1101 Results * (She/Her)Paralegal + Team Lead, Real Estate Services VCARD Calgary (She/Her)Director of Professional Recruitment and Development VCARD Paralegal + Team Lead, Residential + Commercial Real Estate VCARD Edmonton (She/Her)Paralegal + Team Lead, Corporate Services VCARD Calgary Kara Isabelle (She/Her)Paralegal, Litigation Services VCARD Edmonton Practice Group Leader, Trademark Agent Calgary , TEP (She/Her)Partner VCARD Executive Committee Member Calgary news + views + events [ View All ] December 12 Bow Valley Business Series: Privacy + Cybersecurity 101 Lunch + Learn As a business in the Bow Valley region, you’re no stranger to the challenges and opportunities our unique business landscape presents.
Join us for a series of complimentary lunch and learns designed to help you navigate these challenges effect... November 16 Bow Valley Business Series: Intellectual Property 101 Lunch + Learn As a business in the Bow Valley region, you’re no stranger to the challenges and opportunities our unique business landscape presents.
Join us for a series of complimentary lunch and learns designed to help you navigate these challenges effect... October 26 Unpacking Concussion Injuries with Dr. Martin Mrazik Webinar In the ever-evolving landscape of insurance law, staying up to date on developments in the areas of concussions, mild traumatic brain injuries, and post-concussive syndrome is vital. Understanding recent cases and their outcomes is crucial for making i... October 26 Bow Valley Business Series: Employment 101 Lunch + Learn As a business in the Bow Valley region, you’re no stranger to the challenges and opportunities our unique business landscape presents.
Join us for a series of complimentary lunch and learns designed to help you navigate these challenges effect... September 2023 - 4 min read New Tax Law Amendments That May Affect Employers Workwise Newsletter
Recent changes to the Income Tax Act may affect how employers approach settlement. Under these new amendments, any transaction that meets the updated definition of an “avoidance transaction” must be reported and filed with ... September 2023 Legal Notes: Correct names on Both Contracts and Liens can Save Headaches Daily Commercial News September 2023 Field Law Community Fund Program Helping You Make a Difference in the Bow Valley Rocky Mountain Outlook September 2023 Field Law Community Fund Program Opens to Applicants Canadian Lawyer September 2023 - 6 min read Addressing the Legal Issues Arising from the Use of AI in Canada
In September 2023, the Canadian government released new guidelines highlighting the increasing impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on businesses. Intellectual property, liability, data privacy, bias, transparency, ethics, and govern... September 15, 2023 People, Pets + Parking: Board Member Duties + Dealing with Dysfunction Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and John Gilbert for a complimentary webinar series designed for condominium managers, board members and unit owners based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what othe... September 14, 2023 Right-Touch Regulation: What Does It Mean + How Can Professional Regulatory Organizations Apply It? Roundtable Join Field Law’s Professional Regulatory Group and your professional regulatory colleagues for our fall roundtable.
The concept of “right-touch regulation” was developed in 2010, and remains relevant today in establishing the... September 2023 Legal Notes: Indemnity Awards are Based on Proportionality and Court Conduct Daily Commercial News by ConstructConnect September 2023 - 5 min read Get Me Out: Interpleader Orders + Ongoing Contractor Litigation Constructive Thoughts Newsletter
The Court found that where the amount owed to the general contractor exceeded the principal debts owed to subcontractors, it was appropriate to pay the full amount owed to the general contractor into court to fully secure subcontractor... September 2023 North Edmonton Condo Evacuation Will Last Months CTV News Edmonton Renters and owners with units in an evacuated condo in Castledowns will likely be out of their homes for months. During that time, they're still on the hook for mortgages and condo fees. Erin Berney weighs in on condo ... September 5, 2023 Field Law invites applications for its Community Fund Program, $75,000 in funding available Field Law is now accepting applications for its 11th annual Field Law Community Fund Program. Charitable organizations, community associations and individuals located in Alberta and the Northwest Territories (NWT) are encouraged to apply. Applications ... August 2023 - 4 min read Human Rights Claims After Termination of Employment: A Valid Release Puts the Past in the Past Workwise Newsletter
Signing a release – or requiring an employee to sign one – should never be taken lightly. Nearly 25 years ago, the Alberta courts clarified that while an employee cannot contract out of their human rights protections, an em... August 2023 The Best Lawyers™ in Canada 2024 43 Lawyers Recognized Field Law is pleased to announce that 44 of our lawyers are recognized in their respective practice areas in the 18th edition of The Best Lawyers™ in Canada. Recognition in Best Lawyers™ is based on peer reviews of ... August 2023 - 11 min read Navigating Freedom of Speech + Professional Regulation: The Jordan Peterson Case
The Jordan Peterson case serves as a significant reminder for professional regulatory organizations to delicately balance the constitutional right to freedom of speech with the imperative to uphold professional standards. This case emp... August 17, 2023 Yellowknife Evacuation Notice Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the ongoing wildfires in the Northwest Territories.Due to the escalating situation, the authorities have issued an evacuation order for Yellowknife, and as a result, our physical office will be temporarily clo... August 2023 - 4 min read Substantial Indemnity Costs in the Context of Liens Constructive Thoughts Newsletter
Parties to construction contracts should be attentive to the potential for substantial indemnity costs in lien proceedings, recognizing the significance of recoverable litigation costs. The courts have the authority to award costs on... August 2023 - 5 min read Trying to Dissolve the Corporate Veil? Not Likely.
Condominium Corporation No. 0828219 v Carrington Holdings Ltd. is a recent decision reinforcing the long-standing principle that parent corporations and subsidiaries are separate legal entities and damage caused by a subsidiary ... August 2023 IP Explained: Timing Considerations for Filing a Patent Application What is intellectual property (IP), and how do you protect it? In this video series, we will explain what IP is, the types of IP your organization may have, and tips and practical considerations to help you protect, enforce, and commercialize your IP.
... August 2023 - 2 min read Legal Notes: Dicing up Responsibility When Buildings go Wrong Daily Commercial News by ConstructConnect August 2023 - 9 mins Russian Association Claims Exclusion from Edmonton Heritage Festival is a Human Rights Violation Edmonton AM with Mark Connolly, Tara McCarthy The Edmonton Heritage Festival has made the decision to bar the Russian pavilion from the annual event due to "safety concerns." Now, the Russian association says the exclusion is a human rights violation. Jason Kully joined Edmonto... July 2023 - 5 min read Employer Liability When Using Staffing Agencies to Hire Foreign Workers Workwise Newsletter
Many employers rely on staffing agencies to assist with hiring employees. Despite this, employers remain liable and may be subject to sanctions if foreign workers are on site without proper authorization. As an employer, you must confi... July 2023 - 6 min read Lien Bonds Are as Good as Cash Constructive Thoughts Newsletter
The Manitoba Court of Appeal reversed a chambers Justice's decision which held that a lien bond was not as good as cash for vacating liens on a Crown project. In doing so, the Court of Appeal noted that in situations where neither ... July 2023 Amendments to the Competition Act and What Can Happen if You Don’t Comply Law Camera Action: Field Law Talks Law What are the new amendments to the Competition Act and what can happen if you don't comply?Amendments to the Competition Act prohibit companies from entering into no-poach agreements and wage-fixing agreements with respect to employees. Lee Carter ... July 2023 IP Explained: Is My Invention Patentable? What is intellectual property (IP), and how do you protect it? In this video series, we will explain what IP is, the types of IP your organization may have, and tips and practical considerations to help you protect, enforce, and commercialize your IP.
... July 2023 - 4 min read Who is Responsible for Defective Design? Constructive Thoughts Newsletter
The Court in Seagate Construction v Halifax Regional Municipality held that when a contractor is hired to carry out a design created by others, it is not responsible for faulty aspects of the intended design if its workmanship is sound... July 2023 - 6 min read Extending the Limitation Period: When Does an Action Warrant Proceeding? July 2023 - 4 min read Determining Validity of Contractor Claim of Lien Constructive Thoughts Newsletter
Understanding engagement relationships and responsibilities regarding subcontractors is crucial for construction company owners. A recent decision ruled that a lien was valid, even though the property owners were unaware of the subco... July 2023 - 3 min read Screening Stage Showdown: Increased Odds of Complaints Going to Hearing Workwise Newsletter
This ruling implies that human rights complaints are more likely to proceed to a hearing when credibility is a significant factor. It is crucial for employers to be prepared for such situations and ensure they gather sufficient evidenc... July 2023 Legal Column - Side Gigs Edmonton AM with Mark Connolly, Tara McCarthy An education assistant in BC with a racy OnlyFans account has been fired for what her employer calls 'egregious' conduct. Jason Kully joined Edmonton AM with Mark Connelly, Tara McCarthy to explain just how much control an employ... June 20, 2023 Legal Fundamentals for Manufactured Home Communities Workshop Understanding the legal aspects of manufactured and modular home management is crucial for anyone involved in the day-to-day operation of these communities. Join Field Law’s Paul Kolida and Trina Jackson for an in-d... June 2023 - 4 min read Mistakes on Builders' Liens: Can They Be Cured? Constructive Thoughts Newsletter
Two recent cases in Alberta and British Columbia examined the validity of construction liens with mistakes. In Alberta, a court ruled that liens with substantial compliance and no prejudice can be valid, even with certain mistakes. I... June 2023 - 5 min read How Should a Court Settle the Terms of a Release in Contentious Settlements? Constructive Thoughts Newsletter
Haider v Rizvi highlights the Court's role in resolving disagreements when parties fail to agree on the terms of a release following a settlement. In this case, the Court determined the contents of a full and final mutual release... June 13, 2023 Coffee + Counsel: Common Pitfalls to Avoid with Employment Contracts Q+A Session Join us for Coffee + Counsel, a complimentary webinar series where you can connect with our lawyers for an unscripted discussion about legal issues relevant to organizations operating in Alberta and the Northwest Territories. We'll be sharing our l... June 2023 IP Explained: Who Owns a Company's Intellectual Property? What is intellectual property (IP), and how do you protect it? In this video series, we will explain what IP is, the types of IP your organization may have, and tips and practical considerations to help you protect, enforce, and commercialize your IP.
... June 2023 - 3 min read The Cost of Keeping Separate Suites June 1 , 2023 - 6 min read Non-Solicitation Covenant in Employment Contract Enforced Workwise Newsletter
Non-solicitation covenants are clauses that prohibit employees from soliciting clients or employees from their former employer after leaving the company. The courts have generally upheld these covenants when they are reasonable in scop... June 2023 - 8 min The Right to Work from Home Edmonton AM with Mark Connolly, Tara McCarthy After allowing employees to work from home for most of the pandemic- more and more employers are mandating a return to the office, at least for part of the week. That has some employees asking: is there a right to work from home? Jason Kully ... May 2023 - 2 min read The Hidden Costs of De-Condominiumizing May 2023 - 3 min read Your Divorce Is Finally Complete, but What About Your Will?
Any time you experience a significant life change or substantial change in your assets, you should review your Will, Personal Directive, and Enduring Power of Attorney to ensure that they accurately reflect your current wishes. This ... May 2023 IP Explained: The Basics What is intellectual property (IP), and how do you protect it? In this video series, we will explain what IP is, the types of IP your organization may have, and tips and practical considerations to help you protect, enforce, and commercialize your IP.
... May 24, 2023 - 4 min read Surety Liability Under a Performance Bond
The Court faced a situation where it had to determine whether a surety had any liability under a performance bond. The Court found that even where it could not conclusively determine whether certain damages were due to the principal... May 2023 Is Alberta’s Rural Renewal Immigration Stream the right option for your workforce needs? Law Camera Action: Field Law Talks Law Is Alberta’s Rural Renewal Immigration Stream the right option for your workforce needs? Alberta’s Rural Renewal Immigration Stream is a lesser-known and used avenue for quickly bringing eligible workers to smaller communities in Alber... May 12, 2023 People, Pets + Parking: Understanding Condo Bylaws vs. Condo Rules Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and John Gilbert for a complimentary webinar series designed for Property Managers based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what other issues are plaguing property man... May 4, 2023 Current Issues in Registration Roundtable Join Field Law’s Professional Regulatory Group and your professional regulatory colleagues for our spring roundtable.
At this roundtable, we will discuss strategies to manage the registration processes, mitigate risks, and maintain ... April 25, 2023 Mid-Year Checkup: Trends + Challenges for Insurers Seminar The insurance industry is facing a rapidly evolving climate with new challenges emerging every day. Insurers must navigate a complex legal landscape with constantly changing regulations and case law. These challenges require a proactive approach and an... April 2023 - 2 min read Overtime Pays Off: Court Expands Employees' Ability to Seek Unpaid Overtime Workwise Newsletter
The Court recently determined that employees can claim more than six months of overtime pay in wrongful dismissal actions. Employers should ensure they have enforceable overtime agreements to avoid potentially significant awards for ... April 2023 - 6 min read Employer’s Claim of After-Acquired Cause Denied Canadian HR Reporter Can a without-cause dismissal be recharacterized later as for cause - even if the material circumstances were known to the employer before the dismissal?Francesca Ghossein weighs in on a recent case that confirms employers can’t change their mind... April 2023 - 7 min Know the Limits of Private Information Edmonton AM with Mark Connolly, Tara McCarthy A tight rental market in Alberta has led to some landlords asking for a lot of personal information from prospective tenants. CBC heard from some tenants who said landlords they dealt with were asking for their social insurance numbers, copies of drive... April 2023 - 3 min read Get Me Out of This Mess! Partial Settlement in Multi-Party Litigation The cost and delay in litigation has, in many cases, become undefendable. The involvement of multiple parties, each with their own counsel and interests, can further delay and increase litigation costs for all parties. Partial settlement may simplify l... April 2023 - 3 min read Immovable Security: Lien Eligibility for Mobile Structures
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice confirmed that portable classrooms are characterized as "improvements" and are therefore eligible for a lien under the Ontario Construction Act. The same conclusion would like... April 2023 - 5 min read Interim Orders: A Difficult Decision Perspectives for the Professions Legislation for many regulatory processes provides that interim orders, including an interim suspension, may be imposed before the conclusion of the investigation and adjudicative process. An interim order may be essential to protect the public while t... April 2023 - 4 min read Labour Mobility Proclaimed Perspectives for the Professions Field Law covered Alberta’s new Labour Mobility Act when it was first introduced in the legislature in October 2021. The Labour Mobility Act and the new Labour Mobility Regulation were proclaimed into force... April 11, 2023 Costs Orders in Professional Regulation: Navigating the Latest Developments Webinar On March 30, 2023, the Supreme Court of Canada denied application for leave to appeal of two decisions of the Alberta Court of Appeal where the Court addressed a regulator’s authority to order costs: Tan v. Alberta Veterinary Medical Associa... April 2023 - 3 min read Suspension + Publication Order Constitute Irreparable Reputational Harm Perspectives for the Professions In Tan v Alberta Veterinary Medical Association, the Court of Appeal agreed to stay some of the sanctions imposed by a Hearing Tribunal against a veterinarian until after the appeal on the merits was heard by the Court of Appeal. The Court fo... March 2023 The Law of Regulatory Investigations in Canada Field Law’s Professional Regulatory Group is pleased to announce the publication of a new book, “The Law of Regulatory Investigations in Canada” by James Casey, KC, Jason Kully, and Michelle Casey. Most administrat... March 2023 Changes to Alberta’s Occupational Health and Safety Code come into effect March 31, 2023 Law Camera Action: Field Law Talks Law What changes to Alberta’s Occupational Health and Safety Code should you be aware of?Changes to Alberta’s Occupational Health and Safety Code come into effect March 31, 2023. Employers need to be mindful of how these changes affect their or... March 2023 - 3 min read Employer Cannot Change Termination from Without Cause to With Cause Workwise Newsletter
The Court found that an employer could not recharacterize a without cause dismissal of one of its employees as termination for cause when the material circumstances were known to the employer before the dismissal.
... March 2023 - 4 min read Changes to Alberta’s Occupational Health and Safety Code Workwise Newsletter
Changes to Alberta’s Occupational Health and Safety Code come into effect March 31, 2023. Employers need to be mindful of how these changes affect their organization and assess whether practices need to be changed or implemented ... March 17, 2023 People, Pets + Parking: Aging Condominiums - Repair or Terminate? Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and John Gilbert for a complimentary webinar series designed for Property Managers based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what other issues are plaguing property man... March 2023 - 4 min read Priority Between Builders' Liens + Trustee Fees in a Bankrupt Estate
Usually, secured claims against a bankrupt estate (such as builders' liens) are paid out before any other claims, including a bankruptcy trustee's fees. But fairness is the most important consideration when administering a ba... March 15, 2023 How Much Personal Information is Your Employer Entitled to? Edmonton AM with Mark Connolly, Tara McCarthy Personal information belonging to current and former Indigo Books employees was recently compromised in a massive hacking incident. To learn more about what information employers should and should not be collecting, Edmonton AM was joined by Jason... March 2023 - 3 min read Strict Disclosure Requirements for Purchasing Condominiums
The Court found that a condominium developer's failure to provide a separate "occupancy date statement" was grounds for the purchaser to rescind her purchase agreement and have her deposits returned to her.
... March 2023 Costs + Damages Entitlement for Wrongfully Registered Liens
If a person wrongfully registers a lien, the property owner is entitled to costs and damages incurred resulting from the wrongfully registered lien. The specific award will depend on the circumstances of the case, but may include rea... February 28, 2023 Tips + Resources for Charities and Non-Profits as Estate Beneficiaries Seminar Join Field Law’s Wills, Estates + Trusts Group for a complimentary lunch seminar designed to assist charities and non-profit organizations and their staff with an understanding of estate administration laws and procedures so as to better ass... February 28 - 3 min read Doth ‘Proclaim’ Too Much: Collective Agreement Gives the Word Special Meaning Workwise Newsletter
A statement from the Prime Minister was not enough to "proclaim" the National Day of Mourning for Queen Elizabeth II's passing a holiday under a collective agreement in Ontario. The word "proclaim" used i... February 2023 - 3 min read Unfinished Business: The Importance of a Flawless Bid in the Tender Process
If a submitted tender does not strictly comply with all the mandatory requirements of the tender package, the owner can and should reject that tender. This ensures that all bidders are treated fairly – the overarching... February 2023 The Importance of Clear Language in Employment Contracts Law Camera Action: Field Law Talks Law What should you look out for as an employer when creating employment contracts?As an employer, you are responsible for creating employment contracts, so what happens when a dispute arises from the interpretation of an employment agreement? Austin Ward ... February 2023 2022 - A Year in Review: Labour + Employment (Part 2) Seminar + Webinar Join members of our Labour + Employment Group for our annual Year in Review, which focuses on legal updates for management and employee groups.Part 2 of this series will cover Privacy, Employment and Human Rights. To view the recording for Part 1, whic... February 2023 - 5 min read The Consequences of Fraud + Wilful Falsehood in Auto Insurance Claims
The Court confirmed that a willfully false statement made by an insured to the insurer can result in the insurer denying all types of recovery to the insured.
The Alberta Court of Appeal describes its new decis... February 8, 2023 Field Law Expands into the Bow Valley with the Acquisition of Hicks Intellectual Property The acquisition is aligned with the firm’s strategic plan for growth through industry specialization and regional focus.CALGARY – February 8, 2023 - Field Law is bulking up its intellectual property services by acquiring the Canmore-b... February 7, 2023 Important Professional Regulatory Cases of 2022 Learn about the most important professional regulatory court cases of 2022. What are the key legal trends? What are the strategic and operational implications for regulators?Presented by James Casey, KC and Katrina Haymond, KC, this popular annual webi... January + February 2023 2022 - A Year in Review: Labour + Employment (Part 1) Seminar + Webinar Join members of our Labour + Employment Group for our annual Year in Review, which focuses on legal updates for management and employee groups.Part 1 of this series will cover Labour, Occupational Health + Safety and Immigration. To view the ... January 2023 Proposed Increase in the Provincial Court Civil Claims Limit Law Camera Action: Field Law Talks Law How will the proposed increase of the Provincial Court civil claims limit affect you?While the increased civil claims limit will not be effective until designated by regulation, the proposed increase from $50,000 to $200,000 opens up the Provincial Cou... January 2023 - 4 min read Does a Subcontractor Have a Claim for Unjust Enrichment Against the Owner?
The Court confirmed that if a subcontractor registers a lien and subsequently fails to perfect that lien claim, it does not have an unjust enrichment claim. The lack of privity between an owner and subcontractor rarely results in a v... January 2023 - 6 min read How a Woman Uses an Obscure Legal Tool to Expose Online Trolls in Court Canada Today When a woman turned to leaders at The Meeting House megachurch in southern Ontario with allegations that her former pastor had sexually abused her, the ensuing investigation forced the pastor to resign and resulted in a reckoning that led to a drop in ... January 2023 - 4 min read Court Provides Clarity on Substituting Lien Bonds for Cash in Court
The Court stated that while posting a lien bond as a replacement for cash paid into court can free up funds that help lead to the completion of the project, doing so cannot be done if it undermines the trust provisions of lien legislat... January 2023 - 4 min read Addressing Complaints and Mental Health Issues in Condominiums: Strategies for Board Members January 2023 Meet Our Newest Partner Field Law welcomes Erin Berney to its partnership.Field Law is pleased to welcome Erin Berney as a firm partner, starting January 1, 2023.“Erin has done a remarkable job establishing her vibrant law practice and we are happy she has accepted our ... January 2023 - 3 min read Alberta Court Finds Defendant Breached 2003 Agreement to Sell Land The Lawyer's Daily December 2022 - 4 min read Push it to the Limit: Amendments to the Provincial Court Act
While the increased civil claims limit will not be effective until designated by regulation, the proposed increase from $50,000 to $200,000 opens up the Provincial Court to larger and more complex cases. This gives litigants more flexi... December 2022 - 5 min read Aging Condominiums: Repair or Terminate? December 2022 - 3 min read Determining Quorum + Retaining Jurisdiction in Disciplinary Proceedings Perspectives for the Professions In Jhanji v The Law Society of Manitoba, the Manitoba Court of Appeal discussed quorum for professional discipline tribunals – or how many tribunal members are required for the tribunal to hold a hearing - when quorum has not been other... December 2022 - 3 min read When Worlds Collide: The Interplay Between Liens and Adjudication Orders
Alberta’s prompt payment and adjudication provisions are based heavily on Ontario’s Construction Act, but a major difference is the extent of trust provisions.
In Alberta, a trust only arises when a certificate of sub... December 2022 The World of Digital Assets is Not a Lawless One Law Matters December 15, 2022 Legal + Financial Check-Up for Construction + Trades Business Owners Webinar What legal issues should construction and trades business owners be aware of throughout all stages of a project? What financial processes should be in place to help owners operate successfully?
Join Field Law's Anthony Burden and KWB Chart... December 13, 2022 Investigation Tales: Strategies + Tips for Challenging Investigations Roundtable Join Field Law’s Professional Regulatory Group and your professional regulatory colleagues for a special holiday roundtable.
At this roundtable, our seasoned guest panelists with discuss anticipating and responding to challenging issues ... December 2022 - 3 min read Mitigation Obligation Clarified: Employee Not Required to Seek Lesser-Paying Job Workwise Newsletter
The Ontario Court of Appeal has clarified that a terminated employee is obligated to mitigate damages by seeking comparable employment to her previous job, not lesser jobs.
The Court set aside a previous decision to reduce ... December 7, 2022 Field Law Community Fund Program Donates $75,000 to Community Projects Across Alberta and Northwest Territories This year, Field Law received 130 applications from organizations and individuals with “pay-it-forward” ideas for their communities.
Field Law is proud to reveal the selected recipients of this year’s Field Law Community Fund Progr... December 2022 Employer Liability at Events Law Camera Action: Field Law Talks Law How can you minimize your legal exposure when serving alcohol at work events?It’s the most wonderful time of the year, the holiday season, and you’re probably getting ready to host some fun events to celebrate. However, if you choose to ser... December 2, 2022 Legal Obligations of Condo Board Members: Financial Update Webinar With the recent dramatic rise in interest rates, it has grown increasingly challenging for condominium corporation boards to understand the implication on their financial obligations.Join Field Law's Erin Berney and Nationa... November 2022 - 5 min read Regulatory Reform in Alberta: A Status Update Perspectives for the Professions
The implementation of the Health Professions Act ("the HPA") on December 31, 2001 introduced major regulatory reform to Alberta, and for the next 17 years there was an extended period of legislative stability. Then, in 2018, the &... November 2022 - 3 min read Arbitration and Litigation and Bankruptcy, Oh My!
