Publications

March 20, 2018

Civil liability and personal injury: A harsh decision for a winter sports centre

The Court of Québec released an interesting judgment in December in a case involving civil liability and personal injury.1 On February 23, 2013, Plaintiff, Ms. Bourgault, went to Village Vacances Valcartier (“VVV”) to take part in a snow rafting activity. During a descent, she was twice thrown (…)

March 13, 2018

The Court of Appeal sets the record straight on applications for assignment of costs

On January 24, the Quebec Court of Appeal1 released a very important decision on the application of section 326 of the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases2  (“A.I.A.O.D.”), thereby setting the record straight on the true effect of this provision. An employer will no longer (…)

March 13, 2018

Builders’ Risk Insurance: Interpreting the Usual Faulty Workmanship and “LEG” Exclusions in connection with Ledcor and Acciona

Ledcor The issue in Ledcor1 was whether the builder’s risk policy taken out by the contractor that was contractually responsible for cleaning the windows of a building, covered damage to the windows caused by its poor cleaning work. The financial impact was significant since the cost of re-doing (…)

March 2, 2018

Clothes make the man

When an individual chooses to enter into an agreement via a management company, he  has to accept all of the consequences of that decision, the good and the bad. This principle applies in particular to working relationships. In the Kucer case,1 the Superior Court recently confirmed that, (…)

February 28, 2018

Is workplace discrimination everyone’s business?

Ariane Villemaire and Véronique Morin   The Supreme Court held that the British Columbia Human Rights Code protects employees against all forms of discrimination in the workplace, even if the perpetrator of such discrimination is not their employer. On December 15, 2017, the Supreme Court (…)

February 21, 2018

Freedom of association of physicians practising at a specialized medical centre: the Supreme Court of Canada declines to intervene

On February 8, 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed the application by the Fédération des médecins spécialistes du Québec for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Quebec1 in a case concerning the freedom of association of physicians practising at a specialized medical (…)

February 20, 2018

The contract may remain in force despite misrepresentations or latent defects because the consumer has obligations too

This publication was authored by Luc Thibaudeau, former partner of Lavery and now judge in the Civil Division of the Court of Québec, District of Longueuil. The duty to inform is one of the main obligations sellers owe to their purchasers. This applies in the context of civil law, business law or (…)

February 15, 2018

Standing Senate Committee of Canada's Transport and Communications issues report on driving of smart vehicles

Introduction In January 2018, the Senate's Standing Committee on Transport and Communications (hereinafter the "Committee"), chaired by the Hon. David Tkachuk, published a report on the impact of automated vehicles in the country at the behest of the Minister of Transport of Canada. The first (…)

February 9, 2018

Securities and class actions: screening authorizations

Anyone who wants to bring an action in damages relating to the secondary securities market must prove that the action is brought in good faith and has a reasonable chance of success (s. 225.4 QSA). In Quebec,1 as elsewhere in Canada,2 no prior disclosure of evidence may be obtained by plaintiff (…)

February 6, 2018

Artificial Intelligence, Implementation and Human Resources

In this era of a new industrial revolution, dubbed as “Industry 4.0”, businesses are facing sizable technological challenges. Some refer to smart plants or the industry of the future. This revolution is characterized by the advent of new technology that allows for the “smart” automation of human (…)

February 2, 2018

Caron confirms that employers have a duty to accommodate workers with an employment injury

On February 1, 2018, the Supreme Court of Canada rendered an important decision in Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (“CNESST”) v. Caron1 (“Caron”), confirming the position expressed by the Court of Appeal in 20152 as well as the state of the law regarding (…)

January 26, 2018

Class Actions to Watch this Year

Year in and year out, the Superior Court of Quebec releases around 175 judgments in class actions matters, and 2017 was no exception. With two years having passed since the reform of civil procedure, the courts have had an opportunity to clarify the effect of a number of new provisions: the low (…)

January 12, 2018

Bill 162: An Act to amend the Building Act and other legislative provisions mainly to give effect to certain Charbonneau Commission recommendations

Tabled on December 1, 2017 by Lise Thériault, the Minister responsible for Consumer Protection and Housing, the main purpose of Bill 162 is to give effect to certain recommendations contained in the final report of the Commission of inquiry on the awarding and management of public contracts in the (…)