrate Women in Intellectual Property, Technology, Engineering + MathDate: Wednesday, April 24 Time: 6...

Join the Field Law Professional Regulatory Group and your professional regulatory colleagues for another lunch time roundtable. This roundtable will assist regulators and their staff who use practice visits, inspections or reviews to monitor competency...

As was expected, the 2019 Federal Budget (the "Budget") is one for an election year. Meaning, while the Government provided a few handouts and various credits, there is little to offend anyone – at least from a tax perspective. A few le...

Significant amendments have been made to the Partnership and Business Names Act (the Act), RSNWT 1988, c P-1.The amendments to the Act effect partnerships, limited partnerships, and extra-territorial partnerships. Previously, there were no renewal requ...

Join Field Law's Jane Freeman and Michael Doerksen for a seminar discussing:Reserving Rights and Alberta Auto Coverage DefencesAn overview of the major types of coverage defences of the auto insurer under Alberta's standard owner's policy S...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (April 1, 2019) – Field Law, a western and northern regional law firm, today launches its seventh annual Field Law Community Fund Program (the Program). The Program supports non-charitable and charitable initiatives in North...

Merrifield v The Attorney General, 2019 ONCA 205, represents the first case in which a Canadian appellate court has considered whether a common law tort of harassment exists. In its decision released last week, the Ontario Court of Appeal declined to r...

Alberta post-secondary institutions are subject to new election laws restricting public communications during the 2019 election period.Bill 32, An Act to Strengthen and Protect Democracy, passed on December 12, 2017, introduces restrictions on advertis...

Fair and effective professional discipline hearings are essential to the professional discipline process. They are the core of the “peer review” process and a crucial element of professional discipline. Members of the profession and the pub...

In order to maintain a permanent residency in Canada, residents must be physically present in Canada for at least 730 days (2 years) in every 5-year period. The 5-year period is assessed by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (“IRCC&rdqu...

Erika Carrasco discusses how the law surrounding drones offers a typical example of the challenges of working in a fast-developing area.

Regulators have traditionally used a test of “good character and reputation” to assess applicants. However, the question remained – to what extent can regulators apply the test of “good character and reputation” for applic...

Charges for distracted driving were widened in scope by including cell and smart phones in the definition of “hand held electronic” and “wireless electronic” devices in the Traffic Safety Act.R v Ahmed, 2019 ABQB 13, per Henders...

Where a plaintiff’s vehicle is damaged to the point of becoming a constructive total loss due to a defendant’s negligence, the plaintiff was awarded damages for the time, effort and expense of finding a replacement vehicle. Entwhistle v We...

The Alberta Court of Appeal clarifies the test for summary judgment and dismissal.Weir-Jones Technical Services Incorporated v. Purolator Courier, Purolator Inc. and Purolator Freight, 2019 ABCA 49 per Slatter JA (Fraser CJA, Watson and Strekaf JJ...

The legislation setting out priorities among insurers in a rental/leased vehicle situation only applies to those polices which provide coverage and the term “listed driver” in an auto policy is not “an insured named in the contract&rd...

In the context of a motor vehicle accident where the at-fault driver was distracted by using his cell phone, the claim against Apple Inc. for marketing the cell phone without technology to disable its use while the user is driving was summarily dismiss...

Opening a cannabis store in Alberta requires a large number of steps, including obtaining approval from the Alberta Liquor Gaming and Cannabis Commission (AGLC). The Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Act, RSA 2000, c G-1 (Act) has provided the AGLC with the ...