What happens when a party who has agreed to arbitrate its dispute goes bankrupt? If the arbitration process compromises the efficiency of the receivership process, the Court may decide to deal with the dispute and the entire bankrupt e... November 18, 2022 People, Pets + Parking: A Potpourri Q+A Session for Property Managers Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and John Gilbert for a complimentary webinar series designed for Property Managers based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what other issues are plaguing property man... November 2022 Getting a Grip on Slip-and-Fall Cases: Nelson (City) v. Marchi Canadian Lawyer November 16, 2022 Occupiers’ Liability: Refresher on Key Issues + How to Use Biomechanical Evidence Webinar Successfully defending a trip and fall/slip and fall claim starts with a solid understanding of the Occupiers’ Liability Act. It also involves understanding when to engage experts to provide biomechanical evidence that can help provide clari... November 2022 Complete or Not Complete: When is Substantial Performance Attained? In Alberta, issuing a certificate of substantial performance allows the major lien fund to be released once the requisite time has elapsed. In British Columbia, issuing a certificate of completion allows the holdback to be released once the requisite t... November 2022 Right to Disconnect Law Camera Action: Field Law Talks Law What does the "right to disconnect" mean, and how does this affect Alberta employers? Alberta employers with workers in Ontario should be aware of these policy requirements and consider how to address these changes if they come to Albert... October 2022 -1 min read Alberta Legislative Session Prorogued: Bill 23 Will Die on Order Paper Professional regulators in Alberta watching Bill 23, the Professional Governance Act should take note that on October 26, the Lieutenant Governor in Council ordered a Proclamation to “prorogue” the current legislati... October 27, 2022 An Employer's Guide to Hybrid Work Arrangements
Workshop Employers have been navigating the COVID-19 pandemic longer than we anticipated, creating unforeseen challenges for management and human resources departments. As the dust continues to settle, many employers are moving to implement fully remote or... October 2022 - 3 min read Two Words Too Many? Drafting Termination Provisions in an Employment Contract is Delicate Work Workwise Newsletter A recent decision from the Alberta Court of Appeal offers a good reminder of the care employers need to take when drafting termination provisions.
In Bryant, three employees whose employment was terminated on 60 days’ notice argued they had... October 2022 - 5 min read Alberta’s Top Court Re-Writes Rules for Costs Orders in Professional Discipline The Alberta Court of Appeal has significantly changed the approach to costs order in professional discipline cases. In Jinnah v Alberta Dental Association and College, 2022 ABCA 336, the Court set aside an order for a dentist to pay $37,500 in investig... October 6, 2022 Field Law Community Fund Program Invites Public to Vote on Local Community Projects for Chance at Funding All members of the public can support community-minded projects by casting their vote online at fieldlawcommunityfund.com.
October 6, 2022 - Starting today, Alberta and Northwest Territories residents are invited to vote for their favourite communi... September 30, 2022 National Day for Truth and Reconciliation The Federal legislation declaring September 30 as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation a statutory holiday represents a valuable and important continuation in the truth and reconciliation process. It provides an opportunity to commemorate and ... September 2022 Privacy Torts + Vicarious Liability: What Can Organizations Do? Over the last two decades, we have slowly realized that our personal information is not nearly as personal or private as it used to be. It seems that someone or something is attempting to collect and use our personal information at every turn. Both the... September 2022 - 4 min read Can Surety Bonds be Rescinded Due to a Contractor's Fraudulent Conduct? Surety bonds are commonplace on construction projects across Canada. They provide assurance that if the principal under the bond (usually a general contractor or major subcontractor) defaults, funds will be available to complete the work and/or pay unp... September 2022 - 2 min read Excess Patent Claim Fees are Coming to Canada - Keep Calm and Carry On Amendments to Canada’s Patent Rules, coming into force on October 3, 2022, will introduce excess claim fees into Canada’s patent regime (amongst other changes). If examination of a Canadian patent application is requested on or after Octobe... September 16, 2022 People, Pets + Parking: Your Condo Building Insurance Questions Answered Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and John Gilbert for a complimentary webinar series designed for Property Managers based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what other issues are plaguing property man... September 2022 - 3 min read Court Provides Important Ruling on Pre-Judgment Interest In a September 9, 2022 decision, the Court of King's Bench provided the first ruling on pre-judgment interest since Insurance (Enhancing Driver Affordability And Care) Amendment Act, 2020, SA 2020, c 36 (the "Insurance Amendment Act"... September 6, 2022 Field Law Community Fund to Award $75,000 to Community Projects – Applications Are Now Open Registered and non-registered charitable organizations, community associations, and individuals are encouraged to apply
September 6, 2022 - Field Law is now accepting applications to receive this year’s funding through the Field Law Community ... September 2022 - 4 min read Exposure for Developers: Potential Liability for Dangerous Defects
In construction law, it is common for anyone actively participating in construction projects to have duties imposed upon them to ensure the work is completed safely and is free from dangerous defects.
If there is no evidence of the developer's r... August 2022 - 5 min read Court Clarifies Indirect Loss Claims and Class Proceeding Definitions A recent case from the Alberta Court of Appeal demonstrates that claims in pure economic loss can be difficult and that there needs to be sufficient directness or relatedness of relationship and damage for a party to succeed. In addition, individual pr... August 25, 2022 The Best Lawyers™ in Canada 2023 39 Lawyers Recognized Field Law is pleased to announce that 39 of our lawyers are recognized in their respective practice areas in the 17th edition of The Best Lawyers™ in Canada. Recognition in Best Lawyers™ is based on peer reviews of ... August 2022 - 4 min read Final Countdown: Top 5 Things to Keep in Mind for Prompt Payment The Prompt Payment and Construction Lien Act (“PPCLA”) comes into force on August 29, 2022, nearly two years after Bill 37 was first tabled. With only five days left, here are the top five things for all construction companies and... August 17, 2022 Employment Law Fundamentals ASBA Taps + Tips Join Kelly Nicholson and the Alberta Small Brewers Association for a presentation and Q+A session on employment law fundamentals.Topics covered will include:
Why employers should have a written employment agreement
Most important provisions to in... August 2022 - 2 min read Constructive Dismissal: Silent Acquiescence = Acceptance Workwise Newsletter The Alberta Court of Appeal confirmed the test for constructive dismissal and reaffirmed that the onus is on the employee to decide whether they accept the new terms of employment within a reasonable timeframe - in this case, ten business days.
... August 2022 - 6 min read Start-Ups and Securities - Understanding Stock Options Introduction Stock options are a type of security granted by a corporation (the "Issuer") to a person (the "Optionee"), giving such Optionee the right, but not the obligation, to purchase an underlying security of the Iss... August 2022 - 3 min read The Artificial Intelligence and Data Act… Coming Soon to AI Near You In June 2022, the Government introduced Bill C-27, an Act to enact the Consumer Privacy Protection Act, the Personal Information and Data Protection Tribunal Act, and the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act. A major component of this propose... August 2022 - 3 min read Do You Own a Business? You Need a Good Estate Plan Up Here Business Magazine Estate planning isn’t a fun topic, but it’s essential. That’s especially true for business owners, from sole proprietorships to corporations. Be sure your final plans meet your hopes and expectations for your business—for the sa... August 2022 - 7 min read Delay in Professional Discipline Proceedings The Supreme Court of Canada just released a decision of critical importance to professional regulators addressing when delay in administrative proceedings constitutes an abuse of process justifying a stay of proceedings: Law Society of Saskatchewa... July 2022 - 3 min read Alberta Court Releases First Decision Regarding Masking Policies + Constructive Dismissal Workwise Newsletter The Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench recently held that the employee was not constructively dismissed when placed on an indefinite unpaid leave for failing to comply with a mandatory mask policy. This decision suggests that when an employee re... July 2022 - 5 min read Connected + Protected? Lien Rights on Different Lands Whether Crown lands in Canada can be liened varies by province, but invariably, work done on some lands is not lienable. In JVD Installations Inc. v. Skookum Creek Power Partnership, the British Columbia Court of Appeal faced the following qu... July 2022 - 3 min read Accessing Venture Capital: Five Practical Tips for Start-Ups Introduction
It is often exciting to embark on a new business venture which aims at providing solutions and products that could potentially "change the world". However, in the course of developing and executing a new business idea, it beco... June 2022 - 5 min read Employment Contracts: Leave No Room for Interpretation! Workwise Newsletter
What You Need To Know
In the case of Rice v Shell Global Solutions Canada Inc, the majority of the Alberta Court of Appeal emphasized the importance of clearly identifying the term of an employment contract and the parties’ obligations and e... June 23, 2022 People, Pets + Parking: How to Avoid + Address Pet Problems Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and John Gilbert for a complimentary webinar series designed for Property Managers based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what other issues are plaguing property man... June 15, 2022 Evidence Documentation in Forensic Investigations Lunch + Learn Join Field Law and Collision Analysis Ltd.'s Craig Good and Steve Thannhauser for a complimentary lunch and learn that will provide insurance professionals with a general overview of forensic investigations and guidelines f... June 14, 2022 Call the Expert! What Regulators Need to Know About Retaining + Instructing Expert Witnesses Roundtable Join the Field Law Professional Regulatory Group and your professional regulatory colleagues for our first lunch time roundtable in a couple of years! This roundtable is designed to help complaints directors and other regulatory professionals better un... June 14, 2022 Selling Your Business: Legal + Financial Considerations Webinar Whether you're currently considering selling your business, or you want to ensure your business is in optimal shape and attractive to potential future buyers, as a business owner you should be aware of strategies that will set you up for success.Jo... June 2022 - 6 min read Designing and Implementing Policies in a Multigenerational Workplace Authors: Christin Elawny and Nada Ladhani The modern workplace is becoming more multigenerational and diverse, which is driving change to workplace policies and practices. As organizations review and consider adjusting their workplace p... May 27, 2022 Getting Ready for Bill 23: Alberta’s Professional Governance Act Workshop Bill 23 was introduced by the Alberta Government on May 2, 2022. As we previously reported, the Bill will bring major changes for 22 professional regulatory organizations in Alberta.Join James Casey, KC, Katrina Haymond, Gregory Sim... May 2022 - 6 min read Eight Securities Law Mistakes to Avoid as a Private Corporation Introduction
If you have a private corporation looking to raise capital, here's a list of common pitfalls to watch for. Securities laws are a collection of laws, regulations, policy statements, instruments and rules that regulate, among other th... May 2022 - 3 min read Like a Light Switch: Court Examines Consent + Vicarious Liability A recent case from the Alberta Court of Appeal confirms that the imposition of conditions on the consent of possession does not protect a vehicle owner from vicarious liability.
Facts
Pinksen owned a car, and her husband allowed Rampersad t... May 2022 - 6 min read What Happens if a Condominium Does not Enforce its Bylaws? May 6, 2022 People, Pets + Parking: Condo Manager Regulation Update Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and John Gilbert for a complimentary webinar series designed for Property Managers based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what other issues ... May 2022 - 10 min read Bill 23: A Major Overhaul for Professional Regulatory Legislation in Alberta On May 2, 2022, the Alberta Government introduced Bill 23, the Professional Governance Act. Bill 23 represents a major overhaul for professional regulatory legislation in Alberta. The Bill would repeal the governing statutes for 22 professions and... May 2022 - 3 min read Don’t Sit Still: Is Your Company Ready to Cope with the Current Pace of Change? Up Here Business Magazine Inflation. Climate change. A lingering pandemic. Risk abounds for business as we reach the mid-point of 2022. Here are 10 issues business leaders should be reviewing as they prepare for the hard-to-predict months ahead.
Throughout the COVID-19 pande... April 28, 2022 Assessing + Preventing Unconscious Bias in Professional Regulation Workshop The concept of unconscious or implicit bias has become prominent in recent years. Professional regulatory organizations are attempting to understand how unconscious bias can impact decisions and what can be done to mitigate the risks of the impact of u... April 2022 - 2 min read Prematurity: Challenges to the Hearing Tribunal’s Jurisdiction Perspectives for the Professions In Goodwin v Alberta College and Association of Chiropractors, 2022 ABQB 177, the Court of Queen's Bench provided a clear statement on prematurity and the timing of judicial reviews from administrative bodies. In this case, the regulated membe... April 2022 - 3 min read Alberta's New Umbrella Legislation: Streamlining the Regulation of Non-Health Professions Perspectives for the Professions The Government of Alberta recently announced a timeline for its "Streamlining Professional Legislation" project, which will introduce new umbrella legislation for the regulation of 22 non-health professions in Alberta. The Government is expec... April 2022 - 3 min read Priority of Lien Claims in a Post-Redwater World The Supreme Court of Canada's Redwater decision concluded that provincial end-of-life abandonment and reclamation obligations, which are not claims provable in bankruptcy, must still be satisfied by a bankrupt estate, regardless of a... April 2022 - 3 min read Back to the Office: Legal Considerations for Employers Workwise Newsletter On March 1, 2022, the Province of Alberta entered stage 2 of the Government’s three-stage process for easing COVID-19 restrictions, which resulted in the lifting of nearly all remaining public health restrictions, including Alberta’s mandat... April 2022 - 4 min read Cutting More Red Tape: Long-Awaited Clarity on Legal Costs, Voting for Condominiums April 20, 2022 The Degenerative Spine in Injury with Dr. Richard Hu Seminars Join Field Law and orthopedic surgeon Dr. Richard Hu MD, FRCSC, for an interactive seminar about:
IME Reports: Differing perspectives on the Degenerative Spine
Case Presentations: A question and answer period with a discussion of ... April 8, 2022 Financial Responsibilities of Condo Corporations With all the legislation changes in recent years, it has grown increasingly challenging for condominium corporation boards to understand their financial responsibilities. How can board members ensure they have the right resources in place to manage the... April 8, 2022 Katrina Haymond Appointed Queen’s Counsel Congratulations to Katrina Haymond, who has received the honour of Queen's Counsel. The Queen's Counsel designation is awarded to lawyers who are found to have made a significant contribution to the legal profession or public life in... April 7, 2022 Coffee + Counsel: Employer Considerations for the Removal of Vaccination Policies Q+A Session Join us for another edition of Coffee + Counsel, a complimentary series that brings you together with a few of our lawyers for an unscripted chat about legal issues pertinent to organizations in Alberta. Your questions guide the discussion, and we prov... April 2022 - 1 min read Delayed: Alberta Condominium Dispute Resolution Tribunal March 2022 - 4 min read Prompt Payment + Consultants: What You Need to Know The upcoming changes to Alberta's construction law regime should be top of mind for all parties in the construction industry, with both the Prompt Payment and Construction Lien Act (the "PPCLA") and the Prompt Payment and A... March 2022 - 2 min read Bill 10: Prohibiting the Practice of Female Genital Mutilation On March 24, 2022, the Government of Alberta introduced Bill 10, the Health Professions (Protecting Women and Girls) Amendment Act, 2022. Bill 10 amends the Health Professions Act to address female genital mutilation. The Bill... March 29, 2022 Coffee + Counsel: Insurance Industry Insights - What's in Store for 2022? Q+A Session Join Field Law for another edition of Coffee + Counsel, a complimentary series that brings you together with a few of our lawyers for an unscripted chat about legal issues pertinent to insurers in Alberta. Your questions guide the discussion, and we pr... March 24, 2022 Cocktails + Counsel: Benefits + Implications of Cross-Border Trusts Q+A Session Join Field Law for Cocktails + Counsel, a complimentary series where your questions will guide the discussion, and our lawyers provide their legal perspectives.
This dynamic virtual Q+A session lets you ask questions and hear legal perspectives on i... March 2022 Inflation, COVID, and How it Can Impact a Small Business Calgary Citizen March 23, 2021 Legal + Financial Checkup for Small Businesses Webinar What legal issues should small and mid-sized business owners be aware of? What financial processes should be in place to support the business's health?
Join Field Law's Lyndon Thiessen and KWB Chartered Professional Accountants' Al... March 2022 - 3 min read Fire Distinguisher: Court Clarifies Liability for Third-Party Arsonists A recent decision determined that construction companies cannot be liable for the actions of third-party arsonists. So long as the property owner is making “normal and ordinary use of the property” in that there is “no unusual danger ... March 2022 - 10 min read In Good Faith: Seven Cases Impacting Your Contracts In 2020 and 2021, two significant Supreme Court of Canada cases, Callow Inc. v. Zollinger and Wastech Services Ltd. v Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District, clarified and confirmed the duty of good faith and honest contra... March 2022 - 3 min read Coming Out of COVID: What Can Businesses Expect From Their Lenders? It is no secret that many companies in Alberta are in financial distress due to COVID-19. While lenders have generally cooperated during this period, business owners are now, with good reason, anxiously dreading the "call from the bank." ... March 2022 - 5 minute read Accumulated Risk: The Dangers of Negligent Road Maintenance
What You Need to Know
The Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench held that the City of Calgary (the “City”) bore some liability for an accident caused by negligent road maintenance. This decision highlights the legal exposure that can ... March 2022 - 4 min read Ding Dong! Your Doorbell Camera Must Come Down The Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta recently added to the growing case law on the issue of video surveillance in a decision called Lupuliak v Condominium Plan No 8211689, 2022 ABQB 65. Following a break-in of her main floor unit through th... February 24, 2022 2021 - A Year in Review: Labour + Employment (Part 2) Webinar Join members of our Labour + Employment Group for our annual Year in Review webinar, which focuses on legal updates for management and employee groups.Part 2 of this series will cover Privacy, Human Rights and Employment. To view the recordin... February 2022 - 3 min read Recent Corporate Battle Carries a Legal Lesson for Business Up Here Business Magazine The recent family feud at Rogers Communications made for great drama. But don’t overlook the issue at the heart of the dispute. It’s a reminder that business law—not corporate practices—carry the day in court.
The closing mon... February 2022 - 2 min read Are Commercial Tenants Required to Pay Back Missed Rent During COVID-19? COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on businesses across Canada, and many commercial tenants have faced enormous revenue shortfalls. Some of them are wondering whether COVID and its business destruction are legitimate reasons to not pay rent. Are they?Well folk... February 2022 - 3 min read Which Parties Must Be Sued to Enforce a Builders’ Lien? Builders’ liens are a common tool for unpaid parties on a construction project to try to secure payment for their work. But simply registering a lien is not enough to perfect a lien claim.In Alberta, a Statement of Claim and Certificate of Lis Pe... February 2022 - 3 min read Substantial Damages Awarded for Refusal to Use Proper Pronouns Workwise Newsletter What You Need to Know
A recent British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal (BCHRT) decision awarded $30,000 in damages to a restaurant employee due to the actions of a co-worker who repeatedly and deliberately misgendered them by referring to them using ... February 3, 2022 Financial + Legal Checkup for Medical Practitioners Webinar What legal issues should medical practitioners be aware of when operating a private practice? What financial processes should be in place to support the business's health?
Join Field Law's Britt Tetz and Marc Yu and KWB Chartered Profe... February 1, 2022 Important Professional Regulatory Cases of 2021
Webinar Learn about the most important professional regulatory court cases of 2021. What are the key legal trends? What are the strategic and operational implications for regulators?
Presented by James Casey, QC and Katrina Haymond, this popular annual webi... January 2022 - 4 min read Significant Changes to Union Dues + Union Financial Statements Workwise Newsletter On July 7, 2020, the Government of Alberta introduced Bill 32, Restoring Balance in Alberta’s Workplaces Act, 2020. The intent of Bill 32 was to support economic recovery, restore balance in the workplace, and get Albertans back to work.Whil... January 2022 - 4 min read Discharging a Builders' Lien: Is Cash King? Posting either a lien bond or cash as security to discharge a builders' lien is standard practice in Alberta. Seemingly, this is because the lien claimant is not prejudiced by the posting of one form of security over the other. But is a ... January 25, 2022 2021 - A Year in Review: Labour + Employment (Part 1) Webinar Join members of our Labour + Employment Group for our annual Year in Review, which focuses on legal updates for management and employee groups.Part 1 of this series covered Labour and Occupational Health + Safety. To view the recording for Part 2,... January 2022 - 4 min read Factoring Arrangements and Builders’ Liens: How to Take Them Into Account
Payment disputes on construction projects are extremely common. With margins being low to begin with, contractors often find themselves financially strained and unable to cash flow their business operations to complete projects. One common form of re... 2020-2023 Barry McGuire Real Estate Industry Insights I'm taking on new clients. Please consider me and Field Law when you write your next deal.
These emails are aimed at giving real estate professionals short, sharp and easily digestible comments on issues that come up frequently. Here ... January 2022 Meet Our Newest Partners Field Law welcomes Jill Bishop and Richard Stobbe to its partnership.Field Law is pleased to welcome Jill Bishop and Richard Stobbe as firm partners, starting January 1, 2022.“Both Richard and Jill have demonstrated leadership and commitment to e... December 2021 - 4 min read Ontario's Working for Workers Act: A “Right to Disconnect” and Prohibition of Non-Compete Agreements Workwise Newsletter With almost two years of a pandemic behind us, employers have proven nimble at adjusting to the demands of ‘the new normal workplace’ including remote working and flexible working options all while maintaining their organizational culture.&... December 2021 Court of Appeal Adopts the "Plausible Inference" Approach to Discoverability Is a plaintiff's understanding of the law, and how it might apply to their claim, relevant to an assessment of when a limitation period expires? In Lafferty v Co-operators General Insurance Co, 2021 ABCA 359, the Alberta Court of Appeal r... December 13, 2021 Direct Compensation for Property Damage Coming to Alberta Canadian Underwriter December 2021 Power of Attorney and Probate Alberta Real Estate Association - Podcast Episode 40 In this episode, Lisa Statt Foy helps to clear up some of the misconceptions associated with the topic on the probate process, Power of Attorney, and enduring power of attorney relating to real estate. As these issues affect REALTORS®... December 12, 2021 Alberta Employment Lawyer Believes More Cases Challenging Vaccine Mandates to Come Edmonton Journal December 2021 AGMs The Importance of Proper Notice Canadian Condominium Institute - Northern Alberta Has your condominium corporation convened an Annual General Meeting (AGM) since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020? If you’re not a member of your Board of Directors and you answered ‘no’ to that question, you may want to find ... December 7, 2021 Mandatory Vaccination Policies: What Case Law is Telling Us So Far As we all learn to live with COVID-19 and as workers move back into the workplace, many employers have implemented various types of policies regarding COVID-19 vaccination. A few months have passed, some specific legal cases have started to slowly... December 2, 2021 Crazy Indians Brotherhood Earns $8,000 Prize from Law Firm Yellowknifer Field Law has announced the recipients of its 2021 Community Fund Program and the Yellowknife chapter of the Crazy Indians Brotherhood is a beneficiary. Click here to read the full story. December 1, 2021 Field Law Announces 2021 Community Fund Recipients, Distributing $75,000 Across Alberta and NWT A record-breaking 140 applications were received from diverse community organizations Dec. 1, 2021 – Field Law is proud to reveal the selected recipients of this year’s Field Law Community Fund Program, distributing $75,000 to deserving organizations across Southern Alberta, Northern Alberta and the Northwest Territories.Fro... November 2021 - 3 min read Back to Basics: How Mining and Indigenous Rights Work in the North Up Here Business Magazine Before any mining outfit can swing a geologist’s hammer, it needs to understand how Indigenous rights will shape their work. And the rules are different across the territories. That’s just the way it is, so it helps to get a little guidance... November 2021 Case Law Update: Are Mandatory Vaccination Policies Allowed in the Workplace? Workwise Newsletter
Various questions arise from the competing interests of employees and employers when dealing with mandatory vaccination policies. While there were labour arbitration decisions relating to influenza and other vaccines, until very recently, there were ... November 2021 - 6 min read Frustration + Force Majeure in Commercial Leases: Is COVID a Valid Reason to Not Pay Rent? When the COVID-19 pandemic started, governments worldwide reacted to this unprecedented health crisis with similarly unprecedented public health measures, including orders for non-essential businesses to close their doors to the public.Many businesses ... November 2021 - 4 min read When Will Employers Be Liable for the Off-Duty Conduct of Their Employees? Workwise Newsletter
The ability of employers to monitor and control the actions of their employees is limited. However, employers can be vicariously liable for the actions and omissions of their employees. This means that employers will be liable for acts or omissions, ... November 22, 2021 Coffee + Counsel: COVID-19 + Professional Regulatory Organizations - A Potpourri of Legal Issues Q+A Session Join us for Coffee + Counsel, a complimentary webinar series that brings you together with a few of our lawyers for an unscripted chat about legal issues pertinent to professional regulatory organizations across Canada. Your questions guide the discuss... November 19, 2021 People, Pets + Parking: How to Avoid + Address Parking Issues Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and John Gilbert for a complimentary webinar series designed for Property Managers based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what other issues are plaguing pr... November 17, 2021 Coffee + Counsel: Family Status Accommodation - Where Are We Now? Q+A Session Join us for another edition of Coffee + Counsel, a complimentary series that brings you together with a few of our lawyers for an unscripted chat about legal issues pertinent to organizations in Alberta. Your questions guide the discussion, and we prov... November 16, 2021 Field Law Recognized in The Globe and Mail’s Canada’s Best Law Firms 2022 List At Field Law, we continually aim to provide the best legal advice and client service in western and northern Canada; receiving recognition for work we are passionate about is simply a bonus. We are proud to announce we have been recognized as one ... November 2021 - 2 minute read Exemptions Announced for Condo Manager Licensing November 2021 - 3 min read Halting Vexatious Litigants in Their Tracks Perspectives for the Professions
Many regulators have to deal with vexatious litigants. Some complainants or registrants commence baseless legal proceedings against the regulator if they disagree with its decisions. Responding to these proceedings is time-intensive and expensive, es... November 10, 2021 4 Key Questions About New OHS Rules in Alberta Canadian HR Reporter For employers operating in Alberta, Dec. 1 will bring a brand new occupational health and safety regime, as the province enforces its new OHS act.Canadian HR Reporter recently spoke with Steve Eichler, partner at Field Law in Calgary, about w... November 2021 - 4 min read Careful Not to Colour Outside the Lines: Court Limits Ability to Add Allegations During a Hearing Perspectives for the Professions In Alsaadi v. Alberta College of Pharmacy, 2021 ABCA 313, a majority of the Alberta Court of Appeal adopted a very narrow interpretation of language common to professional regulatory statutes. The case involved a pharmacist, Alsaadi, fou... November 2021 - 5 min read How Long It Takes to Buy a Foreclosed Property In Canada (and jurisdictions with similar laws), foreclosure is when someone defaults on their mortgage payments, and the lender takes control of the property. Lenders will try to sell the property to recuperate the mortgage money. Foreclosures are reg... November 2021 - 3 min read Direct Compensation for Property Damage is Coming to Alberta The Superintendent of Insurance has approved amendments to the Standard Auto Policy Form No. 1 (“SPF No. 1”) that will take effect January 1, 2022. The most significant amendments relate to Bill 41: Insurance (Enhancing Driver Affordab... November 2, 2021 Field Law Community Fund Competition Highlights Worthy Causes in Alberta and Northwest Territories Canadian Lawyer Magazine November 2021 Court Clarifies Test for Core Policy Immunity of Municipalities The concept of government liability in negligence for policy vs. operational decisions has existed for some time. Core policy decisions are exempt from liability, whereas operational decisions are subject to the usual common law liability consideration... October 2021 Field Law has been Named as a Recipient of the 5-Star Insurance Law Firm Award Insurance Business Canada Field Law is proud to be honoured in the Insurance Business Canada magazine and website as a recipient of the 5-Star Insurance Law Firm Award. The Award is a result of 15-weeks research, surveying insurance leaders and a wide r... October 2021 - 4 min read Just in Time for the Holidays! The New and Improved OHS Act Takes Effect on December 1, 2021 Avid Field e-blast readers will recall our reporting that on December 9, 2020, the Government of Alberta passed Bill 47, the Ensuring Safety and Cutting Red Tape Act, 2020, which amended various work-related statutes, including Alberta’s&nbs... October 2021 - 9 min read Bill 49 - The Labour Mobility Act: Implications for Regulations On October 26, 2021 the Government introduced Bill 49, the Labour Mobility Act (the “LMA”), and proceeded to give the new Bill first reading. Given that the Fair Registration Practices Act (the “FRPA”) was introduced by the Gove... October 2021 - 3 min read Human Rights in Unionized Workplaces: Do Arbitrators Have Exclusive Jurisdiction? Workwise Newsletter In a decision released last Friday, the Supreme Court of Canada affirmed the exclusive jurisdiction of labour arbitrators to consider all matters falling under a Collective Agreement, including human rights claims. In Northern Regional Health Auth... October 2021 - 1 min read Alberta Human Rights Commission Issues Guidance on Vaccine Mandates Workwise Newsletter The Alberta Human Rights Commission (“AHRC”) recently issued written guidance on vaccine mandates and proof of vaccination. Here are a few key takeaways for employers, service providers, and landlords:
Employers, service providers... October 2021 Interesting Insights on Intellectual Property Alberta Real Estate Association - Podcast Episode 38 In this episode, Lisa Statt Foy, brings her wealth of legal knowledge to our discussion to help REALTORS® understand the potential pitfalls and best practices related to the use of images, trademarks, copyrighting, and more. With the expl... October 2021 Alberta Awards First Damages for Public Disclosure of Private Facts Until recently, a person’s ability to sue for privacy concerns in Canada has been limited to traditional torts such as defamation, negligent/intentional infliction of mental distress, breach of confidence or harassment. This has not been satisfac... October 2021 - 1 min read Can a Power of Attorney Change a Beneficiary on a Life Insurance Policy? A Power of Attorney is a legal document where an individual (the donor) appoints someone else (the attorney) to look after the donor’s financial affairs in the event the donor loses capacity to handle his or her own affairs. A Power of Attorney i... October 15, 2021 People, Pets + Parking: A Property Manager's Guide to HOAs Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and John Gilbert for a special edition of People, Pets + Parking! As it becomes more and more common for condominium Property Managers to also manage Homeowners' Associations (HOAs), it's important to be aware of the simil... October 2021 - 4 min read Untangling a Web of Lien Claims Builders’ liens on condominium projects are commonplace. The large scope of work required and the lack of surety bonding often leaves unpaid subcontractors or suppliers with little recourse in the event of non-payment. In Avli BRC Developments In... October 7, 2021 Field Law Community Fund Launches Public Voting for Local Community Projects Residents of Alberta and the Northwest Territories have a unique opportunity to support local charities, groups and organizations by casting their vote for recipients of this year’s Field Law Community Fund Program (the Community Fund).Fiel... October 7, 2021 Recent Developments in the Alberta Insurance Industry Webinar In the insurance industry, circumstances can – and often do – change in the blink of an eye. Join Brian Filips, Jill Bishop and Angela Beierbach of Field Law's Insurance Group for a complimentary webinar on recent developments in t... September 2021 - 2 min read COVID-19 Vaccination Mandates: Who Qualifies for Exemption Workwise Newsletter As COVID-19 infection rates and corresponding hospitalizations continue to climb in Alberta, employers are increasingly implementing mandatory vaccination policies to keep workers safe. Failing to comply with mandatory vaccination policies often result... September 27, 2021 Prompt Payment Legislation: The Impact on the Alberta Construction Industry Webinar While the Alberta Builders’ Lien Act has been in force and essentially unchanged for several decades, it will soon evolve with the enactment of the Prompt Payment and Construction Lien Act. This new legislation will introduce significant changes ... September 22, 2021 Biomechanics + Human Factors in Personal Injury Litigation Webinar Understanding the forces and motions experienced during injury causing events can be an important consideration when evaluating causation in the context of personal injury litigation. Whether it's a slip and fall or a motor vehicle collision, human... September 2021 - 3 min read Prompt Payment Legislation in Alberta: Is Your Invoicing "Proper"? Prompt payment legislation has been in force in the United Kingdom for almost 30 years. Notwithstanding its reported effectiveness overseas, it has been slow to gain traction in Canada. In July 2018, Ontario enacted the "modernization" of its... September 2021 - 3 min read Registering Builders’ Liens: When Does the Clock Start Ticking? The Builders’ Lien Act (“BLA”) sets out deadlines for registering builders’ liens. However, determining if a lien has been registered out of time can be tricky. Whether the work performed by a contractor or subcontract... September 17, 2021 People, Pets + Parking: Condo Manager Regulation Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and Niall Burke for a complimentary webinar series designed for Property Managers based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what other issues are plaguing property mana... September 2021 - 5 min read COVID-19 + Alberta Corporations: Shareholder Disputes, Oppression and Remedies The world has changed. The COVID-19 virus is impacting everything and everyone, and certainly, only the most fortunate of businesses have not been adversely impacted. As waves of the virus have strained our healthcare system, it has also caused signifi... September 15, 2021 - 2 min read Annual Field Law Community Fund Program Open to NWT Residents NNSL Media September 9, 2021 Discipline Tribunal Essentials: Advanced Skills Workshop Members of regulated professions who serve on discipline tribunals must navigate an increasingly complex environment when fulfilling their role under their governing statutes.Join Ayla Akgungor, Chelsey Bailey and Gregory Sim from Field Law’s Pro... September 7, 2021 Field Law Community Fund Offering $75,000 in Community Grants SEPTEMBER 7, 2021 - Field Law, a western and northern regional law firm, is pleased to formally launch applications for its Field Law Community Fund Program, which will distribute $75,000 in funding between Northern Alberta, Southern Alberta and the No... September 2021 Private Members Bill Creates Unique (and Momentary) Tax Planning Opportunities The Income Tax Act (Canada) (the "Act") was recently amended by private member's Bill C-208 (the "Bill") to address an inequity disadvantaging intergenerational transfers of businesses to family members. It is common for busines... August 2021 The Best Lawyers™ in Canada 2022 38 Field Lawyers Recognized Field Law is pleased to announce that 38 of our lawyers are recognized in their respective practice areas in the 16th edition of The Best Lawyers™ in Canada. Recognition in Best Lawyers™ is based on peer reviews of ... August 2021 - 3 min read Can You Transfer Your Business to Your Family Tax-Free? The capital gains exemption is not dying completely, but there is a broader way to use it now than there has been before, or likely, ever will be again. Canadian-resident individuals have long faced an unfair scenario when trying to pass along their fa... August 16, 2021 - 2 min read Field Law Announces Sponsorship of Alberta Esports Association (AESA) CALGARY – August 16, 2021 –Field Law’s Emerging Technology group is pleased to announce a new alliance with the Alberta Esports Association (AESA), a not-for-profit organization established in 2020 that serves as the governing body fo... August 2021 - 4 min read Returning to the Office: Your COVID-19 Questions Answered Canadian Lawyer July 22, 2021 Abandoned Manufactured Homes: The Court Process Clarified Q+A Session Abandoned homes have been an issue for landlords of manufactured home communities for a long time. They can be rather complicated, and knowing when a Quit Claim and Release by the tenant is appropriate, and when to bring a court application can be conf... July 2021 Legal Costs for Condominium Corporations: A Refresher July 2021 - 7 min read Clarity From Confusion: Court Confirms Test for Family Status Discrimination Workwise Newsletter Jonathan Swift once observed that there is nothing constant in the world but inconsistency. The truth of that statement is nowhere more apparent than in the Canadian law governing family status accommodation, where the legal test applied to a... July 2021 - 5 min read Can Temporary Layoffs Due to COVID-19 be Considered Constructive Dismissal? Workwise Newsletter During the COVID-19 pandemic, all Canadian provinces and territories declared a state of emergency and implemented strict measures to help curb the spread of the virus. Consequently, many businesses were directly or indirectly forced to lay off employe... July 2021 - 5 min read Contract Drafting Secures Millions in Pre-Judgement Interest Bidell Equipment LP v Caliber Midstream GP LLC, 2020 ABCA 478 (“Bidell”) is a recent appeal decision showcasing the importance of a properly drafted contract and its significance during contractual disputes. Additionally, this decision high... July 9, 2021 People, Pets + Parking: Pandemic Problems - Part 2 Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and Niall Burke for the second installment of our complimentary webinar series designed for Property Managers based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what other issue... June 2021 - 5 min read SCC to Revisit the Issue of Delay in Administrative Proceedings Perspectives for the Professions
“Justice delayed is not always justice denied.” (Abrametz at para 171)
For over twenty years, the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Blencoe v British Columbia (Human Rights Commission), 2000 SCC 44, has been the lea... June 2021 - 3 min read What's in a Name? Restricted Titles Revisited Perspectives for the Professions In College of Midwives of British Columbia v. MaryMoon, 2020 BCCA 224, the British Columbia Court of Appeal (“BCCA”) considered whether restricted title provisions found in the British Columbia Health Professions Act (the &ld... June 22, 2021 Discipline Tribunal Essentials: Fundamental Skills Virtual Workshop Members of regulated professions who serve on discipline tribunals must navigate an increasingly complex environment when fulfilling their role under their governing statutes. Join James Casey, QC, Katrina Haymond, Jason Kully and others from Fiel... June 2021 - 2 min read New COVID Legislations. New Protections. What is Bill 70? Multiple provinces across Canada have implemented legislation to create liability protection against COVID-19 for employers and their workers in health sectors. As of June 17, 2021, Alberta joins these provinces with Bill 70, more comm... June 2021 CERB’ing Your Enthusiasm: Court Deducts COVID Wage Replacement Amounts From Notice Period Despite the breadth and depth of the effects of the pandemic, we have not seen many reported court decisions considering the impact of federal emergency pandemic payments on termination pay. In fact, to date, only two reported decisions appear to have ... May 19, 2021 Coffee + Counsel: Employers, Are You Ready for the COVID-19 Vaccine?
Q+A Session Join us for another edition of Coffee + Counsel, a complimentary series that brings you together with a few of our lawyers for an unscripted chat about legal issues pertinent to organizations in Alberta. Your questions guide the discussion, and we prov... May 2021 - 3 min read Builders’ Liens: Where does the Lien Line Lie? The line between what work gives rise to a valid builders’ lien, and that which doesn’t, can be blurry. The recent decision of YoungEnergyServe Inc. v LR Ltd, LR Processing Partnership, 2021 ABQB 101, has set out a framework for determining... May 13, 2021 Coffee + Counsel: How to Protect Your Business Against Phishing Attacks
Q+A Session Join us for another edition of Coffee + Counsel, a complimentary series that brings you together with a few of our lawyers for an unscripted chat about legal issues pertinent to organizations in Alberta. Your questions guide the discussion, and we prov... May 2021 Gone Phishing? Cybersecurity Issues Are a Recurring Struggle for Organizations The prevalence of fraudulent activity has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020 alone, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre reported 70,948 cases of fraud, with $108.8M lost to fraud. Between March 6, 2020, and March 31, 2021 alone, $7.25... May 2021 - 4 min read Constructing the Right Adjudication System for Alberta How construction adjudication is developing across other Canadian provinces and what Alberta can expect.Later in 2021, Alberta will be implementing changes to the Builders’ Lien Act, including renaming it as the Prompt Payment and Constructi... May 6, 2021 COVID Curveball: Legal Considerations for Amateur Sports Organizations Webinar The COVID-19 pandemic has shut down, postponed and otherwise significantly impacted amateur sports in Alberta. For the foreseeable future, amateur sports organizations will need to alter the delivery of their programs to comply with shifting regulation... May 5, 2021 The Modernization of Canadian Privacy Law: Where Are We Heading? Seminars Individuals and organizations, both large and small, are increasingly faced with challenging issues in the area of privacy and information handling. Bill C-11, the Digital Charter Implementation Act, 2020, seeks to modernize Canadian privacy legis... April 30, 2021 People, Pets + Parking: Pandemic Problems - Part 1 Q+A Session Join Erin Berney and Niall Burke for a complimentary new webinar series designed for Property Managers based on the challenges seen most frequently: people, pets and parking. Have a legal question? Want to learn what other issues are plaguing property ... April 2021 - 3 min read Why You Should Avoid Using a Will Kit Will kits are inexpensive, but that may be their only redeeming quality. It can be very tempting to pick up a $30 fill-in-the-blanks Will kit rather than retaining a lawyer, but before you do, you should consider the risks involved.A Will kit can be pu... April 24, 2021 Short-Term Rentals: Legal Clarifications + Bylaw Considerations
Alberta Condo Expo 2021 With the development of apps and companies that specialize in direct marketing of short-term rental accommodations, the phenomenon of short term rentals in condominium complexes has become a hot topic. Join lawyer Erin Berney to hear about things to ke... April 2021 - 3 min read No Control, No Liability? Clarification on Liability of Owners of Rented/Leased Vehicles
What happens when the owner isn't covered by the Workers' Compensation Act?
A recent case from the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench, Barz v Driving Force Inc, provides some clarity to the law as it relates to the vicarious liability of... April 2021 Canadian Treatment of Construction and Builders Liens On Crown Lands Author: Anthony Burden April 2021 - 3 min read Saskatchewan Condominium Invests in Bitcoin Real Estate Blog April 2021 - 10 min read How to Maintain Control Over Difficult Regulatory Hearings Perspectives for the Professions Serving on a professional regulatory tribunal is one of the highest forms of service to your profession. It is also a big responsibility. As regulatory hearings become more complicated, tribunal members may find themselves involved in longer and more d... April 2021 - 3 min read The Duty to Cooperate: Who Makes the Rules? Perspectives for the Professions In Independent Investigations Office of British Columbia v. Vancouver (City) Police Department, 2020 BCCA 4, the British Columbia Court of Appeal made a strong statement about the duty to cooperate and offered a reminder of who makes the rules whe... April 2021 - 8 min read Changes to Post-Secondary Compensation Alert
Reform of Agencies, Boards and Commissions (Post-Secondary Institutions) Compensation Regulation Extended to More Post-Secondary Executives as of April 1, 2021
On March 24, 2021, the Alberta Government passed an amendment to the Reform o... March 2021 - 2 min read Condo Update: Electronic Meetings Now Authorized Real Estate Blog July 2021 - 3 min read Government Procurement: Nice Work… When You Can Get It Up Here Business Magazine If you have questions about government procurement, we’ve got some answers. Government spending in local communities is the backbone of economies across the north. Governments know that and they’ve developed policies to steer as much spendi... March 24, 2021 Navigating the Legal Landscape of Condo Insurance Presented by The Insurance Institute Condo Insurance is complex and can cause headaches for brokers, adjusters, underwriters, condo boards and property managers. Learn how to navigate through the legal landscape of condominium insurance. Join Erin Berney as she presents this virtual ... March 2021 - 4 min read Important Development Regarding Racial Slurs in the Workplace Workwise Newsletter
Ontario Arbitrator finds that one instance of racial slurs creates the rebuttable presumption that termination is within the range of reasonable disciplinary responses.
The Ontario arbitration case of Levi Strauss & Co. v Workers United C... March 2021 - 7 min read Coming Soon? Virtual Meetings for Condominiums Real Estate Blog March 2021 - 3 min read Let’s Make a (Good) Deal: Want to Buy or Sell a Business? Remember This Up Here Business Magazine Congratulations! You’ve decided to acquire a brand new business or pass on the one you’ve built over the years. That’s great news but be prepared. You’re getting down to some serious brass tacks. Here are some pointers to ... March 16, 2021 Coffee + Counsel: Alberta Automobile Insurance, Recent Reforms + Case Law
Q+A Session Join Field Law for another edition of Coffee + Counsel, a complimentary series that brings you together with a few of our lawyers for an unscripted chat about legal issues pertinent to automobile insurers in Alberta. Your questions guide the discussion... February 24 + March 10 2020 - A Year in Review Webinar Series Did you miss the Field Law Labour + Employment Group's annual Year in Review? The recordings are now available!
Is employer-friendly OHS legislation coming to a worksite near you? What are the impacts of COVID-19 on employment legislation a... March 2021 Canada’s new privacy regime in Alberta Canadian Bar Association March 2021 - 4 min read Facial Recognition: A Privacy Law Perspective Humans love to look at faces – our families, our friends, complete strangers. In some ways, our brains are optimized for facial identity recognition. We’re good at it, so of course we want to teach machines how to do it even bette... February 2021 - 7 min read Understanding Board Member Duties: When Condo Boards Fail Real Estate Blog February 24, 2021 Mental Health in the Workplace – Employers' Duties and Obligations Canadian Lawyer February 2021 - 2 min read Rising Monetary Awards for Human Rights Breaches Workwise Newsletter In one of the more noteworthy trends visible in human rights decisions throughout the last few years, human rights tribunals across the country have been increasing monetary awards to successful complainants – sometimes incrementally, sometimes i... February 2021 - 5 min read Discretionary Powers in Contracts: The Duty to Act in Good Faith Since 2014, Canadian courts and tribunals have struggled with the application of the duty to act honestly in the performance in contractual obligations, recognized by the Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC") in Bhasin v Hrynew. In attempts to... February 2021 - 1 min read Beer Brand Battle at the 100th Meridian A Canadian band, The Tragically Hip, has sued a brewer for the use of a beer name that mimics the title of one of the band’s popular songs.Mill Street Brewery, a brand owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev (the world’s largest brewer), has a beer b... February 2, 2021 Important Professional Regulatory Cases of 2020 Webinar Learn about the most important professional regulatory court cases of 2020. What are the key legal trends? What are the strategic and operational implications for regulators?
Presented by James Casey, QC and Leanne Monsma, this popular annual webinar ... February 2021 - 1 min read New Canadian Entry Requirements Prime Minister Trudeau announced new legal requirements for entry into Canada in an effort to further curb the spread of COVID-19 and protect Canadians.
Cancellation of Flights
As of January 31, 2021, Canadian airlines have agreed to ca... January 2021 - 3 min read "I Quit!" - When is a Verbal Resignation Valid? Workwise Newsletter In Conway v. Griff Building Supplies Ltd., 2020 CarswellBC 3112, an employee was found to have resigned verbally during a meeting, despite failing to provide a formal resignation letter. The Court considered the matter from the ‘perspec... January 2021 - 6 min read Deception + the Honest Performance of Contracts In 2014 the Supreme Court pronounced that good faith contractual performance is a general principle in the common law of contracts and that there is a common law duty applicable to all contracts to act honestly in the performance of obligations; B... January 2021 - 2 min read New Year, New Travel Rules, New US Immigration Policy Canadian Travel Requirements Travel into Canada continues to be regulated (see our previous post with details) and the monthly extension of restrictions remains without any end in sight. In late December 2020 the federal government announced a new... January 2020 - 5 min read Alberta’s Legislation on Privacy and Protection of Personal Information needs Review: Commissioner The Lawyer's Daily January 2021 Field Law Announces Five New Partners The Firm welcomes Anthony Burden, Jason Kully, Lisa Statt Foy, Britt Tetz, and Matthew Turzansky to its partnership.Field Law is pleased to welcome Anthony Burden, Jason Kully, Lisa Statt Foy, Britt Tetz, and Matthew Turzansky as partners of the Firm. ... January 2021 - 2 min read Home Rule: How to Mix Corporate Governance + Social Distance Up Here Business Magazine The idea of gathering around a boardroom table in the era of COVID-19 seems off, given current public health advice. Still, corporate directors must continue to do their jobs—even if they must do them from their dining room tables. These five tip... December 2020 - 3 min read Giving Back this Holiday Season The Canadian Bar Association December 2020 - 3 min read New Year, New Privacy Amendments? What May be in Store for Alberta’s Public and Private Sectors This year has been marked by accelerated efforts to amend existing federal and provincial privacy legislation. As anticipated, the Alberta Information and Privacy Commissioner (Commissioner) has proposed a number of amendments to the Freedom of I... December 2020 - 25 min read Case Summary: Tokio Marine & Nichido Insurance Company v Security National Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity The Alberta Court of Appeal has interpreted and applied Alberta’s legislation, which sets out the priorities of various insurers who may be involved in a leased/rented vehicle situation. Tokio Marine & Nichido Insurance Company v. ... December 2020 - 10 min read Case Summary: Hannam v Medicine Hat School District No. 76 Defence + Indemnity The Alberta Court of Appeal clarified what is required for a summary judgment/dismissal after Weir-Jones Technical Services Inc. v Purolator Courier Ltd. and concluded that the outcome of the case does not have to be obvious in order for a Court to gra... December 2020 - 7 min read Case Summary: Der v Zhao Defence + Indemnity The existence of a municipal bylaw requiring residents to clear sidewalks abutting their property together with the fact that the property owner voluntarily cleared the sidewalk do not create a duty of care towards users of the sidewalk. Der v Zhao, 20... December 2020 - 6 min read Case Summary: ANC Timber Ltd. v Alberta (Minister of Agriculture and Forestry) Defence + Indemnity The Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench considered the rules for admissibility of affidavit evidence at length. ANC Timber Ltd. v Alberta (Minister of Agriculture and Forestry), 2019 ABQB 653, per Topolniski, J.
Facts + Issues
This case concerned ... December 2020 - 9 min read Case Summary: In re Capital One Consumer Data Sec. Breach Litig. Defence + Indemnity A U.S. District Court holds that the report of a forensic consultant, engaged on retainer in advance, in response to a data breach is NOT privileged. In re Capital One Consumer Data Sec. Breach Litig., 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 91736 (U.S. Dist. Ct., E Va.... December 17, 2020 The Old is New, Again? Bill 47 and Psychological Health + Safety Webinar The COVID-19 pandemic has seriously affected peoples’ mental health, and its impacts can be felt in the workplace. Occupational health and safety law requires that employers take steps to promote their workers’ psychological well-being. Joi... December 2020 - 5 min read Alberta Government Announces New Funding Rules for Sexual Abuse and Misconduct Counselling Perspectives for the Professions When the last of the Bill 21 amendments to the Health Professions Act came into force on April 1, 2019, each health regulatory College was required to establish a patient relations program. These programs assist patients who have suffered sexual abuse ... December 2020 - 3 min read Four Key Considerations When Drafting an Investigation Report Workwise Newsletter Consider this all too familiar scenario:An employer receives a complaint that an employee is allegedly bullying and harassing a co-worker. As part of the investigation, the employer interviews both the complainant and the subject thoroughly and thought... December 3, 2020 Cocktails + Counsel: Setting Your Business Up for Success in Uncertain Times Q+A Session Join Field Law for another edition of Cocktails + Counsel, this time co-presented with PARK. This complimentary series brings you together with a few of our lawyers for an unscripted chat about legal issues pertinent to local business owners in th... December 2, 2020 Navigating the Maze of Psychological + Brain Injuries Webinar Claims of psychological injury have increased significantly since the advent of the Minor Injury Regulation. Such problems can range from adjustment disorder and depression to post-concussion syndrome and PTSD. Such injuries are particularly difficult ... November 2020 - 1 min read Why you Need to Talk to Your Estates Lawyer About Your Personal Directive A personal directive is a legal document that allows you to name someone to act as your agent to make personal decisions on your behalf in case you lose the capacity to make decisions for yourself.
The types of personal decisions that an a... November 26, 2020 Forensic Evidence: How to Prevent + Protect Against Spoliation Webinar Join Field Law's Danielle Mousseau and Origin and Cause's Matthew Obach and Martin Coles for a webinar discussing:• An overview of the law on spoliation
• Knowing when to engage th... November 2020 - 3 min read Largest Costs Award in Alberta Human Rights History Upheld on Appeal In Facey v Bantrel Management Services Co., 2020 ABQB 719 Rob Rakochey and Austin Ward successfully defeated an appeal of a watershed costs award granted against a complainant in a human rights case. The respondent to the appe... November 2020 - 2 min read New Restrictions = New Lay-Offs? What Employers Need to Know On November 24, 2020, the Government of Alberta announced additional restrictions in response to the growing number of COVID-19 cases in the province. Effective November 27, 2020, many businesses will be subject to closures, limited capacity, or appoin... November 2020 Alberta introduces significant regulatory amendments to Health Professions Act Canadian Lawyer November 23, 2020 Understanding + Implementing Bill 46: A Guide for Colleges Webinar Bill 46 represents the most extensive set of amendments to the Health Professions Act (“HPA”) since the legislation came into effect nearly 20 years ago. Bill 46 also represents the fourth major reform to the regulation of he... November 20, 2020 Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Act Webinar Join Field Law, in conjunction with the Alberta Sheriff’s Department, for a webinar on how landlords can deal with undesirable behaviours of tenants located in their communities.Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods (SCAN) is a confidential, compl... November 2020 The Importance of Notice Real Estate Blog November 2020 Amending Bylaws by Ordinary Resolution: When is a Conflict a Conflict? Real Estate Blog November 2020 - 4 min read Weir in Agreement: Alberta Court of Appeal Confirms Summary Rule In Hannam v Medicine Hat School District No. 76, 2020 ABCA 343 (“Hannam”), the Alberta Court of Appeal re-affirmed its position in the previously well-known 2019 decision of Weir-Jones. Hannam is a significant decision a... November 2020 - 2 min read The Status of Immigration: Looking Beyond COVID-19 Workwise Newsletter This year has been tough on the world. All levels of government are consistently implementing new strategies in hopes of counter-balancing the negative effects of COVID-19. In the last month, two major announcements have been made that will affect Albe... November 2020 Bill 46: Regulatory Reform Comes to Alberta (Part IV) The proclamation of the Health Professions Act in 2001 was the culmination of 7 years of policy analysis as well as broad-based repeated consultation with the public, other stakeholders, and regulatory colleges. This lengthy and careful process of regu... November 2020 Alberta's Health Information Act: What is Changing? Bill 46: Health Statutes Amendment Act, 2020 (Bill 46) was recently introduced in the Alberta Legislature. The omnibus bill amends a number of pieces of health legislation, including the Health Information Act (HIA). As the Minister of Health... November 2, 2020 - 3 min read How much Northbridge could pay out in COVID claims Canadian Underwriter November 2020 - 5 min read European Influence and the Modernization of Canadian Privacy Law: Is Alberta Next? Canada’s privacy laws have arguably lagged behind the European Union for years. The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has incorporated a human rights-based approach to privacy within its data protection legislati... October 2020 - 7 min read Case Summary: Sack v Lange Defence + Indemnity While sports competitors owe a duty of care to other players, the fact of an accident or injury occurring during gameplay does not necessarily establish that the Defendant competitor was negligent. There must be a failure to take appropriate care, as a... October 2020 - 6 min read Case Summary: National Ink & Stitch, LLC v. State Auto Property & Casualty Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity The insured was held to be covered for “direct physical damage”, being loss/corruption of electronic data and software, and for a reduction of efficiency in the computer system caused by a ransomware attack. This was largely due to the word... October 2020 - 5 min read Case Summary: Ewashko v Hugo Defence + Indemnity The Alberta Court of Appeal held that co-defendants who are not adverse in interest are not required to share experts. Ewashko v. Hugo, 2020 ABCA 228
Facts + Issues
Plaintiff Ewashko, represented by his mother, suffered a significant birth inj... October 2020 - 5 min read Case Summary: LDS v SCA Defence + Indemnity Forensic analysis of voluminous data and electronic devices can constitute steps which "significantly advance" an action to resist an application for dismissal of the litigation on account of delay. LDS v SCA, 2020 ABQB 586
Fa... October 30, 2020 Creative Real Estate Deals & AFS Strategies Presentations Mogul Mastermind October 30, 2020 How to Purchase a Foreclosure Presentations Mogul Mastermind October 2020 - 21 min read Case Summary: Stacey Estate v Lukenchuk Defence + Indemnity For damages under the Fatal Accident Act, the plaintiff need not prove that the defendant’s tort was the sole cause of the death, but only that it contributed to the death. The “but for” test for causation is applicable for this and m... October 2020 - 3 min read Prompt Payment in Alberta: One Big Step Closer On October 21, 2020, Bill 37: Builders’ Lien (Prompt Payment) Amendment Act, 2020 passed First Reading in the Alberta Legislature. Bill 37 would introduce significant changes to the Alberta Builders’ Lien Act, particularly by introducing st... October 2020 - 4 min read UPDATE – Ministerial Order 009/2020 Expired: Condos Once More Required to Convene AGMs Real Estate Blog October 2020 - 6 min read Major Win for York on Copyright: York University v. Access Copyright Case Review Update: On October 15, 2020 the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) granted the applications for leave to appeal. The judgment of the Federal Court of Appeal, in York University v. The Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency (“Access Copyright”), Num... October 2020 - 3 min read Constructively Dismissed Employee Entitled to Over $1 Million for Incentive Plan Payment Workwise Newsletter Have you reviewed the wording of your long-term incentive or other bonus or benefit plans for employees recently? If not, this is something employers will want to consider after the release of the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Matthe... October 2020 - 2 min read Asserting Privilege in the Condominium Context Real Estate Blog October 2020 - 8 min read Regulating the Use of Social Media by Professionals The use of social media is widespread in today's world. It is used by nurses, doctors, lawyers, engineers, and other professionals to communicate with friends and others in both their professional and private lives. Social media use by professional... October 7, 2020 Cocktails + Counsel: Workplace Accommodation in the COVID Era
Q+A Session Join Field Law for the second installment of a complimentary new webinar series that brings you together (virtually) with a few of our lawyers for an unscripted chat about legal issues. Your questions guide the discussion, and we provide our legal pers... October 2020 - 2 min read Simple as Pie? Not Exactly Up Here Business Magazine Employment contracts don’t have to be difficult, but do take care. Making a new hire can be a happy time for a business. That said, it’s important to take the long view and make sure your employment contract covers the issues that are impor... September 2020 - 4 min read Terminating Employees after the Sale of a Business Workwise Newsletter When a business is sold, it is common that its employees will continue working for the purchaser after the sale. If the purchaser later decides to terminate their employment, complex issues around determining their entitlement to reasonable notice may ... September 16, 2020 Privacy for Condo Corporations: Understanding + Complying with PIPA Webinar Condominiums in Alberta are defined as organizations which are subject to the requirements of the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA). This means that condo corporations must develop and adhere to policies and practices that comply with PIPA whe... September 8, 2020 Field Law Community Fund Program Announces 2020 Winners CALGARY – September 8, 2020 – Supporting our community has never been more important. Field Law is proud to announce the 2020 winners of the Field Law Fund Community Program, distributing $60,000 in funding to local charities and organizati... September 8, 2020 Three Calgary Community Organizations Receiving Donations From Field Law Calgary Herald September 2020 - 7 min read Immigration Update: What Changed Over the Summer? It comes as no surprise that amidst all of the chaos and changes resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Canadian and US immigration landscapes changed in many ways over the summer, both big and small. Processing of all types of immigration applicati... September 2020 - 2 min read Workplace Bullies: An Employer's Duty to Respond Workwise Newsletter The importance of a prompt and meaningful investigation into a workplace complaint was highlighted in Bassanese v German Canadian News Company Limited. An employer was ordered to pay $50,000 in aggravated damages for failure to properly ... August 2020 The Best Lawyers™ in Canada 2021 38 Fielders Recognized Field Law is pleased to announce that 38 of our lawyers are recognized in their respective practice areas in the 15th edition of The Best Lawyers™ in Canada. Recognition in Best Lawyers™ is based on peer reviews of ... August 2020 - 1 min read UPDATE: CERB Extension and Changes to Employment Insurance The Federal government has announced a four- week extension to the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB).As explained by the Government of Canada, the CERB is being extended from 24 weeks to 28 weeks for workers who:
stopped working due to COVID... August 2020 - 4 min read Workplace Investigations: Fairness is Key Employers have an obligation to investigate allegations of employee misconduct. While employers are often aware of their obligations to take allegations of employee misconduct seriously, it is equally important that workplace investigations are fair to... August 2020 - 19 min read Case Study: Provost v. Dueck Downtown Chevrolet Buick GMC Limited Defence + Indemnity The British Columbia Court of Appeal held that while a car dealership which failed to secure a vehicle on its lot may be liable for an accident which occurs as the thief drives out of the dealership, it was not liable where the thief drives away from t... August 2020 - 10 min read Case Study: Apps v. Grouse Mountain Resorts Ltd. Defence + Indemnity Sports liability waivers must be clear and contain all relevant information and reasonable notice of the waiver must be brought to the customer’s attention before or at the time of entering into the contract. A customer’s pre-contract exper... August 2020 - 9 min read Case Study: Laridae v. Co-operators Defence + Indemnity An Ontario Court ordered an insurer to defend a data breach claim in the face of data exclusion clauses where it was unclear whether or not all of the claims against the insured fell within the clauses. Laridae v. Co-operators, 2020 ONSC 219... August 2020 - 6 min read Case Study: Pembridge Insurance Company of Canada v. Chu Defence + Indemnity The insurer was obligated to defend its insured under a homeowner policy where its insured was alleged to have engaged in a road rage assault against another driver after the insured stopped and exited from his own vehicle – it was not sufficient... August 2020 - 6 min read Case Study: Little v Floyd Sinton Limited Defence + Indemnity A plaintiff’s incapacity does not, as a matter of law, relieve him/her of the obligation to mitigate their damages; the issue of mitigation must still be put to the trier of fact.Little v Floyd Sinton Limited, 2019 ONCA 865 per Roberts, J.A.
Fa... August 2020 - 5 min read Case Study: Burns v. RBC Life Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity The Ontario Court of Appeal ducked the issue of whether or not an insurer’s employee can be sued in his/her personal capacity for bad faith.Burns v. RBC Life Insurance Company, 2020 ONCA 347; varying 2019 ONSC 6977
Facts and Issues
The Plaint... August 2020 - 3 min read Case Study: Fuller v. Aphria Inc. Defence + Indemnity The Ontario Court of Appeal reiterated its disapproval of distributive cost orders but upheld a trial judge’s decision to disallow the successful plaintiff the costs of an expert where the expert’s evidence is of marginal value to the case.... August 2020 - 5 min read Working from Home: Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic In March 2020, the world shifted and many employees had to adapt to working from home. Now several months on, many employees are hoping to make this arrangement permanent. Having your employees work from home may benefit and be feasible ... August 2020 - 3 min read Stress-Testing Your Asset and Corporate Structure A tumultuous new reality has spread across the international economy. While some will weather troubled times well, or even profit from them, others will experience a more negative impact. Competent financial planners will consider different scenarios t... July 22, 2020 Field Law Community Fund Offering $60,000 in Community Grants Local support towards community organizations struggling with COVID-19 pandemic FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE JULY 22, 2020 - Field Law, a western and northern regional law firm, has opened applications for its Field Law Community Fund Program (the Program), which will distribute $60,000 in grant funding between Northern Alberta, Southern... July 30, 2020 Regulatory Reform Comes to Alberta Webinar Join Field Law’s professional regulatory lawyers and your colleagues from other health regulators for a free webinar on July 30 from 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM.
Alberta Health’s discussion paper “Proposals to Amend the Health Professions... July 2020 - 4 min read Upcoming Clarifications to Contractual Good Faith Last December, the Supreme Court of Canada heard two appeals concerning contractual good faith issues. The first involved an appeal of the British Columbia decision Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District v. Wastech Services Ltd., 2019 BC... July 2020 - 4 min read COVID-19 and the Impact on the Cannabis Industry Keeping Up With Cannabis Cannabis retail outlets, producers, manufacturers, distributors and warehouses were deemed to be essential services by the Alberta Government on March 30, 2020. As a result, cannabis businesses and services can and have continued to serve Albertans thr... July 23, 2020 Coffee + Counsel: Mitigating Risk as Employees Return to Work Q+A Session Field Law presents a new series that brings together you and a few of our lawyers for an unscripted chat about legal issues. Your questions guide the discussion, and we provide our legal perspectives.
As businesses open up again, and employees retur... July 2020 - 4 min read 8 Tips for When the Bank Calls It is no secret that, due to COVID-19 and the collapse in oil prices that many companies in Alberta are in financial distress. While lenders have generally cooperated during this period, business owners are now, with good reason, anxiously dreadi... July 2020 - 1 min read Update: Proposed Changes to the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) UPDATE: Bill C-20 passed Royal Assent on July 27, 2020. As a result, the changes to the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy program, described in detail below, came into force on July 27, 2020.
On July 17, 2020, the Canadian government proposed changes to... July 2020 - 5 min read Highlights of Bill 32: Restoring Balance in Alberta’s Workplaces Act Workwise Newsletter UPDATE: Bill 32 passed Royal Assent on July 29, 2020. As a result, the changes to the Employment Standards Code and the Labour Relations Code, described in detail below, will begin to come into force. The now passed legislative amendments com... July 2020 - 38 mins Is Your Condo Safe + Secure? Presentations CCI Webinar July 8, 2020 WFH: Policies + Considerations Beyond the Pandemic
Webinar The COVID-19 pandemic forced many employers and their employees to abruptly adopt work-from-home arrangements. Although the relaunch of the Alberta economy is underway, employers and employees have become accustomed to remote work and “Zoom&rdquo... July 2020 - 1 min read Bill 30: Increased Public Participation in Professional Regulation On Monday, July 6, 2020, the Government of Alberta tabled Bill 30, the Health Statutes Amendment Act, 2020. This proposed legislation amends a number of existing Acts, including the Alberta Health Professions Act. The Health Professions Act e... July 7, 2020 Privacy for Health Care Organizations: What Has Changed and What Hasn’t? Webinar Health care organizations have had to adapt quickly during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to managing an unknown disease and focusing on patient care, day to day operational life has changed- videoconferencing, fit for work screening, and liab... June 2020 - 2 min read Bill 24: A Further Extension of the Temporary Layoff Period to 180 Days As we reported in April, the Government of Alberta previously announced an extension of the temporary layoff period in Alberta’s Employment Standards Code (the “Code”) from 60 days to 120 days.Recently, the Government of Alberta intro... June 2020 2020 Field Law Community Fund Program - Now Open Over the last seven years the Field Law Community Fund Program has awarded funds to support 96 organizations and charitable initiatives throughout Alberta and the Northwest Territories. With $550,000 donated in support of these local charities to date,... June 2020 - 4 min read Bill 21: An Act to Protect Patients from Past Conduct of Health Care Professionals Perspectives for the Professions On April 1, 2019, portions of Bill 21: An Act to Protect Patients came into force in Alberta and amended the treatment of sexually based regulatory offences by colleges and regulators under the Health Professions Act, RSA 2000, c H-7 (the “HPA&rd... June 2020 - 3 min read Disruptive Behaviour is a No-No! Perspectives for the Professions The Alberta Court of Appeal confirms the broad nature of professional misconduct and that deference must be given to tribunals assessing a member’s conduct.
The Alberta Court of Appeal’s decision in Al-Ghamdi v. College of Physicians and... June 25, 2020 How Amendments to the MHSTA Impact Landlords of Manufactured Home Communities
Webinar Enforcing rental arrears and other tenant breaches under a Lease are an important aspect of a Landlord’s business and recently proclaimed amendments to the Mobile Home Sites Tenancies Act are going to have a direct impact on how Landlord’s ... June 2020 - 2 min read CERB Extension – What Does This Mean for Employers? The Federal Government recently announced an extension to the Canada Emergency Relief Benefit (CERB). The program, set to expire at the end of June, will now be available to support Canadians unable to work due to the COVID-19 pandemic till the end of ... June 2020 - 6 min read Ready for Re-Launch! – Practical Advice for Employer “Return to the Workplace” Planning Amidst COVID-19 As endless as these past few months have seemed, it was not so long ago that most workplaces had to abruptly wrestle with how to scale down and make sometimes drastic changes to the way that their work gets done in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Wh... June 2020 - 2 min read What to do When an Employee Resigns after Being Recalled to Return to Work Employers Asked, We Answered As restrictions begin to lift, many employers are recalling employees from temporary layoff. In some cases, employees are responding to the request to return to work by resigning. As a result, many employers are wondering whether they are complicit in ... June 2020 Return to Play – Legal Considerations As we begin to find a new normal and economies undergo the re-opening process, the return of amateur sports is now emerging on the horizon. This is a happy development that will have a profound positive impact on the physical and mental health of... June 10, 2020 Condominium Quicksand Presentations Edmonton Real Estate Investors Assoc- ZOOM Series June 5, 2020 Residential Investment Webinar Presentations Presented by Equitus LLP June 2020 Exceptions, Resumptions and Some Restrictions: Canada-US Border Update With proclamations and Orders-in-Council slowing down to a trickle, we can now take stock and note some trends in the new era of immigration law. While the Canada -US border will remain closed until at least June 21, 2020, Canada continu... June 2020 A Provincial Twist on the Emergency Suspension of Limitation Periods Canadian Underwriter June 2020 - 11 min read Case Study: WM Morrison Supermarkets plc v. Various Claimants Defence + Indemnity An employer may be vicariously liable for a data breach caused by the tort of an employee depending on the circumstances.WM Morrison Supermarkets plc v. Various Claimants, 2020 UKSC 12, per Lord Reed rev’g 2017 EWHC 3113 (Q.B.) and 2018 EWCA Civ ... June 2020 - 9 min read Case Study: Arconti v. Smith Defence + Indemnity Courts are granting opposed orders for video hearings, including discoveries by video conference as necessary in the modern age, especially in light of restricted court operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Arconti v. Smith, 2020 ONSC 27... June 2020 - 7 min read Case Study: Grossman v. Nissan Canada Defence + Indemnity An employer who is innocent of negligence or other misconduct can be vicariously liable for the tort of intrusion upon seclusion based on a data breach committed by one of its employees. Grossman v. Nissan Canada, 2019 ONSC 6180, per Be... June 2020 - 6 min read Case Study: Mann v. Jefferson Defence + Indemnity The Court set out how to analyze whether or not the exacerbation of pre-existing injury would exceed the minor injury threshold under Ontario legislation, which provides guidance for the same issue under Alberta’s minor injury cap.
Mann v. Jeffe... June 2020 - 7 min read Case Study: G&G Oil Co. of Indiana v. Continental Western Insurance Defence + Indemnity The ransom paid in response to a ransomware attack was held not to be covered under the “Computer Coverage” of an insurance policy because the attack and the ransom demand did not amount to “fraud”, as opposed to a mere theft (c... June 2020 Condo Corporations Now Permitted to Access Reserve Funds in “Emergencies” Real Estate Blog May 2020 Pandemic Parenting: Know your Rights as a Working Parent with Kids CTV News May 2020 Expiration of Limitation Period not a Defence for Surety Under Bond Claim The Lawyer's Daily May 2020 - 4 min read Virtual Witnessing of Wills in Alberta Not so Clear In Alberta, as in most other provinces, generally wills, powers of attorney and personal directives need to be signed and witnessed in person for the documents to be legally valid. Our wills legislation allows certain departur... May 2020 The Limits of Insurance Coverage in a Pandemic CBA National Magazine Online May 2020 - 1 min read Remote Witnessing of Wills, Enduring Power of Attorneys, and Personal Directives Arrives in Alberta Alberta’s Ministry of Justice and Solicitor General has announced a process for remote witnessing and signing of wills, enduring power of attorneys, and personal directives during this time of public emergency. Temporary amendments have been... May 2020 - 4 min read The ABTraceTogether App - Key Privacy Considerations In a bid to help combat the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), Alberta has become the first Canadian province to launch a contact tracing app to track community transmission of COVID-19.Alberta released the app, ABTraceTogether, on May 1, 2020... May 2020 - 2 min read Employees are Afraid to Return to Work. Now What? On May 13, 2020 we hosted a webinar about pandemic-related work refusals as Alberta and other governments enable businesses and other organizations to reopen and call employees back to work. The most frequently asked question was: What do I do with an ... May 2020 - 5 min read Returning to Campus During a Pandemic: Privacy Issues This week, as this article went to press, several major Canadian and American universities announced plans to maintain classes online when the fall semester starts in September. Other universities and colleges are making plans to bring students ba... May 2020 Cybersecurity in the Age of COVID-19 (And Beyond) May 13, 2020 We said “Back to work!” They said “We refuse!” Now what? Webinar The Alberta government announced its "safely staged COVID-19 relaunch" and you’re thinking it’s time to call your laid-off or working-from-home crews back to work. Or you’re carrying on providing essential services and the &... May 2020 COVID-19 Immigration Update The US Restricts Immigration On April 20, 2020, President Trump tweeted that he would close down immigration in response to COVID-19. As this was less than descriptive, a Proclamation was issue... May 7, 2020 Professional Regulatory: Roundtable What do you want to know? Version 2.0 Professional regulators continue to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic while their public interest mandates carry-on.
Field Law’s Professional Regulatory group will host a virtual lunch time roundtable discussion focusing on a few of ... April 2020 Case Summary: MDS Inc. v. Factory Mutual Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity An Ontario court held that under an all-risk policy the “physical damage” requirement for coverage may be met by a loss of use, which may have some application for COVID-19 business interruption claims.
MDS Inc. v. Factory Mutual Insurance... April 2020 Case Summary: Barz v Driving Force Inc Defence + Indemnity Where the driver of a vehicle rented by his employer injured another worker on the job, the action against the lessor of the vehicle was dismissed because, although the owner was not immune under the Workers’ Compensation Act and was exposed in v... April 2020 Case Summary: MacLeod v Marshall Defence + Indemnity The burden of proof for economic loss (past and future loss of income) for a minor plaintiff with no established career path at the time of the accident is only that of a real and substantial possibility, as opposed to the balance of probabilities.MacL... April 2020 Case Summary: Nemchin v Green Defence + Indemnity The Ontario Court of Appeal held that a trial judge erred in refusing to admit a defendant’s video surveillance evidence in a personal injury action but concluded that had the video evidence been admitted it would not have affected the jury&rsquo... April 2020 Case Summary: Li c. Equifax Inc. Defence + Indemnity A claimant who is the victim of a data breach and who has suffered only mental distress or potential future loss such as actual fraud or identity theft lacks standing to sue for such losses.Li c. Equifax Inc., 2019 QCCS 4340, per Bison, J.C.S.
Fa... April 2020 Case Summary: Wage v Canadian Direct Insurance Incorporated Defence + Indemnity The Alberta Court of Appeal found that the territorial limitation provisions in the standard Alberta auto policy apply to the entire policy, such that if the insured is injured or killed in a jurisdiction other than Canada or the United States, there i... April 2020 Case Summary: Ontario Corporation Number 1009329 (Enterprise Rent-A-Car) v Intact Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity For an auto insurer to have any place in the priority list of insurers in a rental/leased car situation, its policy must provide coverage to a relevant insured.
Ontario Corporation Number 1009329 (Enterprise Rent-A-Car) v Intact Insurance Company... April 2020 Case Summary: Aviva Insurance Company v Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity For the purposes of determining the priority of insurers in the overlapping coverage situation with rental vehicles, the Court must first determine who the “lessee” is. This may not always be determined by the rental agreement alone, especi... April 2020 Will the Pandemic Impact Trademarks in Canada? - An Update With the significant disruptions to civil society, Canadian business owners face a host of immediate concerns. Trademarks and intellectual property are naturally lower on the list, and brand owners should take some comfort that there’s a bit of b... April 2020 Field Law Lawyers ranked in the 2020 Legal Lexpert® Directory Field Law is pleased to be listed in the 2020 Legal Lexpert® Directory, with 13 lawyers ranked.
The following lawyers have been ranked:
Chelsey Bailey - Medical Negligence
Roy Boettger, QC - Estate + Personal Tax Planning
Jim Case... April 2020 The Liability of Long-Term Care Facilities: COVID-19’s Projected Impact Canadian Underwriter May 2020 Priority Among Insurers in an Alberta Rental/Leased Vehicle Claim Canadian Journal of Insurance Law April 2020 Signing Contracts in a Distanced World When many people think of signing a contract, the traditional picture is a meeting, a pen and paper, and handshakes at the end. With current social and physical distancing protocols in place, all of these traditional images are jarring. Now, every... April 22, 2020 Lay-offs vs. Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy: Pros + Cons What are the best options for your organization now, during the pandemic, and post-pandemic?
The response to COVID-19 has resulted in a shut-down of the economy. While the operating costs for organizations have remained, revenues have dropped dramat... April 2020 The Nuts + Bolts of the CEWS for Employers As the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (“CEWS”) was made official on April 14, 2020, employers potentially eligible for this subsidy should now be considering what proactive steps they can take to support the intent of the new legislation, sp... April 2020 Uncertain Surety: Expiration of a Limitation Against a Principal is not a Defence to a Bond Claim Sometimes failing to arbitrate a dispute with a binding arbitration provision can be fatal to a claim under a construction contract, particularly if the limitation period to commence the arbitration has expired. But, in the ca... April 15, 2020 Navigating Business Interruption Claims Due to COVID-19
Webinar COVID-19 will result in a big surge in business interruption claims. Get ahead of the curve by getting up to speed on the key issues you will need to know to deal with those claims. Presented by Mike Doerksen and Angela Beierbach, this webinar will pro... April 2020 Roadmap for Employers Navigating COVID-19 Has your company experienced a decrease in work due to COVID-19? Download our comprehensive roadmap to explore the options you have for assistance as well as other frequently asked questions. April 2020 - 4 min read Suspended: Condo Time Frames and Rights of Entry Real Estate Blog April 2020 Eight Things to Know About the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy The Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (the “Subsidy”) is a measure announced by the Government of Canada providing a 75-per-cent wage subsidy to eligible employers for up to 12 weeks, retroactive to March 15, 2020. Field law has previousl... April 2020 UPDATE: Alberta Limitations Under the Insurance Act On April 2, 2020, Field Law reported that the limitations periods in various statutes had been suspended due to the impact of COVID-19. We noted that certain statutes were not included in the suspension order including the Insurance Act. Fiel... April 9, 2020 Eligibility Requirements for the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy We provided our most recent update on the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy on April 1, 2020. On April 8, 2020, the Government of Canada announced changes which relax the eligibility requirements for the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (the “Subsi... April 2020 Suspended or Not? Limitation Periods in Employment Law On March 30, 2020, Ministerial Order 27/2020 from the Minister of Justice and Solicitor General suspended limitation periods and periods of time within which any step must be taken in any proceeding or intended proceeding, from March 17 to June 1, 2020... April 2020 - 2 min read No Contractors Allowed: Court Calls Condo Matter “Urgent” Real Estate Blog April 2020 Temporary Changes to Alberta Employment Standards Legislation On April 6, 2020, the Alberta Government announced temporary changes to the Employment Standards Code and Employment Standards Regulation to assist employers and employees in this difficult time. What we know about the changes so far, and their p... April 2020 Top 10 Immigration Questions Answered In the current state of the world where travel is essentially non-existent, employers who rely on any foreign workers are lost in a sea of unanswered questions. Field Law’s Immigration lawyers have many of the same queries and in an effort ... April 2020 Ontario Court to Consider Whether a Will can be Witnessed Online Globe and Mail April 2020 - 8 min read Tackling COVID-19 and Minimizing Risk: Considerations for Alberta Condominium Corporations Real Estate Blog April 2, 2020 Business Interruption Claims Due to COVID-19 As a result of COVID-19, countless businesses have been forced to temporarily shut their doors or change the way they operate significantly. As a direct result, many businesses have lost and continue to lose income. More and more businesses will be loo... April 1, 2020 UPDATE: What Does the 75% Wage Subsidy Mean for Employers? The Government of Canada continues to announce details of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (the “Subsidy”). On April 1, 2020, the following details were provided:
The Subsidy is available to companies (including partnerships and sole p... April 1, 2020 Privacy + Data Management Considerations for Employers in a Pandemic Webinar During a pandemic it can be difficult to balance employee privacy rights with the need to collect the information required to make critical decisions. Presented by Katrina Haymond and Kelly Nicholson, this webinar will provide employers with informatio... April 2020 - 3 min read Strings Attached Up Here Business Magazine Ottawa has unveiled pandemic financial support. That’s good news for struggling businesses. But remember: there’s no such thing as free money. Pay close attention to your obligations before accepting the help.
As you’ve likely hear... March 31, 2020 COVID-19: Force Majeure Clauses in Business Agreements Webinar Learn about force majeure clauses, and why context is important in interpreting how it might apply to your commercial contracts. Presented by Cameron Hughes and Richard Stobbe, this webinar will review the concept of “frustration” of contra... March 2020 This Just Tweeted… US Immigration Updates based on COVID-19 Whether you saw it as a tweet or during a press conference over the weekend, President Trump announced that all social distancing must continue for Americans for at least another month, if not longer. While this isn’t the first or last update on ... March 31, 2020 The Impact of COVID-19 on Professional Regulators The COVID-19 pandemic is presenting profound challenges world-wide stressing the capacity of societal institutions, businesses, and organizations. We know that our professional regulatory clients are facing extraordinarily difficult and unique challeng... March 2020 - 2 min read A Question of Priorities (If You Want to Administer an Estate) Appointing a personal representative is one of the first substantive things addressed in a Will and one of the key choices a person can make with respect to their estate plan. When a person dies without a will, someone must apply to the Court to obtain... March 27, 2020 What Does the 75% Wage Subsidy Mean for Employers? On March 27, 2020, the Government of Canada announced that it would be increasing a previously announced wage subsidy for small and medium businesses from 10% to 75%. The stated goal is to help employers keep employees on the payroll. The wag... March 2020 Virtual Workplace: Employers Can Rely on Electronic Employment Records Recent changes in legislation permit Alberta employers to use electronic signatures and maintain electronic employment records. These legislative changes are particularly helpful as employers navigate increasingly common work-from-home arrangements and... March 2020 Patent Issues under Canada’s COVID-19 Emergency Response Act The Federal Government’s COVID-19 Emergency Response Act contains certain amendments to the Patent Act that permit the Federal Government to authorize anyone to “make, construct, use and sell a patented invention to the extent necessar... March 25, 2020 Your Guide to the Federal COVID-19 Aid Legislation Bill C-13 today received royal assent, bringing into force many of the initiatives first announced by the federal government on March 18, 2020 in response to the challenges employees and employers are facing due to COVID-19. Part of Bill C-13 brou... March 25, 2020 Additional Financial Support for Alberta Employers On March 23, 2020, the Government of Alberta announced new measures for private sector employers to help them cope with the financial effects of the COVID-19 crisis. They include:
an Education property tax freeze
an Education property tax deferra... March 2020 COVID-19 + The Duty to Report Perspectives for the Professions On March 17, 2020, Alberta declared a state of public health emergency “due to pandemic COVID-19 and the significant likelihood of pandemic influenza”.While in the normal course, a patient’s right to privacy is paramount, in the face ... March 2020 Landlords: How do you Spell (Rent) Relief? Alberta is now in its fifth year of a depressed economy, and the misery has recently been significantly worsened by the double blows of a severe drop in oil prices and a pandemic. Many Alberta businesses and non-profit organizations are suffering, and ... March 2020 - 4 min The Force Majeure Hit List – 7 Things You Need to Know The COVID-19 Pandemic has unprecedented and wide-spread impact on commercial obligations. Many business relationships are being disrupted or suspended, and many business deals are delayed or completely cancelled. The global lock-down has... March 2020 Construction Claims and COVID-19: What is Still Available? The status of what businesses can remain open, in what capacity, and with access to whom, is ever-changing in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. For ongoing construction projects, or those for which a party has recently performed work, ... March 2020 COVID-19 Impact on Immigration and Travel Ban Less than a month ago, we wrote about business travellers who had their phones arbitrarily searched at the border. Two weeks ago, we wrote about travel insurance for those looking to travel for business or even (gasp) pleasure.... March 2020 COVID-19 and Construction Contract Performance: Frustration When you Don't Have a Force Majeure Clause The ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic will likely have many parties looking at their ongoing and future contractual obligations. In the construction context, many contracts will include a force majeure provision outlining what happens when contr... March 2020 Key Cross-Border Points for Canadians to Consider at this Time Things are changing every day in the wake of COVID-19. Unanticipated consequences have begun to cause a fury of questions and unknowns. The below aims to address both the immigration and tax concerns as it relates to those with assets and ties to... March 20, 2020 COVID-19: Employment + Immigration Do’s and Don’ts Webinar Learn what employers and employees can and can’t do during the pandemic, and how travel restrictions will affect Canadians. Presented by Christin Elawny and Miranda Sinclair this webinar will discuss up to date information on the ever-evolvi... March 19, 2020 New Federal Support for Employees + Employers As part of a new $82 billion spending package, the federal government today announced that approximately $27 billion would be directed to support for employers and employees affected by the COVID-19 situation. Parliament could be recalled as early as n... March 18, 2020 UPDATE: Alberta Government Announces Details of COVID-19 Leave On March 16, 2020, Field Law reported on the Alberta government’s plans to amend the Employment Standards Code to allow employees who are required to self-isolate or care for a family member with COVID-19 to take 14 days of paid leave to cover th... March 2020 Convening a Condominium AGM Amid Concerns over COVID-19? Real Estate Blog March 17, 2020 Field Law - Remote Working As the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to rise, we are writing to update you on the steps Field Law is taking to ensure the well-being of our employees, clients, and our community. We continue to monitor updates from Alberta Health Servi... March 2020 Lock Down! Tips for Employers + Businesses Facing the Inevitable The advice from Canadian public health officials is trending in one direction: increasing self-isolation. Not less.Calgary and Red Deer announced states of emergency earlier this week. Today, Ontario... March 16, 2020 COVID-19: An Update for Employers Changes to Alberta’s Employment Standards Code and an Updated Employer’s Guide to Managing Pandemics in the Workplace While the risk of contracting COVID-19 in Alberta and the Northwest Territories remains low, the situation is fluid and changing quickly. As a result, employers worldwide are balancing the steps necessary to lessen the effects of COVID-19 with continui... March 2020 Sticky Situation: Sticky Note Will Accepted by Alberta Court While our office remains open during the escalating global coronavirus (COVID-19) situation in Alberta, we have taken steps to minimize the potential impact of the virus in accordance with our firm’s business continuity plan and th... March 13, 2020 Field Law - Response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) As the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to unfold, Field Law has taken steps to minimize the potential impact of the virus. As of March 12, all our offices (Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife) remain open and fully functioning.
In... March 2020 Alberta Airbnb Decision Could have National Implications The Lawyer's Daily March 2020 Travelling soon? Here’s your Coronavirus Round-Up Your much awaited vacation to Asia or Europe is fast-approaching and suddenly you’ve started to take notice of the non-stop coronavirus coverage. Should you cancel? What are your options? Does your insurance cover you? Field Law&rs... March 2020 Copyright is Great… But it Has its Limits Proline Pipe, an Alberta company, created certain design drawings for pipe bending machines. A former employee took those drawings with him when he left the company. A rival company obtained copies of the drawings and manufactured the pipe bending mach... March 2020 Alberta Court Rules Airbnb Rentals are like Hotels, Makes it easier for Condo Boards to Ban Them Globe and Mail February 2020 Regulation of Short-Term Rentals Still To Be Decided Real Estate Blog February 2020 Bill 3 - Proposed Amendments to the Mobile Home Sites Tenancies Act On February 26, 2020, the Government of Alberta tabled Bill 3: Mobile Home Sites Tenancies Amendment Act, 2020. When passed, this Bill will change the current dispute resolution regime for mobile home disputes. Currently, all disputes relating to ... February 2020 Case Summary: Yenovkian v Gullian Defence + Indemnity The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has recognized the privacy tort of placing the plaintiff in a false light, awarding both compensatory and punitive damages for same. Yenovkian v. Gulian, 2019 ONSC 7279, per Kristjanson, J.
Facts + Issues
... February 2020 Case Summary: R v Badrudin Defence + Indemnity An insured’s statement to his fire insurance adjuster as required by the policy’s statutory conditions is inadmissible in criminal proceedings against him because it is a statutorily compelled statement.R. v Badrudin, 2019 NLSC 187, per Tho... February 2020 Case Summary: Edgeworth v Shapira Defence + Indemnity A defendant’s insurer accepted a plaintiff’s offer in circumstances where a defence independent medical examination report had not been served on the plaintiff (in breach of the Rules), the plaintiff’s subsequent action against the de... February 2020 Case Summary: Malcolm Silver & Co. Ltd, et al. v State Farm Fire and Casualty Company Defence + Indemnity The Court held that a fraudster’s unauthorized use of the insured’s online banking system to make payments against her own credit card debts did not qualify as forgery or alteration under the terms of the policy in question.Malcolm Silver &... February 2020 Can Border Officers Search Your Phone? A few months ago, and despite widespread criticism, the Canadian government passed legislation allowing US border officers to conduct warrant-less searches on Canadian soil. The Pre-Clearance Act implemented a bilateral treaty betw... February 2020 Just Horsing Around: When Off-Duty Conduct Becomes Cause to Terminate Workwise Newsletter The ever pertinent question of when off-duty conduct will constitute just cause dismissal was recently considered by an arbitration board in Prince Edward Island (Canadian Union of Public Employees v A Nursing Home Inc.). An individual was termina... February 2020 “False Light” Publicity: A New Risk in Data Management Canadian courts have traditionally been more reluctant than their American counterparts to recognize torts relating to privacy interests. The American Law Society adopted the following four torts protective of individual privacy some time ago in its we... February 2020 Big Beer Barley Belt Brand Battle Brews In a story that seems tailor made for alliterative headlines, the recent acquisition of Calgary’s Banded Peak Brewing by Labatt Breweries of Canada has raised questions about the fate of the trademark BARLEY BELT. Banded Peak Brewing a... February 10, 2020 Human Rights Obligations Following a Positive Drug Test Keeping Up With Cannabis In Maude v NOV Enerflow ULC, 2019 AHRC 54, the Human Rights Tribunal of Alberta provided some helpful reminders to employers on the intersection of drug test results and human rights. In March, 2016, Mr. Maude tested non-n... February 6, 2020 Year in Review: Important Professional Regulatory Cases of 2019
Webinar Learn about the most important professional regulatory court cases of 2019. What are the key legal trends? What are the strategic and operational implications for regulators? This webinar will be presented by James Casey, QC and Leanne Monsma of Field ... February 2020 Access to Information and Privilege: The Saga Continues The Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench has provided some much-needed guidance on solicitor-client privilege in the context of access to information requests in Edmonton Police Service v. Alberta (Information and Privacy Commissioner), 2020 ... February 2020 An Employer’s Guide to Managing the Coronavirus in the Workplace Alert While the public risk associated with the Coronavirus in Canada is still considered low, employers should prepare antidotes for the various workplaces issues that arise in the wake of large-scale threats to health. Below are some frequently asked quest... February 2020 Duty to Accommodate: Understanding Employee Needs Workwise Newsletter One of the first decisions issued by the Alberta Human Rights Tribunal in 2020 offers an important reminder in regards to an employer’s duty to accommodate. The decision of Salazar v J.S.L. Investments Corporation (“Salazar”), em... January 28, 2020 How to Protect Your Business Against Cyber Threats In 2010 the Government of Canada “launched a national effort to defend against [cyber security] threats with Canada’s first Cyber Security Strategy”: National Cyber Security Strategy (the National Strategy). This outlines three t... January 2020 When a Door in the US Closes, Another in Canada Opens Immigration Alert It is not news to anyone that travelling to the US or obtaining a legal US work permit has been increasingly difficult over the last few years. Under the current administration, there have been extensive procedural and policy-related changes which ofte... Winter 2020 2019 - A Year in Review Seminar Series Seminars Join the Field Law Labour + Employment Group for our annual seminars featuring legal updates and practical challenges for management and employee groups.Part 1 has been approved for 1.75 CPD hours and Part 2 has been approved for 2.25 CPD hou... January 2020 - 3 min read Who You Gonna Call (As a Witness)? Construction disputes (as with any matters in litigation) rarely make it to trial. Matters typically settle or are resolved on a summary basis through written evidence alone. But if a matter proceeds to trial, where evidence via live wit... January 2020 The Annotated Health Professions Act Published by Thomson Reuters Written by James Casey, QC, Katrina Haymond, Greg Sim and Jason Kully, The Annotated Health Professions Act is written for both lawyers and members of professional regulatory associations and provides an overview of Alberta’s Healt... January 2020 Click-Through Agreements January 2020 Click-Through Agreements IP Blog January 2020 - 3 min read What's Your Business Up Here Business Magazine Entrepreneurs have options when it comes to choosing the legal structure for their business. All have advantages and disadvantages. When it comes to making your choice remember: One size does not fit all.
A question I am frequently asked is, what bu... January 2020 Field Law Announces Four New Partners The Firm welcomes Trevor Batty, Jennifer Marshall, Scott Matheson and Marc Yu to its partnership. Field Law is pleased to welcome Trevor Batty, Jennifer Marshall, Scott Matheson and Marc Yu as partners of the Firm. The addition of four lawye... December 2019 2019 Field Law Post-Secondary Summit Recap The fourth annual Field Law Post-Secondary Summit was held on November 28 in Calgary and was co-chaired by Frank Molnar, QC and Greg Harding, QC. Brief summaries of the presentations given at the Summit are provided below.
Innovative Governance During... Winter 2019 Canadian Condominium Institute Ask the Professionals December 2019 Cutting the Red Tape: New Condo Regulations coming to Alberta January 1, 2020 Real Estate Blog December 20, 2019 Recent Court Ruling Limits Airbnbs in Condos Presentations Calgary's Business December 2019 Cross-Border Workforce Trends in 2020 Workwise Newsletter As we approach 2020, employers have increasing options for bringing skilled workers into Canada, while opportunities for employees to head south, to the United States, are increasingly limited. Field Law's Immigration Group projects three trends to... December 2019 Case Summary: Tanious v The Empire Life Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity Special costs may be awarded against the insurer in disability insurance litigation in response to a litigant’s personal and financial circumstances, even if there has been no reprehensible conduct or bad faith on the part of the insurer. &... December 2019 Case Summary: Goodvin v Penson Defence + Indemnity Parents are not generally liable for the negligence or misconduct of their adult children, including in a social host liquor case. Goodvin v Penson, 2019 ABQB 867, per Schlosser, Master
Facts + Issues
The Defendants Russell and Shell... December 2019 Case Summary: Sanderina, LLC v Great American Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity An insured whose comptroller wired funds to a fraudster’s account on a fraudulent email purportedly from the insured’s majority shareholder was found not to be covered for the losses because of the wording of its cyber insurance policy.Sand... December 2019 Case Summary: Bourbonnière v Yahoo! Inc. Defence + Indemnity Certification for a class action relating to a data breach was refused because, among other things, the Plaintiff was held not to have suffered a compensable loss. The Plaintiff failed to demonstrate a compensable loss such as actual fraud or identity ... December 2019 No Life After Death: Woman Loses Battle to Use Deceased Husband’s Sperm Surviving spouse loses fight to use reproductive material taken from deceased husband due to lack of consent. In L.T. v D.T. Estate (Re), 2019 BCSC 2130, the BC Supreme Court dealt with a difficult and challenging application advanced by a s... December 13, 2019 The Winds of Change in Professional Regulation are Approaching Gale Force On November 27, 2019, the British Columbia Ministry of Health Steering Committee on Modernization of Health Professional Regulation released a report titled “Modernizing the provincial health profession regulatory framework”. The report ann... December 2019 Case Summary: Brooks v Nand Defence + Indemnity Advance payments payable by a Defendant’s auto insurer under the Fair Practices Regulation are not payable by an underinsured driver, nor are they payable by the Plaintiff’s own SEF 44 Endorsement or the Motor Vehicle Accident Claims fund.B... December 11, 2019 Human Rights + Professional Regulation: What Every Organization Needs to Know Webinar Human rights principles can be at play in many issues faced by professional regulatory bodies. A sound knowledge and understanding of human rights concepts can ensure that regulators are carrying out their functions in a manner that respects and i... December 2019 Another Case of Beer: Small Craft Brewers + Constitutional Battles It seems a long way from Alberta’s basement breweries to the halls of the Court of Appeal. But that line was connected in a long running dispute known as Steam Whistle Brewing Inc. v AGLC. With enough reading to make any constitutiona... December 2019 One Bad Apple: When Can an Employee’s Bad Attitude Justify Termination? Workwise The recent arbitration decision in Sasktel v Unifor, Local 2S, 2019 CanLII 57057 (SK LA) arose after a long-time employee was dismissed from her position with SaskTel. While her competence and technical know-how were undoubted, her interpersonal skills... October 2019 Field Law to be Named 2019 Recipient of the Law Firm Award at Upcoming Women in Law Leadership Awards Field Law is proud to announce that it will be honoured at the upcoming 2019 Women in Law Leadership Awards with the Law Firm Award, presented by The Counsel Network and The Association of Women Lawyers. The Law Firm Award is presented to a firm ... November 29, 2019 Knowing When to “Lawyer Up” Business in Calgary Legal professionals offer advice to business owners on when to ask for help. November 28, 2019 2019 Field Law Post-Secondary Summit Conferences Join us for our fourth annual Summit to focus and collaborate on legal issues facing Alberta’s post-secondary institutions.Topics to be covered include:
Innovative Governance During Challenging Times
Update on Recent Labour Relations Board ... November 2019 Buzz Kill: Cannabis Branding + Packaging Restrictions in Canada Keeping Up With Cannabis In the excitement of Canadian cannabis legalization, many overlooked that cannabis legislation is in fact focused on controlling the production, distribution, sale and possession of cannabis in Canada to achieve three objectives:
Protect young pers... November 20, 2019 Edible Cannabis in the Workplace Seminars It has been over a year since Canada legalized cannabis. Although individuals could make cannabis food and drink for personal use under the legislation, such products were initially not able to be produced or sold commercially. As of Octobe... November 18, 2019 Insurance Industry Update: What You Need to Know Seminars Join lawyers from Field Law's Insurance Practice Group for a free seminar on topics including:
Do insurers have to provide advances to Plaintiffs and if so, how much? Why have the rules changed? Are there any benefits to providing advances? Wha... November 7, 2019 Practical Considerations for the Investment Income Rules for Private Companies Seminars 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 investment i... November 2019 Bill 21: Key Aspects for Alberta Employers Alert The Alberta government introduced Bill 21: Ensuring Fiscal Sustainability Act, 2019 on October 28, 2019. This bill proposes several legislative changes that will impact labour and employment relations in the Province and which raise various considerati... November 2019 Bill 20 + Bill 21: Key Aspects for Alberta's Post-Secondary Institutions Alert On October 28, 2019 the Alberta government introduced two bills (Bills 20 and 21) which propose several legislative changes that will impact post-secondary institutions in the Province, as well as their students. The legislation has various aspects wor... October 2019 The Impact of #MeToo on Professional Regulators Perspectives for the Professions The hashtag “MeToo” went viral in October of 2017. In the two years since then, the movement has had a significant impact on society. It’s had a weighty effect on professional regulators as well. What changes have we seen so far and w... October 2019 - 2 min read Think Leaving Equipment On Site Extends Your Lien Period? Think Again. Builders’ liens provide unpaid contractors and subcontractors on a construction project the ability to secure a debt claim against a piece of land. While courts have acknowledged that the purpose of builders’ liens is to prov... October 2019 Get With the Times! The Alberta Court of Appeal Weighs in on Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Workwise Newsletter The recent case of Calgary (City) v Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 37, 2019 ABCA 388 from the Alberta Court of Appeal marks an important decision on sexual misconduct in the workplace. The City of Calgary (the “City”) ... October 2019 Case Summary: Pederson v Allstate Insurance Defence + Indemnity The Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench analyzed the application of solicitor-client and litigation privilege in separate, but related tort and insurance actions and confirmed that both the insureds and the insurer are clients of insurer-appointed cou... October 2019 Case Summary: Nasr Hospitality Services Inc. v Intact Insurance Defence + Indemnity The Ontario Court of Appeal held that commencing a lawsuit to enforce an insurance claim becomes “appropriate” as soon as it is legally possible under the policy to do so and not a later date when the insurer denies the claim. Na... October 2019 Case Summary: McAllister v Calgary (City) Defence + Indemnity Where a visitor on a City of Calgary pedway was assaulted and beaten, the occupier City was held not to owe a duty of care to prevent all crime but, rather, had a duty to maintain an adequate security system in place to detect and respond to crimes wit... October 2019 Case Summary: Quilichini v Wilson’s Greenhouse & Garden Centre Ltd. and Velocity Raceway Ltd. Defence + Indemnity An electronic contract, executed electronically, including a liability exclusion form, was held to be effective to bar a defendant’s liability for a sports accident.
Quilichini v. Wilson’s Greenhouse & Garden Centre Ltd. and Velo... October 2019 The Regulation of Telepractice: An Update Perspectives for the Professions In June 2019, we reported on the Ontario Court of Appeal’s decision in College of Optometrists of Ontario v Essilor Group Inc, where a company, primarily located in British Columbia, sold eyeglasses and contact lenses over the internet ... October 23, 2019 Alberta Legislation Aimed at Combating Domestic Violence Problematic, Say Legal Experts The Lawyer's Daily Brian Vail discusses Bill 17, the Disclosure to Protect Again Domestic Violence (Clare's Law) Act and the implications on society with respect to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. October 22, 2019 Insurance Industry Update: What You Need to Know Seminars The insurance issues surrounding liability for personal injury are always changing. Join lawyers from Field Law's Insurance Practice Group for a free seminar on topics including:
Do insurers have to provide advances to Plaintiffs and if so... October 2019 Election Day Voting Rights Alert As most people are no doubt aware, Monday, October 21 is Election Day, and federal law requires employers across Canada to provide employees with paid time off to vote (unless an employee has already exercised the right to vote by casting an advance ba... October 21, 2019 Field Law’s Competition for Charitable Funds Creates a Unique Pro Bono Opportunity Canadian Lawyer Magazine October 17, 2019 Business Succession Planning Webinar Business succession is a principal and critical component of personal succession for owners of closely held businesses. This is a long-term, complex process that must be managed with a structured approach. Presented by Rob Worthington and J.R. Mac... October 16, 2019 Update on Edibles: Legal Tomorrow! Keeping Up With Cannabis Almost 5 million Canadians reported using Cannabis in the second quarter of 2019. For those Canadians, partaking in Canada’s legal cannabis market is about to become much sweeter…
Update
The Federal Government’s Cannabis Ac... October 10, 2019 Registration Issues in Professional Regulation
Webinar Professional regulatory organizations are responsible for assessing applications for professional licensing and applying registration requirements in a fair and transparent way. This task is made increasingly difficult by the evolving regulatory and le... September 2019 Immunizations and Immunity Provisions: The Scope of Protection Under the Public Health Act The Alberta Court of Appeal has issued a decision involving the interpretation of the Alberta Public Health Act, which may have broad implications on limiting liability of public bodies. Frank v. Alberta Health Services, 2019 ABCA 332 involves a medica... September 2019 The Best Lawyers in Canada 2020 34 Fielders Recognized Field Law is pleased to announce that 34 of our lawyers are recognized in their respective practice areas in the 14th edition of The Best Lawyers™ in Canada. Recognition in Best Lawyers™ is based on peer reviews of leading lawyers and ... September 26, 2019 Must Have Policies for Employers: Why, What + How Seminars Join Field Law in Edmonton and Calgary and learn tips and tricks to assist with the implementation and enforcement of three workplace policies Employers should have in place in today’s market.We will explore how changes in legislation and culture... September 25, 2019 Practical Considerations for the Investment Income Rules for Private Companies Seminars 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 investment i... September 2019 Field Law Lawyers and Department recognized in Chambers Canada 2020 Guide Field Law is pleased to be listed in the Chambers Canada 2020 guide with three firm rankings and three lawyers ranked.
Our firm rankings are:
Highly Regarded, Corporate/Commercial Department in Alberta, Band 3
Recognized Practitioner, Employ... September 2019 Can’t Have Your Cake and Eat it Too: No Wrongful Dismissal Damages if Disability Benefits Paid Workwise Newsletter In Belanger v Western Ventilation Products Ltd, 2019 ABQB 571, a Master of the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench found that an employee who became disabled after his notice of termination was not entitled to wrongful dismissal damages because the em... September 2019 Single Use Plastic Bans: What You Need to Know The discussion on single-use plastics is heating up across Canada. The federal government announced in June 2019 its intention to institute a nationwide ban by 2021 if re-elected this fall. Meanwhile, a growing number of provinces, cities, and towns ha... September 16, 2019 Fair Registration Practices Act: Implications for Professional Regulatory Organizations
Seminar + Webinar As we previously reported, on June 19, 2019, the United Conservative Party introduced Bill 11 - Fair Registration Practices Act in the Alberta Legislature. Bill 11 received Royal Assent on June 28, 2019, and will come into force on proclamation.Jo... September 2019 Doing Work on a Provincial Project? Protect Yourself with a Public Works Act Claim The Public Works Act (“PWA”) is a helpful, rarely litigated piece of legislation for unpaid subcontractors. By submitting a PWA claim to the Provincial Government, a subcontractor has the ability to seek compensation outside ... September 2019 Lessons Learned from the Legalization of Cannabis Conferences RIMS 2019 July 31, 2019 Field Law Announces Northern Alberta Winners of its 7th Annual Community Fund Program Field Law awards a total of $30,000 to six Northern Alberta organizations EDMONTON (July 31, 2019) – Field Law, a western and northern regional business law firm, is pleased to announce the Northern Alberta winners of its Community Fund Program (the Program). Field Law awarded one grand prize and five additional awards... August 2019 Craft Cannabis: Micro-Cultivation + Micro-Processing Licences Craft cannabis is hitting the market as newly licensed craft producers are coming into operation. With the introduction of the new regulations under the Cannabis Act, the federal government created micro-cultivation licences, often referred t... August 2019 City Moves to License AirBnBs and Other Short-Term Rentals Field Law Blog August 2019 Alberta Court of Appeal Confirms the Limitation Period for Statutory Damages Claims under PIPA Alert The Alberta Court of Appeal has recently confirmed that the limitation period under the Alberta Limitations Act applicable to a statutory claim for damages under the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) does not begin to run until a Commissioner&... August 2019 Case Summary: Merino v. ING Insurance Defence + Indemnity The Ontario Court of Appeal held that an auto insurer cannot void a policy for any material misrepresentation, including as to ownership. An insurer wishing to get out of an auto policy for misrepresentation must terminate the policy on notice, which d... August 2019 Case Summary: SWAT Consulting Ltd v Canadian Western Bank Defence + Indemnity An insurer is not required to pay a third party contractor after having previously paid their insured. The third party contractor’s claim against an insurer for environmental clean-up costs owed to the contractor by the bankrupt insured was dismi... August 2019 Case Summary: Jane Doe 72511 v Morgan Defence + Indemnity After the Plaintiff was assaulted by her domestic partner while living with him in his parents’ home and he published a pornographic video of her on the internet, he was found liable for the tort of publication of private facts and, together with... August 2019 Case Summary: Stewart et al. v Wood et al Defence + Indemnity The premium that a plaintiff pays for plaintiff adverse costs insurance may be a taxable disbursement in the litigation.Stewart et al. v. Wood et al., 2019 ONSC 3931, per Tausendfreund, J.
FACTS + ISSUES
The parties settled a personal injury a... July 2019 You're Fired: Here's Your Bonus Workwise Newsletter If an employee is fired for just cause are they entitled to their performance bonus for the months worked in that year? Most employers probably expect that the answer is no. However, in Master Schulz’s recent decision in Grainger v. Pentagon Farm... July 2019 Cutting the Red Tape? New Condo Regulations are on Hold for Further Review Real Estate Blog July 2019 Fairness is in the Eye of the Beholder in the Tender Process The tender process has long been a staple of the construction industry. Variations of that process, via requests for proposals (“RFPs”), requests for quotations (“RFQs”) or other similar processes have also been d... July 2019 Legal Cannabis and Alberta Condominiums Considerations for Creating Enforceable Bylaw Amendments The federal government recently passed Bill C-45, an act that legalized personal consumption and cultivation of cannabis in small amounts. This new law, referred to as the Cannabis Act, came into effect on October 17, 2018. In combination with newly in... July 12, 2019 Field Law Announces Northwest Territories Winners of its 7th Annual Community Fund Program $15,000 to be distributed between three organizations YELLOWKNIFE (July 12, 2019) – Field Law, a western and northern regional business law firm, is pleased to announce the Northwest Territories grand prize winner and two additional recipients of its Community Fund Program (the Program).The Kole Cro... July 2019 Reality Check: Can You Contract Out of Being an Employer? Workwise Newsletter With great power comes great responsibility. Certainly this is true of employer-employee relationships, where the power imbalance generally tips in favour of the employer. Employers are responsible for providing training and supervision to employees, c... July 4, 2019 Field Law Announces Southern Alberta Winners of its 7th Annual Community Fund Program $30,000 to be distributed between five organizations CALGARY (July 4, 2019) – Field Law, a western and northern regional business law firm, is pleased to announce the Southern Alberta grand prize winner and four additional recipients of its Community Fund Program (the Program).The Calgary Women'... July 1, 2019 Field Law Announces New Managing Partner Jeremiah Kowalchuk elected as Managing Partner effective July 1, 2019 EDMONTON/CALGARY (July 1, 2019) – Field Law is pleased to introduce Jeremiah Kowalchuk as Field Law’s Managing Partner for a three-year term commencing July 1, 2019.Jeremiah is experienced litigation counsel, having represented medium-to-la... June 2019 Bill 11 – Fair Registration Practices Act Alert As noted in our previous alert, the United Conservative Party’s election platform included a promise to pass a Fair Access to Regulated Professions and Compulsory Trades Act, modelled on similar legislation adopted by the Province of Ontario in 2... May 14, 2019 Vote Now! The Field Law Community Fund Program Voting Phase is Now Open FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (May 14, 2019) - Field Law needs public input to help determine who of the 86 applicants will be awarded funds from the 2019 edition of the Field Law Community Fund Program (the Program). With $75,000 to be distributed amongs... June 2019 Public Communications That Do Not Cross the Line: Dealing with Claims of Defamation Perspectives for the Professions 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... June 2019 Who’s Responsible Here? The Regulation of Telepractice Perspectives for the Professions 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... June 2019 Changing the Health and Safety Culture Business in Calgary May 2019 Human Rights Tribunal Renders Landmark Costs Award Against Complainant Workwise Newsletter 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... May 2019 New Canadian Drone Regulations 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. &nbs... May 2019 Heads Up: Labour + Employment Laws Are Changing Again Alert 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... May 2019 What’s Old is New Again – Municipal Reserve Lands in Alberta Cannot be Liened Builders’ liens are a useful tool for unpaid contractors and subcontractors on a construction project. They provide a right to make a claim and register an instrument against title to a parcel of land, with the ultimate remedy being a sale of tho... May 2019 Use of Restrictive Covenants in Residential Developments Newsletter 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,... May 2019 Craft Beer Trademarks: The Ol’ Cease & Desist 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... May 23, 2019 Practical Considerations for the Investment Income Rules for Private Companies Seminars 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... May 2019 Estate Planning for Privacy The Supreme Court of Canada may soon be considering the intersection between estate and privacy law as well as the public policy behind the “open court” principle. The personal representatives of the estates of murdered Canadian billi... May 2019 New Challenges to Free Speech on Campus Alert 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... May 2019 Professional Regulation: The Political Winds are Blowing Alert 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... May 2019 Act On Your Legal Obligations to Avoid Post-Death Disputes A recent case from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Birnie v Birnie, 2019 ONSC 2152, has several important lessons for Canadians when it comes to estate planning. The case is an important reminder to be aware of your existing legal obligati... May 29, 2019 Understanding Financial Statements with Shawn Hemens Seminars 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... May 2019 Update on Cannabis Conferences AAIA Convention April 24, 2019 Trailblazers: An Evening to Celebrate Women in Intellectual Property, Technology, Engineering + Math Client Events 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 + Math Date: Wednesday, Apr... April 2019 Edibles Update: High Taxes in 2019 Federal Budget Canada's 2019 federal budget (the "Budget") includes additional insight into the hotly anticipated regulatory regime for cannabis edibles, which is set to come into force in the fall of 2019. The Budget provides for a change to the curren... April 3, 2019 Staying Current with Auto Liability Claims in Alberta Seminars Join Field Law's Jane Freeman and Michael Doerksen for a seminar discussing: Reserving Rights and Alberta Auto Coverage Defences An overview of the major types of coverage defences of the auto insurer under Alberta's stand... April 2019 Amendments Made to the NWT Partnership and Business Name Act 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... April 1, 2019 Field Law Launches 2019 Community Fund Program $75,000 Pledged to Support Community Initiatives in Alberta and Northwest Territories 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... March 2019 Ontario Court of Appeal: No Independent Tort of Harassment … Yet Workwise Newsletter 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... March 2019 Restrictions on Communications During the Election for Post-Secondary Institutions Post-Secondary Alert 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... March 19, 2019 Tips + Traps for Hearing Tribunal Members Webinar 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... March 2019 Maintaining Permanent Residency When Faced With a Departure Order Immigration Alert 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... March 18, 2019 Tech Support: Law Firms Lining up to Take Advantage of Tech Boom Canadian Lawyer Mag Erika Carrasco discusses how the law surrounding drones offers a typical example of the challenges of working in a fast-developing area. March 2019 Good Character: An Important Regulatory Tool Even in an Age of Labour Mobility Perspectives for the Professions 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... March 2019 New Alberta Case Law Seminars Alberta Insurance Institute February 2019 Case Summary: Weir-Jones Technical Services Incorporated v Purolator Courier Ltd Defence + Indemnity 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... February 2019 Case Summary: Modisette v. Apple Inc. Defence + Indemnity 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... February 2019 Case Summary: Enterprise Rent-A-Car v Intact Insurance Defence + Indemnity The legislation setting out priorities among insurers in a rental/leased vehicle situation only applies to those policies which provide coverage and the term “listed driver” in an auto policy is not “an insured named in the contract&r... February 2019 Roll It Up! Rules + Regulations for Building Your Cannabis Store Keeping Up With Cannabis 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 ... February 2019 Did You Sell Your Home in 2018? What You Need to Tell the CRA Real Estate Blog February 2019 Is it Time to Re-examine Your Corporate Structure? Practical Considerations for the Investment Income Rules for Private Companies
Canadian private companies have seen much newsworthy tax reform in recent years. One change is in the area of income sprinkling. Another major change in tax law is t... February 2019 A New Approach to the Reasonable Expectation of Privacy: R v Jarvis, 2019 SCC 10 Labour + Employment Though it emerges in a criminal law context, the new decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in R v Jarvis, 2019 SCC 10 is likely to have an impact on future cases that consider the scope of an individual’s privacy interest, whether in the crimin... February 14, 2019 The Type of Claims that may Arise from Legalization of Cannabis Edibles Canadian Underwriter Erika Carrasco speaks to Canadian Underwriter about cannabis coverage issues. February 6, 2019 2018 Year in Review for Northern Employers Seminars Join Field Law for a review of the most important legal cases from 2018. Topics covered will include:
Labour
Employment
Human Rights
Occupational Health + Safety
Privacy
Immigration
Cannabis
This seminar will be broadcast live via ... Winter 2019 2018 A Year in Review Seminar Series Seminars The Field Law Labour and Employment Group presents the annual Year in Review seminars in Calgary and Edmonton. Join us for legal updates and practical challenges for management and employee groups in the areas of:
Part 1:
Human Rights
... January 2019 Tick-Tock Goes the Lien Clock Builders’ liens are an important tool, providing contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers security for unpaid work. The template s.48 Order requires a lien claimant to file a Statement of Claim within 180 days of registering the lien; however, ... January 2019 The Long And Winding Road To Accommodation - How Long Is Too Long? Workwise Newsletter Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association v Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board, 2018 CanLII 90730After a lengthy period of time off work, a school board failed to accommodate a teacher with their return to work within a suitab... January 2019 Year in Review: Important Professional Regulatory Cases of 2018
Webinar Learn about the most important professional regulatory Court cases of the past year. What are the key legal trends? What are the strategic and operational implications for regulators? Presented by James Casey, QC and Kim Precht... January 10, 2019 New Canadian Drone Regulations Ted Henley, CityNews (3:54) Erika Carrasco discusses the new rules for flying drones in Canada that come into effect on June 1, 2019. January 9, 2019 New Canadian Drone Regulations On January 9, 2019, Transport Canada published new rules for flying drones in Canada to enhance predictability for businesses, improve the security of aviation and ensure our airspace is safe for everyone. The new regulations distinguish bet... December 2018 Case Summary: Aviva v Wawanesa Defence + Indemnity An Ontario Court sets out the factors for determining who the “lessee” of a rented/leased vehicle is for the purposes of determining the priority of insurers providing coverage. December 2018 Case Summary: Wm Morrison Supermarkets PLC v Various Claimants Defence + Indemnity Employers can be vicariously liable at common law for the actions of a rogue employee who brings about an unauthorized cyber data breach, even where the employee’s motive was to harm the employer and not to injure the third parties ... December 2018 Case Summary: Williams v Richard Defence + Indemnity Social hosts were denied summary dismissal after a drunken guest got into an accident, injuring the plaintiff, after the guest had first made it home safely. December 2018 Case Summary: Dion v Security National Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity A claim for diminished value of a vehicle repaired after an accident is not covered under Section C of the Alberta Standard Auto Policy, SPF No. 1.Dion v Security National Insurance Company, 2018 ABPC 242
FACTS AND ISSUES:
The Plaintiff Dion was in... December 2018 Case Summary: Layes v Stevens Defence + Indemnity A $200,000 loss of future income earning capacity award to a 25 year old student able to continue working full time was upheld where she had no settled employment pattern relying on comparator cases, without a mathematical calculation. Layes... December 2018 Pour a Glass of Trademarks In time for the holidays, this is a tale of competing brands sloshing around the marketplace. Please enjoy responsibly.
Diageo North America, Inc. is purveyor of some of the world’s best-known brands of spirits and beer, some of which are probab... December 2018 2018 Field Law Post-Secondary Summit Recap The third annual Field Law Post-Secondary Summit was held on November 29 in Edmonton, and was co-chaired by Greg Harding, KC and Derek Cranna. Brief summaries of the presentations given at the Summit are provided below, followed by a directory of the l... December 2018 'Tis the Season: Holiday Parties + Employer Obligations Workwise Newsletter The holiday season has arrived, and with it many employers will celebrate the year with their staff. To ensure that everyone has a safe and joyous time, employers should keep in mind their obligations to employees and guests who attend office parties o... November 2018 Dealing with Unrepresented Members
Webinar Whether it be due to cost or personal choice, regulated professionals facing disciplinary proceedings often elect to represent themselves. This can present unique challenges for regulators and administrative tribunals in ensuring a fair process.
&nb... November 2018 Carbon Tax in the Northwest Territories: What You Need to Know A carbon tax is coming to the Northwest Territories (the "NWT"). The Government of the Northwest Territories (the "GNWT") recently announced their plan to implement a made in the north NWT Carbon Tax designed and administered in the... November 2018 Bill 21 Update: An Act to Protect Patients Now Partially in Force Professional Regulatory Alert In our November 5, 2018 Professional Regulatory Alert we provided a brief summary of Bill 21, “An Act to Protect Patients” and addressed some of the implementation steps required of Colleges. By way of update, on November 19, 2018 the Bill ... November 2019 Precise Language Needed to Override Reasonable Notice Workwise Newsletter It is fairly common for a written employment agreement to seek to limit an employee’s termination notice to the minimum amount prescribed under employment standards legislation. However past case law suggests that doing so may be more difficult t... November 2018 No Appeal of the Cardinal Decision: SEF 44 Coverage and Automobile Used Without Consent Insurance Alert On November 15, 2018 the Supreme Court of Canada denied an application for leave to appeal the decision of the Alberta Court of Appeal in Cardinal v Alberta Motor Association Insurance Company, 2018 ABCA 69 (Cardinal).In Cardinal, the insurer, AMA, iss... November 2018 Bill 21 – An Act to Protect Patients Professional Regulatory Alert In June of 2018, Alberta Health issued a Discussion Document indicating that the Government was considering amendments to the Health Professions Act (HPA) to better protect patients from sexual abuse by health professionals. The Discussion Do... November 2018 Case Summary: Copytrack Pte Ltd. v Wall Defence + Indemnity A British Columbia court has come out with one of the first Canadian decisions directly addressing the enforcement of rights to ownership of cryptocurrency. Copytrack Pte Ltd. v Wall, 2018 BCSC 1709, per Skolrood, J.FACTS AND ISSUES:Copytrac... November 2018 Case Summary: Green v Khattab Defence + Indemnity Summary judgment ordering specific performance of a settlement reached during a binding Judicial Dispute Resolution was upheld, notwithstanding that a consent order or consent judgment had not been signed between the parties.Green v Khattab, 2018 ABQB ... November 2018 Case Summary: Heuring v Smith Defence + Indemnity The Court assessed liability between a Plaintiff (cyclist) who failed to stop at a stop sign and the driver of a vehicle who did not clearly see the cyclist as a result of a “blind spot” created by a pillar in his vehicle and declined to aw... November 2018 Case Summary: Condominium Corporation No 9312374 v Aviva Insurance Company of Canada Defence + Indemnity The Supreme Court’s decision in the Ledcor case (which held that “resultant damage” arising from faulty workmanship is not excluded by the faulty workmanship exclusion in a builders’ risk policy) was held not to allow for covera... October 2018 To Serve and Protect: The Many Reasons for a Trademark Registration The Medium A trademark is the consistently used brand identifier of tens of thousands of consumer products and services you regularly see – the Apple “Apple”, the Microsoft “Window”, the Nike “Swoosh”, the Google Chrome, ... October 2018 How do “Smart Contracts” Fit With “Traditional Contracts”? The Medium Placing Smart Contracts in Context A “smart contract” is really a set of computer programs designed to automatically execute certain transaction steps, provided certain conditions are met. It’s not so much a contract, in th... October 2018 #Hashmarks: Can a Hashtag be a Trademark? The Medium Through its automatic web of connections, the humble hashtag has been repurposed: it’s now associated with the cachet of internet fame. In social media platforms the hashtag brings users from one descriptor to thousands of associated result... October 2018 Recent Changes to the Condominium Property Act of Alberta Real Estate Blog October 17 + 18, 2018 Cybersecurity Roundtable: Risks + What to Do Roundtable In our previous workshop, “Cybersecurity for Canadian Organizations”, we presented an overview of cybersecurity risks and obligations, as well as what should be done to prevent or mitigate risks and how to respond to cyber incidents. Buildi... November 29, 2018 2018 Field Law Post-Secondary Summit Conferences Join us for our annual Summit to focus and collaborate on legal issues facing Alberta's post-secondary institutions.
Topics to be covered include:
Governance: Representative Roles + Responsibilities
Academic Labour Relations + Barg... October 2018 Freedom of Speech + Professional Discipline: Striking the Balance Perspectives for the Professions In the age of social media, individuals have more opportunities than ever to express themselves and their views in the public sphere. Sometimes the views expressed by regulated professionals could cross the line into unprofessional conduct. Professiona... September 2018 Cyber Losses: A Serious Organizational Risk in the Modern World The Lawyer's Daily September 2018 Issues in Professional Discipline Investigations: Tips + Traps Webinar Effective professional discipline investigations are fundamentally important to the professional discipline process. The information that is obtained is used to make decisions about complaints that are received, including whether there is sufficient ev... September 2018 The Best Lawyers in Canada 2019 28 Field Law Lawyers Recognized Field Law is proud to announce that 28 of our lawyers have been included in the 13th edition of The Best Lawyers™ in Canada. These lawyers have been recognized in 17 service areas, resulting in a total of 36 rankings.Among the 28 Field Law l... August 2018 Alberta Appeal Court Rules Against Dentist in Regulatory Body’s Free Speech Complaint The Lawyer's Daily August 2018 Case Summary: Scale Estate v The Cooperators General Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity When an insurer contemplates settling to its policy limits in an auto case, it must take steps to ensure that all potential claims have been accounted for. Where an insurer, knowing of another claim for the same accident, paid its limits in three... August 2018 Case Summary: Woitas v. Tremblay Defence + Indemnity In a chain reaction series of rear end accidents, following vehicles are presumed to be negligent for rear end collisions and the fact that a driver has to stop for an accident in front of him will be no defence. Drivers of vehicles which manage t... August 2018 Case Summary: R.C. Heating & Gasfitting Ltd. v The Sovereign General Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity Where past negligence involved in the installation of the system manifested itself in an explosion years later, the “occurrence” or “accident” was held to have occurred at the time of the explosion, not at the time of the neglig... August 2018 Case Summary: Khudabux v. McClary Defence + Indemnity In the case of a crumbling skull plaintiff the Court will apportion responsibility to the different accidents involved where the injuries in question are not indivisible. Khudabux v. McClary, 2018 BCCA 234 per Stromberg-Stein, J.A. [4286]FACTS AND... August 2018 Case Summary: Alberta Human Rights Commission (Director) v. Vegreville Autobody (1933) Ltd. Defence + Indemnity In some cases, service may be accomplished by email (or deemed good and sufficient), including email upon the servee’s counsel.Alberta Human Rights Commission (Director) v. Vegreville Autobody (1933) Ltd., 2018 ABCA 246 [4282]FACTS AND ISSUES:A C... August 2018 Use of Facial Recognition Software at Calgary Malls Raises Privacy Concerns The Lawyer's Daily August 2018 “Clearly Separate”: Workplace Sexual Misconduct Not Captured by Employment Release Workwise Newsletter In the recent decision of Watson v. The Governing Council of the Salvation Army of Canada, 2018 ONSC 1066, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice held an employee’s claim for sexual harassment against another employee for conduct at the workplace ... August 2018 Flippin' to the B-Side Craft Beer Trademarks In 2015, an Ontario craft brewer, Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company (Beau’s) applied for a trademark for B-SIDE BREWING LABEL, for use in association with Ontario craft beers. The “B-Side Brewing Label” is an innovative promoti... August 2018 - 13 min read Six Circles of Hell: Priority Among Insurers In An Alberta Rental/Leased Vehicle Claim Accidents involving rental/leased vehicles give rise to overlapping insurance coverage situations. The rental/leasing company will have an owner’s policy covering it and anyone driving with its consent. The driver may have an owner’s policy... July 25, 2018 Field Law Announces Northern Alberta Winners of 2018 Community Fund Program 6th annual public-voting program awards a total of $30,000 to six local organizations EDMONTON (July 25, 2018) – Field Law, a western and northern regional law firm, has selected six projects as recipients of financial support from the Field Law Community Fund Program (the Program). Community ideas were selected in Southern Albert... July 20, 2018 Field Law Announces Northwest Territories Winners of its 6th Annual Community Fund Program Program to contribute $15,000 to three organizations in the Northwest Territories YELLOWKNIFE (July 20, 2018) – Field Law, a western and northern regional law firm, is pleased to announce the Northwest Territories winners of the Field Law Community Fund Program (the Program). This is Field law’s sixth year of supporting ... July 12, 2018 Field Law Announces Southern Alberta Winners of its 6th Annual Community Fund Program Field Law awards a total of $30,000 to five Southern Alberta organizations CALGARY (July 12, 2018) – Field Law, a western and northern regional business law firm, is pleased to announce the Southern Alberta winners of its Community Fund Program (the Program). Field Law awarded one grand prize and four additional aw... July 2018 Case Summary: Rankin (Rankin’s Garage & Sales) v. J.J. Defence + Indemnity A garage was found not liable for injuries caused by the thief of one of its vehicles because the fact that it was reasonably foreseeable that vehicles might be stolen from its premises does not make it reasonably foreseeable that the stolen vehicle wo... July 2018 Case Summary: Du v. Jameson Bank Defence + Indemnity A bank customer who was defrauded when hackers accessed his email account to instruct a bank to make unauthorized wire transfers was unable to recover his money from the bank, which followed instructions sent to it by email (as it was allowed and requi... July 2018 Case Summary: Gharbi v. Summit Acceptance Corp. Defence + Indemnity The Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench enumerated the factors to consider in determining whether the provision a dealership’s loaner vehicle to a customer qualifies as a leased/rented vehicle or a mere courtesy loan for the purposes of determin... July 2018 Case Summary: Temple Insurance Company v. Sazwan Defence + Indemnity Where the conduct of the insureds was in issue in the underlying actions and with respect to coverage under the policy, policy limits covered only 5% of a multi-million dollar claim and an acrimonious relationship existed between the insureds and the i... July 2018 Case Summary: C. v. Brookfield Homes Defence + Indemnity A Plaintiff’s claims for psychological and physical injury arising from the discovery of mould in his home (which had been rectified within a few months) ten years in the past were summarily dismissed. Even if his emotional problems could be attr... July 2018 Consequential Consequences: Contractually Excluding Damages for Lost Profits Clauses that exclude or limit the recovery of consequential or indirect damages are common in construction, services and other commercial contracts. These clauses can play an important role in risk allocation. This is particularly so in situation... June 2018 Municipal Minute: Case Comment on McAllister v. Calgary In the McAllister v. Calgary (City), 2018 ABQB 480 Madame Justice Kubik of the Court of Queen’s Bench found the City of Calgary liable under the Occupiers Liability Act for injuries suffered by the Plaintiff Kyle McAllister when he was assaulted ... June 2018 Probate for Paddington: Michael Bond, CBE (1926-2017) One year ago, Michael Bond, CBE the creator of the beloved literary character, Paddington Bear, passed away in London, England at age 91. Though I recall seeing snippets of Paddington Bear on the television when I was young, I never actively watched th... June 2018 Pay Attention to What You Pay For It is fairly rare for judges to directly criticize lawyers in written decisions relating to estate matters, at least in my experience. When I do run across it, it sends a strong signal because there is usually an important lesson in the criticism. The ... June 25, 2018 Surveillance Machines: Privacy Implications of Drones, UAVs and Driverless Vehicles Presentations Canadian Bar Association June 2018 The $2 Million Case of Beer Alberta Loses Yet Another Round in Supporting Craft Brewers Steam Whistle Brewing Inc. v. Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission – June 19, 2018Sir Mick Jagger informed us that “you can’t always get what you want,” and this time, the Alberta government gets more of what they don&... June 2018 Supreme Court Defers to Law Societies in Denial of TWU’s Law School Professional Regulatory Alert In the related decisions of Law Society of British Columbia v. Trinity Western University, 2018 SCC 32, and Trinity Western University v. Law Society of Upper Canada, 2018 SCC 33, the Supreme Court of Canada concluded that the Law Societies of British ... June 2018 A Star Extinguished: Anton Yelchin (1989-2016) Two years ago to this day, a promising young actor's life was cut short by a tragic accident at his Los Angeles home. Anton Yelchin, age 27, was killed in his driveway when his SUV rolled back and pinned him against his security fence and mailbox. ... June 2018 Priority Among Insurers in an Alberta Rental/Leased Vehicle Claim The Six Circles of Hell June 2018 Of Beer and Borders Alberta Loses Another Round In Its Support of Alberta Craft Brewers Right now, Alberta Premier Notley and her government are thinking "stupid laws!", because they can't seem to get around the ones that affect subsidies or grants for Alberta craft brewers. Alberta's latest attempt, its 2016 Small ... June 2018 Smart Contracts (Part 2): Intermediaries? We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Intermediaries! IP Blog In Part 1 (Can Smart Contracts Really be Smart?), we looked at smart contracts, and how “smart” they really are – if you need some background, start there.Smart contracts (or “programmatically executed transactions”) ... June 2018 Smart Contracts as Programmatically Executable Transactions and Blockchain Presentations BLOCKCHAIN for Energy - Learnings from Oil and Gas Industry Applications May 2018 Skip the Investigation and Risk Punitive Damages Workwise In recent cases such as Smith v Vauxhall Co-Op Petroleum Limited, 2017 ABQB 525 and Garnett v Alberta Motor Association, 2017 ABPC 267, Alberta courts have cautioned employers about the importance of properly investigating complaints of impropriet... May 29, 2018 New Drone Regulations are Coming to Canada – Are You Ready for the Changes? Seminars Canadian Bar Association Join Erika Carrasco to explore new drone regulations coming to Canada. Specific topics of the session will include:
What are the current Regulations in Canada and how and why are they changing?
What will this mean for lawyers n... May 2018 Minor Injury Regulation Changes Insurance Alert Changes to the Minor Injury Regulation (AR 123.2004) (“MIR”) are expected shortly, which clarify certain misinterpretations of the wording of the MIR to date. Although the wording of the regulation has always made it clea... May 2018 What is the Duty of Care owed by Bailee of a Vehicle to Innocent Third Parties on the Road? Insurance Alert Does a garage owner owe a duty of care to a third party who comes onto the businesses private property, steals a vehicle and is injured in a subsequent motor vehicle accident? The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that “a business will only owe a... May 2018 Can Smart Contracts Really be Smart? The Medium “We are in the midst of a revolution – a revolution in the technology of storing, processing, and communicating information… [which] has brought about profound changes in business, political, and social institutions.”This quote... May 2018 Trolls on the Bridge to Your Brand The Medium Canada’s Trade-marks Act has been radically amended, with those changes announced by the Canadian government to come into effect in “early 2019”. But the effect of those upcoming changes for brand owners is already happening, an... April 2018 Case Summary: Biggar v. Enns Defence + Indemnity In rear-end collisions the trailing driver is not always liable; the Court is to consider the factual circumstances in each case: the speed of the trailing vehicle, the distance between the vehicles, the actions of the trailing driver before the emerge... April 2018 Case Summary: Core Ventures Inc v Trio Chute Inc (Aluminum Planet) Defence + Indemnity Where the lease specifies that the Landlord is obligated to take out fire insurance, the tenant is presumed to benefit generally from the insurance proceeds (even where the fire is caused by the tenant’s negligence) and clear language in the leas... April 2018 Case Summary: Tuffnail et al v Meekes et al Defence + Indemnity A claimant is not required to sue all tort-feasors in order to collect under the OCPF 44 Endorsement (and the Alberta SEF 44 Endorsement).
Tuffnail et al v Meekes et al, 2017 ONSC 2894, per H.A. Rady J. [4268]
FACTS AND IS... April 2018 Case Summary: Oliveira v. Aviva Canada Inc. Defence + Indemnity The Ontario Court of Appeal upheld a decision that a hospital insurer owed a duty to defend a hospital employee sued for the privacy tort of inclusion upon seclusion, as such was an “invasion or violation of privacy” or an “invasion o... April 2018 Case Summary: Stefanyk v Sobeys Capital Incorporated Defence + Indemnity A tenant of a shopping centre may be an “occupier” of a sidewalk in front of its leased premises in some circumstances, or owe visitors a common law duty of care regarding same, but it is not negligence to put a bicycle rack at that locatio... April 2018 Case Summary: Glover v. Leaky Defence + Indemnity An admission of liability in an action is not a formal admission binding the party making it in a subsequent action relating to the same accident, but is only evidence in the second action to be attributed such weight as the Court decides. Thus, ... April 2018 Case Summary: Jones v. I.F. Propco Defence + Indemnity An Ontario court declined to order a personal injury Plaintiff who had posted pre-accident activities on her public Facebook profile to produce her private profile, even where she planned to call witnesses to testify to the differences between her pre ... April 2018 Case Summary: Nasr Hospitality Services Inc. v Intact Insurance Defence + Indemnity The Court, applying Ontario’s appropriateness factor under the Limitations Act, 2002, SO 2002, c 24, Schedule B., found the limitations period did not begin to run until the insurer denied the claim under the insurance policy, sometime after the ... May 2018 Don't Forget the Sanctions...
Professional Regulatory Webinar You’ve heard all the evidence and the charges are proven. For the professional whose career is on the line, nothing could be more important than what comes next...
Presented by James Casey, QC and Gregory Sim of the Field L... April 2018 Is Spousal Support Available After Death? Perhaps encouraged by the recent decision in Marasse Estate, we have another recent case from the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench addressing an estate’s ability to claim spousal support and its liability to pay spousal support. Stalzer ... April 3, 2018 Field Law Launches 2018 Community Fund Program Regional law firm pledges $75,000 to support community initiatives in Alberta and the Northwest Territories Field Law, a western and northern regional law firm, is excited to announce the launch of its 6th annual Field Law Community Fund Program (the Program). The Program supports local initiatives and causes within communities in Northern and Southern Alber... March 2018 Rolling the Dice on Costs of Estate Litigation Alberta Courts have been busy on the topic of costs in estate litigation in the past few months. Four recent decisions issued out of three judicial centres in Alberta provide a good reminder of just how unpredictable litigation is and the Court’s... March 2018 Unauthorized Practice: Strategies that Work Perspectives for the Professions Regulators have an obligation to protect the public from unqualified, unauthorized persons practicing the profession. Regulating this risk to the public is challenging. Regulators have a variety of approaches and tools to secure compliance with their g... Winter 2018 2017 A Year in Review Seminar Series
The Field Law Labour and Employment Group presents the annual Year in Review seminars in Calgary and Edmonton. Join us for legal updates and practical challenges for management and employee groups in the areas of:
Occupational Health and ... March 2018 Mo’ Money, Mo’ Administration Today marks the 21st anniversary of the death of Christopher Wallace, or probably better known to you as legendary rap artist Notorious BIG or Biggie. Wallace died at the age of 24 after being shot in Los Angeles. The controversy surrounding his death ... March 2018 Double Duty: Executors’ Tax Filing Obligations If you dread doing your own taxes, then think twice about becoming an executor of an estate. One of the core duties of a personal representative is to deal with the deceased’s taxes. In Alberta, the duty is contained right in the Surrogate Rules,... February 2018 Case Summary: Hartley v Security National Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity An Ontario plaintiff was held to be able to look to his OPCF 44R insurer to pay his damages in excess of a liability cap in the U.S. state where the accident occurred up to the OPCF 44R limits but not for the plaintiff’s U.S. legal fees. &nb... February 2018 Case Summary: Halley v McCann Defence + Indemnity Where a hospital employee leaked the fact that the Plaintiff patient to family members, she was held liable for the tort of publication of embarrassing facts and damages of $7,500 were awarded for damages plus $1,500 in punitive damages.Halley v McCann... February 2018 Case Summary: Vanderveen v Waterbridge Media Inc. Defence + Indemnity Employing a video shot of a person jogging on a public jogging path for a commercial sales-pitch video was found to establish the privacy tort of intrusion upon seclusion. Vanderveen v Waterbridge Media Inc., 2017 CanLII 77435 (Ont.S.C. Small Cla... February 2018 Case Summary: Stevenson v Thompson Defence + Indemnity A Plaintiff was found by the trial judge to have exaggerated her pain levels and to have lied during Questioning and to her health care professionals but was still found at trial to be credible and honest, which resulted in the Plaintiff obtaining a fa... February 2018 Case Summary: Alberta v Suncor Energy Inc. Defence + Indemnity A. Documents generated for an internal investigation of an accident can be protected by litigation privilege if they were created for the dominant purpose of litigation but that does not mean that every document on the investigation file is privileged ... February 2018 Case Summary: Stefanyk v Stevens Defence + Indemnity A tenant was found to be an “occupier” of its premises and potentially liable when a dog lunged at a party on the adjacent sidewalk, causing her to fall on the basis of allegedly having allowed a condition or activity on its premises to flo... February 2018 Case Summary: Cardinal v Alberta Motor Association Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity The SEF 44 Endorsement is not a standalone policy and exclusions in the underlying policy apply to it such that a claimant passenger of a stolen vehicle is entitled to benefits if he/she did not know nor ought to have known that the vehicle was stolen.... February 2018 The Google vs. Equustek Decision: What comes next? The Medium The internet is borderless, right? So how does one country balance the rights of internet users within its own borders? And can a Canadian court reach across an international border to control the online conduct of an American company? The case of... February 2018 Goodbye Floppy Disk, Hello Streaming Video: Trademark Evolution, Part 2 The Medium Technology certainly evolves. Can a trademark do the same?In the world of intellectual property rights, a registered trademark can live on for a hundred years or more. If you registered a trademark in the 1800s, it could still be valid today. But will ... February 2018 Trademarks: Use it or lose it – and prove it! The Medium You may be surprised to learn that even after your trademark is registered, it can be expunged from the Trademarks Register. One way is through Section 45 of the Trademarks Act (“Act”). Section 45 of the Act authorizes expungement of tradem... February 2018 You May Have to Keep Your Promises Some people are good for their word. Others are not. Depending on the circumstances, a promise you make may not be legally enforceable. However, in the words of the outgoing Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada in the recent judg... January 2018 An Unconscionable Bargain Generally speaking, the law will not protect you from making a bad bargain. However, when a transaction is so grossly unfair to one party and was obtained through an unfair advantage by the other party, the legal doctrine of unconscionability may ... January 2018 The Blockchain Patent Gold Rush The blockchain technology underlying BitCoin and other cryptocurrencies was originally designed and conceived as an open protocol that would not be owned by any one centralized entity, whether government or private. Just like other foundational pr... January 2018 North of 60 Series: Estate Administration in the Northwest Territories I have been on quite the hiatus since last year! I apologize – I have found that a wills and estates practice inevitably ramps up in the last month of the year on both the planning and litigation sides and last December was no exception.
I... January 2018 Contractor Know Thyself: If You Don’t, You May Lose Your Lien Builders' liens are "creatures of statute". A builders' lien is a new right created by lien legislation that would not otherwise exist at common law. As such, a lien claimant must bring itself strictly within the statutory frame... January 2018 Field Law in the Calgary Herald: Nonfiction enjoys Stampede partnership Nonfiction Studios, the Calgary creative agency responsible for Field Law’s blog and Community Fund Program website, is profiled by the Calgary Herald ahead of their 2018 partnership with the Calgary Stampede. January 2018 Fatal Errors: The Small Mistakes That Can Have a Big Impact On Your Lien Claim The scenario is a fairly common one: a contractor doesn’t get paid, and then proceeds to register a lien on a project, only to later discover a mistake in the Statement of Lien. It could be a typo in the name of the Owner; or it could be a failur... December 2017 Termination Problems: When Can You Walk Away From a Contract? Construction projects don’t always go as planned. Delays, add-ons, and changes to plans are common. Parties can sue when losses occur. When this happens, the contract itself is the key guide to the parties’ obligations.However, sometimes th... December 2017 Case Summary: Co-operators General Insurance Company v. Kane Defence + Indemnity Where the policy excludes coverage for intentional acts, allegations of negligence relating to the same claim will not be excluded from coverage if “it is possible that they were not committed with the same intention or state of mind, being to in... December 2017 Case Summary: Reeb v. The Guarantee Company of North America Defence + Indemnity An insurer-appointed defence counsel will be in conflict of interest if the interests of the insurer and the insured are not in alignment, and in such cases the Court may appoint independent counsel (an amicus curae or Cumis counsel) to defend the insu... December 2017 2017 Field Law Post-Secondary Summit Recap Field Law held its second Post-Secondary Summit on November 30, 2017 in Calgary. Brief summaries of the presentations given at the Summit are provided below, followed by a directory of the lawyers in Field Law’s Post-Secondary Education Practice ... December 2017 Case Summary: Oliveira v. Aviva Canada Inc. Defence + Indemnity A hospital insurer was held to owe a duty to defend a hospital employee sued for the privacy tort of inclusion upon seclusion, as such was an “invasion or violation of privacy” or an “invasion or violation of a right of privacy, withi... December 2017 Case Summary: Larizza v. The Royal Bank of Nova Scotia Defence + Indemnity A landlord conducting a credit check on a prospective tenant without their knowledge or consent does not amount to the privacy tort of intrusion upon seclusion, as the Ontario statute authorized a credit check in the circumstances and a reasonable pers... December 2017 Case Summary: Hobin v. Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company Defence + Indemnity The 2009 amendments to the Traffic Safety Act and the Insurance Act with respect to the liability of a renter, lessor or lender of a vehicle were intended to cap their vicarious liability for the driver’s negligence at $1 million and to make the ... December 2017 Case Summary: Baker v Poucette Defence + Indemnity Where a plaintiff is held to suffer a negative loss (i.e. has had a “gain”) under one head of damage, that gain is not to be offset or deducted from another head of damage where the plaintiff has suffered a loss.Baker v Poucette, 2017 ABCA ... December 2017 Case Summary: R v Shah Defence + Indemnity After the first reported decision on drones in Canada, the drone operator was found guilty of flying his drone "in a manner hazardous or likely hazardous to aviation safety" under section 602.45 of the Canadian Aviation Regulations as it then... December 2017 A Different Kind of Joint Problem Parents who intend to transfer their assets into joint names with some or all of their adult children need to carefully consider that decision before implementing the transfers. A series of recent Court cases in Western Canada highlight the need f... December 2017 R v Jarvis: Is There a Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Schools? Workwise Newsletter In R v Jarvis, the Ontario Court of Appeal recently discussed the existence of a reasonable expectation of privacy in a school environment. Background The Respondent, a high school teacher, was surreptitiously recording female students and te... November 30, 2017 2017 Field Law Post-Secondary Summit Conferences Join us for our second annual summit to focus and collaborate on legal issues facing Alberta's post-secondary institutions.
Click here to view the brochure.
Click here to register.
November 2017 The Devil is in the Drafting: Is an Estate Entitled to Spousal Support Payments? The recent Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench decision in Marasse Estate (Re), 2017 ABQB 706 is yet another reminder that drafting legal documents must be done carefully and with a view to their long-term effect. The main issue in this case was wheth... November 2017 Bill 30 Overhauls Alberta's Occupational Health and Safety Act On November 27, 2017 the Alberta Government introduced Bill 30 – An Act to Protect the Health and Well-Being of Working Albertans. Bill 30 proposes updates to Alberta’s Workers Compensation Act while offering a complete replacement of the c... November 2017 It’s Your Funeral, but Who Calls the Shots? If you have a will, you may have spelled out your detailed wishes for your funeral in the document. Would you be surprised to know that your personal representative does not have to follow them? You may have also heard that funeral expenses g... November 2017 My Last Will and Textament What would you look for in a document to determine if it was a legally valid will? An Australian man’s estate recently made headlines when the Queensland Supreme Court admitted an unsent text message into probate as his valid last will.The d... October 2017 Birss v Tien Lung Taekwon-Do Club Defence + Indemnity Newsletter The Master allowed a claim for a sports injury to be amended to add breach of fiduciary duty as a cause of action in the teacher-student situation, and held that while sports participants are taken to consent to the risks inherent in the sport, there a... October 2017 The Brick Warehouse LP v Chubb Insurance Company of Canada Defence + Indemnity Newsletter Where an insured’s employee followed an email from a fraudster posing as a vendor to change the electronic payment instructions to an account controlled by the fraudster, coverage was denied under the funds transfer fraud coverage in a crime poli... October 2017 (Don’t) Live Together, Love Together A frequent area of estate litigation involves claims by adult interdependent partners against the estates of their deceased partners. An adult interdependent partner is roughly the Alberta equivalent of a common law spouse, but may include other t... October 2017 Bruff-Murphy v Gunawardena Defence + Indemnity Newsletter The trial judge was held to have erred in allowing an expert witness, who the judge had reservations about, to testify when said expert was clearly not independent. Judges have a role as gatekeeper to ensure expert witnesses are worthy of being experts... October 2017 No Loyalty Program for Drugs: Court Confirms Prohibition on Pharmacy Inducements Professional Regulatory Alert The Alberta Court of Appeal recently confirmed that professional regulators have significant discretion to implement rules and policies intended to protect the public interest. Specifically, rules and policies may include the regulation of activities w... October 2017 Failure to Investigate Not Fatal to Just Cause Termination Workwise Newsletter The Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench’s recent decision in Watkins v Willow Park Golf Course, 2017 ABQB 541, centres around a case of a supervisor who developed unreturned romantic feelings for another employee. The case also contains importan... October 2017 You Can Ask for Advice and Directions Acting as an executor or personal representative is a challenging job. A personal representative is expected to follow the terms of a will, trust document or Court order and to do so prudently and competently. Sometimes, the testator or the s... September 2017 The Relationship Between Council and the Chief Executive Officer Perspectives for the Professions The Chief Executive Officer of a professional regulatory organization is the senior staff person responsible for the overall operations of the organization. Typically, the CEO will report to Council which is responsible for providing governance oversig... September 2017 Importance of Clear Guidelines and Policies Perspectives for the Professions Silwin v College of Physicians and Surgeons, 2017 ONSC 1947, upholding a Discipline Committee’s decision to reject a defence of officially induced error on the basis that the professional unreasonably misinterpreted the guidelines.
Dr. Silwin wa... September 2017 Without Prejudice: An Invisibility Cloak for a Mature World Workwise Newsletter Almost immediately following the unfortunate reality of a termination of employment, another unfortunate reality almost always arrives: a “without prejudice” demand letter. Indeed, that demand letter is perhaps the second “without pre... September 2017 Your Career May Be An Open Book: Privacy and Regulatory Investigations The CAP Monitor August 2017 Terminated Employee Awarded Aggravated Damages for Employer's Conduct Workwise Termination of employment can cause an employee a great deal of hardship. This is especially true when allegations of misconduct and insubordination are at play. The case of Lalonde v. Sena Solid Waste Holdings Inc, 2017 ABQB 374 cautions employers to ... August 2017 Case Summary: Funk v. Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company Defence + Indemnity The Court may refuse to apply an insurance policy provision where it would lead to an unjust result in the circumstances, per s. 545(1) of the Insurance Act or pursuant to the Court’s ability to relieve against forfeiture, per the Judicature Act,... August 2017 Case Study: Knibb v. Foran Defence + Indemnity The case against a baseball team operating a beer tent at a tournament in commercial host liquor liability was dismissed after a summary trial despite the lack of a system to monitor patron consumption, because the evidence did not establish that the t... August 2017 Biancaniello v. DMCT LLP Defence + Indemnity Litigation Releases can be wide enough to preclude future claims between the parties that were unknown and unanticipated when the Release was executed. Biancaniello v. DMCT LLP, 2017 ONCA 386, per Feldman, J.A. [4235]FACTS AND ISSUES
Thi... August 2017 Bumstead v. Dufresne Defence + Indemnity The Court of Appeal upheld a trial judgment based on significant plaintiff credibility issues awarding less than $300,000 in the face of a $2,000,000 claim. Bumstead v. Dufresne, 2017 ABCA 122 [4236]I. FACTS AND ISSUES
This judgement inv... August 2017 Nemchin v. Green Defence + Indemnity A court held that the Defence was precluded from tendering social media evidence relating to the Plaintiff and relying on it at trial, notwithstanding that the Plaintiff may have been obligated to disclosure it herself, where the Defendant agreed to a ... July 2017 Mistakes and Builders’ Liens: Fixable or Fatal? Builders’ liens are a great tool for the unpaid contractor, subcontractor and supplier. It gives you leverage over a project, even if you’re only owed a small amount. But the simple one-page form is much more complicated than it appears, an... July 2017 Things Left Unsaid – Determining Price Adjustment resulting from Scope Changes It’s common for the parties to a construction contract to focus on the price of the work to be performed. Less attention is often given to the method of calculating changes to the price for alterations to the scope of work. Uncertainty ... July 21, 2017 Field Law Announces Northern Alberta Award Winners of the 2017 Field Law Community Fund Program Fifth year of program breaks public voting records to support community initiatives in Northern Alberta Field Law, a western and northern regional law firm, is excited to announce the Northern Alberta winners of the Field Law Community Fund Program (“the Program”). This year, the Program celebrated its fifth year of supporting local community... July 17, 2017 Field Law Announces Award Winners of the 2017 Field Law Community Fund Program Fifth year of program breaks public voting records to support community initiatives in the NWT Field Law, a western and northern regional law firm, is excited to announce the Northwest Territories winners of the Field Law Community Fund Program (the Program). This year, the Program celebrated its fifth year of supporting local community initiati... July 2017 Alberta’s Highest Court Clarifies OHS Law: Privilege Must Be Proven Labour and Employment Alert With its decision this week in Alberta v. Suncor Energy Inc, 2017 ABCA 221, the Alberta Court of Appeal has considered and clarified the application of solicitor-client privilege and litigation privilege to incidents under Alberta’s Occupational ... July 2017 How Key is the Employee? Identifying When an Employee is a Fiduciary Workwise A fiduciary employee is an employee trusted with a measure of responsibility by their employer. This in turn creates corresponding duties owed by the fiduciary that go over and above those normally owed by an employee to an employer.It is therefore imp... July 6, 2017 Field Law Announces Award Winners of the 2017 Field Law Community Fund Program Fifth year of program breaks public voting records to support community initiatives in Calgary area Field Law, a western and northern regional law firm, is excited to announce the Southern Alberta winners of the Field Law Community Fund Program (the Program). This year, the Program celebrated its fifth year of supporting local community initiatives i... June 2017 Define Your Children in Your Will Clarity matters when preparing your will and estate plan in Alberta. Even a seemingly simple direction to divide your estate equally between your children may run into unexpected problems if you have a complex family structure and are not clear enough ... June 2017 The King of Pop on Death and Taxes Today is the eighth anniversary of the death of Michael Jackson, the undisputed King of Pop. Albertans preparing wills and estate plans should look beyond the sensational headlines about the singer’s life and the circumstances of his death a... June 2017 US Drone Registry is Shot Down IP Blog In response to the proliferation of recreational drones in American skies, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) introduced a rule known as the “Registration Rule” in 2015. The rule required drone owners to register their drones with th... June 2017 Copyright in Seismic Data is Confirmed IP Blog In a decision last year, GSI (Geophysical Service Incorporated) sued to win control over seismic data that it claimed to own. GSI used copyright principles to argue that by creating databases of seismic data, it was the proper owner of the copyright in... June 2017 The Canadian Free Trade Agreement – “Old Wine in New Bottles” for Labour Mobility Professional Regulatory Alert Judging from the headlines touting the new Canadian Free Trade Agreement (“CFTA”) as “the biggest step forward in removing barriers to internal trade…in the history of Canada,” “the most ambitious free trade agreeme... June 2017 Case Update: Styles v. Alberta Investment Management Corporation Workwise Newsletter On June 1, 2017, the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed an application for leave to appeal of the decision of the Alberta Court of Appeal in Styles v. Alberta Investment Management Corporation.1 This leaves the Alberta Court of Appeal’s decision u... June 2017 Government of Canada Suspends CASL's Private Right of Action Provisions By Order in Council dated June 7, 2017, the federal government suspended the coming into force of the private right of action provisions under Canada’s Anti-Spam legislation (CASL), “in response to broad-based concerns raised by businesses,... June 2017 Non-Competition Clauses: Enforceable or Just for Show? The Medium When can a non-competition clause actually stop someone from working? Or are these clauses just for show?
Let's take a look at a couple of cases involving departing employees who find themselves in hot water with a former employer.
... June 2017 “I googled it”: Generic Words and Trademark Rights The Medium A registered trademark can suffer "genericide" if it becomes so commonly used that it transforms from a unique brand name into a generic word which is synonymous with a product or service. In a very interesting decision from the U... May 2017 Copyright Infringement on a Website: the risks of scraping and framing IP Blog If photos are available on the internet, then… they’re free for the taking, right?Wait, that’s not how copyright law works? In the world of copyright, each original image theoretically has an “author” who created the imag... May 2017 If It Looks like a Duck: British Columbia Court of Appeal Rules on Title Use Professional Regulatory Alert Professional regulators are often faced with non-members who use titles similar to those used by regulated members of the profession but not explicitly prohibited by the governing statute. In Organization of Chartered Professional Accountants of Britis... May 2017 Highlights of Bill 17: Alberta’s Fair and Family Friendly Workplaces Act Bill 17: The Fair and Family-friendly Workplaces Act, was introduced in the Alberta Legislature on May 24, 2017. The Bill is part of the Government of Alberta’s efforts to ensure that “Alberta has fair, modern and family-friendly workplaces... April 2017 Defamation with the Click of a Mouse: Assessing Damages In the midst of a challenging period for a condominium owners association in a property located in Costa Rica, the president of the association resigned in frustration. Someone had overheard a rumour that the president resigned because he had been accu... April 2017 Patent Infringement for Listing on eBay? A patent owner notices that knock-off products are listed for sale on eBay. The knock-offs appear to infringe his patent. When eBay refuses to remove the allegedly infringing articles. The patent owner sues eBay for patent infringement, claiming that e... April 2017 Bill 7: An Act to Enhance Post-Secondary Academic Bargaining Bill 7 passed first reading in the Alberta Legislature on April 6, 2017. The Bill is part of the Government of Alberta’s response to the Supreme Court of Canada decision that guaranteed workers the right to strike and comes after consultation wit... April 2017 Supreme Court of Canada Confirms Regulators Have Broad Authority and Discretion to Fulfil Mandate Professional Regulatory Alert In its recent decision of Green v. Law Society of Manitoba, 2017 SCC 20, the Supreme Court of Canada confirmed that professional regulatory organizations will be granted deference when they enact general rules or bylaws to meet their public interest ma... March 2017 Canadian Copyright & Breach of Technological Protection Measures (TPMs): $12.7 million in Damages It’s always exciting when there’s a new decision about an obscure 5-year old subsection of the Copyright Act! Back in 2012, Canada changed its Copyright Act to try and drag it into the 21st century. Among the 2012 changes were provisions to... March 2017 Interim Canadian Drone Rules Launched As the recreational and commercial use of drones expands, the calls for a regulatory framework have grown louder. The Canadian federal government has, until last week, taken the simple approach of prohibiting the use of UAVs: “No person shall ope... March 2017 Experimental Use of an Invention Inventors must take care that their invention is “new” for it to be patentable. That means the invention hasn’t been disclosed to the public. Trade show announcements, press releases, publications, offering the invention for sale &nda... February 2017 Another Canadian Decision Reaches Outside Canada This fascinating Ontario case deals with an Alberta-based individual who complained of certain material that was re-published on the website Globe24h.com based in Romania. The server that hosted the website was located in Romania. The material in quest... February 2017 VCC vs. VCC: Where's the Confusion? When we’re talking about trademarks, at which point do we measure whether there is confusion in the mind of the consumer?We reviewed this issue in 2015 (See: No copyright or trademark protection for metatags). In that earlier decision, Vancouver ... January 2017 Joint Submissions on Sanction The Supreme Court of Canada Clarifies the Amount of Deference that Should be Given In a previous article, we discussed a discipline tribunal’s role in considering joint submissions on sanction; namely, a discipline tribunal has the discretion to accept or reject a joint submission. Previous courts adopted principles established... November 2016 The Resignation Trap: Avoiding Unwanted Consequences When an Employee Resigns It may be assumed that when an employee says “I quit” or walks into his employer’s office, hands in his keys and says “I’m done” the employer can accept the employee’s resignation and move ... October 2016 Court of Appeal Recognizes Regulator's Robust Implied Power in Name of Public Protection Professional Regulatory Alert In Law Society of Alberta v. Beaver, 2016 ABCA 290, the Alberta Court of Appeal held that suspended lawyers are not entitled to act as “legal agents,” a limited status in which the agent can represent another person in P... September 2016 Ledcor: Taming Sattva’s Wild Horse of Contractual Interpretation for Standard Form Contracts The Supreme Court of Canada’s unanimous decision of Sattva v. Capital Corp. v. Creston Moly Corp., 2014 SCC 53 opened the barn door and let loose a wild horse in terms of the scope and the availability of the use of the surrou... September 2016 The Wild West: Drone Laws and Privacy in Canada ‘Drones’ were first known by the military as unmanned aerial vehicles, and later by the International Civil Aviation Organization as remotely piloted aircraft systems. Drones come in various shapes and sizes and can be p... September 2016 Ownership of Copyright in Software Can an employee claim to own the employer’s software?An “author” of a work is the first owner of copyright. To determine ownership, it’s necessary to determine which contributions will be considered “authors... September 2016 Post-Grant Patent Amendment - Canadian and US Options On the long and sometimes bumpy road of patent prosecution, a Notice of Allowance can be a welcome sign that you are nearly at your destination: a granted patent. But the journey is not over yet. At the time of grant, what if you re... July 28, 2016 Field Law Announces the Northern Alberta Award Winners of the 2016 Field Law Community Fund Program Winners include charities focused on serving underprivileged children, a theatre festival for the hearing impaired, literacy and homework programs, and more Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, is pleased to announce the Northern Alberta winners of the 2016 Field Law Community Fund Program. The annual Program, which supports local community initiatives and proje... July 19, 2016 Field Law Announces the Northwest Territories Award Winners of the 2016 Field Law Community Fund Program Winners include charities focused on cancer peer support, anti-bullying seminars and youth science workshops Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, is pleased to announce the Northwest Territories winners of the 2016 Field Law Community Fund Program. The annual Program, which supports local community initiatives and ... July 2016 Police Access to Accused Statements to the Insurer Canadian Bar Association July 8, 2016 Field Law Announces Southern Alberta Award Winners of the 2016 Field Law Community Fund Program Winners include charities focused on at-risk-youth, pet therapy access, women in crisis and more Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, is pleased to announce the Southern Alberta winners of the 2016 Field Law Community Fund Program. Now in its fourth year, the Program, which supports local community init... July 2016 A Binding "Clickwrap Agreement" From Paper? Consumers and businesses routinely enter into binding contracts by means of both paper agreements and online “click-through” agreements. But what happens when you face a “hybrid” contract? Can a binding contract b... July 2016 Why Every Parent in Alberta Should Have a Will As a young, healthy parent, you may believe that having a Will is the last thing on a long priority list. However, while a Will is vital for everyone, those with children should be particularly mindful of the primary importance of h... June 2016 Case Summary: HOOPP Realty Inc. v. The Guarantee Company of North America Defence + Indemnity Obligee's claim against surety can survive despite Obligee's claim against principal being unenforceable as a result of wording of completion agreement. HOOPP Realty Inc. v. The Guarantee Company of North America, 2015 ABCA 336&... June 2016 Case Summary: Graham (Litigation guardian of) v. Lemay Defence + Indemnity Both the legal/registered owner and lessor and the beneficial owner and lessor of a vehicle are vicariously liable for the lessee’s vehicular negligence but only to the liability cap for lessors. Graham (Litigation guard... June 2016 Case Summary: Jones v. Stepanenko Insurance + Indemnity The Court overtly accepted the Plaintiff’s expert testimony and criticized well-known defence experts with regard to whether the Plaintiff’s injuries were minor and whether fibromyalgia can be caused by trauma. &nbs... June 2016 Performance Reviews: Check-Ups Keep Regulators Running in Top Condition Perspectives for the Professions Newsletter What is a performance review?A “performance review,” also known as a “third-party review,” is a rigorous, in-depth assessment of the regulatory performance of an organization by an independent and objective o... May 26, 2016 Field Law Community Fund Program Seeks Community Input to Select Program Finalists Regional law firm opens voting phase to public with $75,000 available for distribution Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, has launched the online voting phase for the fourth year of the Field Law Community Fund Program (the Program). The Program, which supports local pay-it-forward initiativ... May 2016 Sit Back and Relax - Is there a Duty to Mitigate after Termination of a Fixed-Term Contract? The Ontario Court of Appeal recently issued its decision in Howard v. Benson Group Inc. 2016 ONCA 256, relating to the termination of a fixed-term employment contract. The Plaintiff, Mr. Howard, was a Truck Shop Manager who ent... May 2016 Prohibition on Pharmacy Inducements Beyond College of Pharmacists’ Authority Professional Regulatory Alert In Sobeys West Inc v. Alberta College of Pharmacists, 2016 ABQB 232, the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench held that amendments to the College of Pharmacists’ Codes of Ethics and Standards of Practice prohibiting inducement... May 2016 Case Summary: McMyn v. Manufacturers Life Insurance Co. Defence + Indemnity General information of claims practices and company personnel obtained by an insurer’s in-house counsel is not the type of confidential information that will disqualify the lawyer from acting as Plaintiff’s counsel against the insurer ... May 2016 L’Unique Assurances Générales inc., Appelante, c Échafauds Plus (Laval) inc., Intimée Defence + Indemnity Liability of surety in Quebec under a labour and material payment bond consistent with common law principlesL’Unique Assurances Générales inc., Appelante, c Échafauds Plus (Laval) inc., Intimée, 2015 QCCA 1725 [4174]I.... May 2016 Case Summary: Fernandes v. Araujo Defence + Indemnity Where an owner consents to possession of a vehicle to the driver, conditions on that consent do not bind third parties who are injured or suffer loss. Fernandes v. Araujo, 2015 ONCA 571 [4179] I. FACTS AND ISSUES&nbs... May 2016 Case Summary: Sunner v. Rana Defence + Indemnity In assessing the quantum for loss of future income earning capacity, negative contingencies must be supported by evidence. Sunner v. Rana, 2015 BCCA 406, per Chaisson, J.A. [4178] I. FACTS AND ISSUES This is a... April 7, 2016 Field Law Launches Fourth Year of Field Law Community Fund Program Regional law firm supporting local organizations and community causes with $75,000 Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, is excited to announce the launch of the 2016 Field Law Community Fund Program (‘Program’). The Program supports local pay-it-forward ideas and causes within the communit... March 2016 Lessors of Vehicles Still Vulnerable Under Workers Compensation Act Insurance Alert Dempsey v. Bagley, 2016 ABQB 124 - Lessors of Vehicles Still Vulnerable Under Workers Compensation Act
There were two motor vehicle accidents in the summer of 2006. The plaintiffs and the defendants involved in the accidents were ... March 2016 Four Reasons You Should File Now Considering the changes that are planned for Canadian trademark laws, there are several benefits to Canadian business owners reviewing their brands and trademarks, and applying for protection now. 1) Lower Application and Registration Fe... March 2016 Competing After Employment (Part Two) The Medium Last summer, Jawbone, a fitness tracking hardware and software maker, sued its arch-rival Fitbit (CNET, 2015) alleging that Fitbit lured its employees away to obtain access to Jawbone’s confidential information and produc... February 2016 Case Summary: Stuart Olson Dominion Construction Ltd. v. Structal Heavy Steel Defence + Indemnity The relationship between trust and lien claims under Provincial builders' lien legislation. Stuart Olson Dominion Construction Ltd. v. Structal Heavy Steel, 2015 SCC 43, per Rothstein, J. FACTS AND ISSUES &nb... February 2016 The Regulator Knows Best: British Columbia Court of Appeal Upholds Bylaws Prohibiting Customer Incentive Programs Professional Regulatory Alert In Sobeys West Inc. v. College of Pharmacists of British Columbia, 2016 BCCA 41, the British Columbia Court of Appeal determined that it was reasonable for the College of Pharmacists to prohibit pharmacists from using “customer inc... February 2016 Case Summary: Thompson (Litigation guardian of) v. Saanich (District) Defence + Indemnity Every day and reasonably safe playground activities will not expose a Defendant school district to occupier’s liability. Thompson (Litigation guardian of) v. Saanich (District), 2015 BCSC 1750, per Baird J. ... January 2016 Alberta Court Determines APEGA’s Registration Examinations Are Not Discriminatory Professional Regulatory Alert In Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta v. Mihaly, 2016 ABQB 61, Madam Justice J.M. Ross ruled that it is not
discriminatory for the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (&ldqu... December 2015 Professional Regulation and Ungovernability Riccioni v. Law Society of Alberta, 2015 ABCA 62 (CanLII) (Alta CA), upholding a decision by the Law Society to disbar one of its members in part for ungovernability Earlier this year, the Alberta Court of Appeal upheld a decision by the... October 2015 Police and Adjuster Statements – Admissible or Not? Insurance Alert The Alberta Court of Appeal in the recent case of R. v. Porter, 2015 ABCA 279, has concluded that neither a statement made to the police pursuant to the Traffic Safety Act section 71, nor a statement provided to an insurance adjuste... October 2015 Harassing Comments Are No Joke: Employer Ordered to Pay Employee $7,500 Mohamud v. Canadian Dewatering (2006) Ltd., 2015 AHRC 16, is a recent decision of the Alberta Human Rights Commission. This decision demonstrates the type of workplace harassment that creates a poisoned workplace and is a reminder t... September 2015 Forum Selection in Online Terms IP Blog Let’s say you’re a Canadian company doing business with a US supplier – which law should govern the contract? ‘Forum selection’ and ‘governing law’ refer to the practice of choosing the applicable law and venue... August 2015 No Copyright or Trademark Protection for Metatags IP Blog What if a competitor copied the metatags on your website and you watched web traffic bleed from your own site while the competitor’s site enjoyed a bump in hits? Are metatags subject to copyright or trademark protection? The recent Federal Court ... July 31, 2015 Field Law Community Fund Program Awards $40,000 to Northern Alberta Winners Regional law firm donates funds to local Northern Alberta community initiatives for third year Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, is proud to be celebrating its 100 year anniversary by donating $100,000 to initiatives throughout Alberta and the Northwest Territories via the annual Field Law Communit... July 23, 2015 Field Law Community Fund Program Awards $20,000 to 2015 Winners Regional law firm donates funds to local Northwest Territories community initiatives for third year Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, is proud to be celebrating its 100 year anniversary by granting $100,000 to initiatives throughout Alberta and the Northwest Territories via the annual Field Law Communit... July 6, 2015 Field Law Community Fund Program Awards $40,000 to Southern Alberta Winners Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, is proud to be celebrating its 100 year anniversary by granting $100,000 to initiatives throughout Alberta and the Northwest Territories via the annual Field Law Communit... May 27, 2015 Field Law Community Fund Program Seeks Community Input to Select Program Finalists Regional law firm opens voting phase to public with $100,000 available for distribution in celebration of firm's 100th year anniversary Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, requests the community’s input in helping determine what community causes or ideas should be awarded funds through the Field Law Community Fund Program (the Program... April 8, 2015 Field Law Launches Third Year of Community Fund Program with Additional Funding in Celebration of 100th Anniversary Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, is excited to announce the launch of the 2015 Field Law Community Fund Program. The Program supports local pay-it-forward ideas and causes within the communities Field La... March 6, 2014 Field Law Kicks Off Second Annual Community Fund Program Regional law firm accepting new applications for program designed to grant funds to local community causes Field Law, a regional law firm with offices in Calgary, Edmonton and Yellowknife, has announced the commencement of the 2014 Field Law Community Fund Program. Now in its second year of activity, the Program supports local initiatives and causes within ... Professional Regulatory Webinar: Tips + Traps for Hearing Tribunal Members Field Law Attendee Confirmation
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