Publications
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Financing Quebec’s Energy Transition: Unlocking the Potential of Flow-Through Shares
Quebec has set ambitious energy transition and industrial decarbonization targets. The shift to greener practices has to be taken in a context where our energy consumption could rapidly grow under the combined effect of a number of factors, such as the reindustrialization of our economy, population (…)
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Environmental claims about a product, a service or business activities: stricter rules to combat greenwashing
Greenwashing is a form of marketing that misrepresents a product, service or practice as having positive environmental effects,1 thereby misleading consumers and preventing them from making an informed purchasing decision.2 Several initiatives have been launched around the world to counter this (…)
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Almost two years after the issuance of the Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations, where do we stand and how are businesses affected?
On December 20, 2022, the federal government's Single-Use Plastics Prohibition Regulations1 (the “Regulations”) gradually came into force, with the effect, as the name suggests, of prohibiting (or restricting, in certain cases) the manufacture, import and sale of certain single-use plastics that (…)
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Is the proposed amendment to the Competition Act to combat greenwashing really a step forward?
Greenwashing is a form of marketing that misrepresents a product, service or practice as having positive environmental effects,1 thereby misleading consumers and preventing them from making an informed purchasing decision.2 Several initiatives have been launched around the world to counter this (…)
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Environmental obligations: directors and officers, you may have more responsibilities than you think
In general, the directors and officers of a legal person have obligations and responsibilities relating to the legal person’s activities. Each director must act with prudence, diligence, honesty, loyalty and in the legal person’s interest.1 Each officer is responsible for representing the legal (…)
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Single-Use Plastics Prohibition Regulations: Impact on Businesses
On June 20, 2022, the federal government registered regulations that, as the name implies, prohibit (or restrict, in some cases) the manufacture, import and sale of certain single-use plastics that pose a threat to the environment. The Regulations will come into force on December 20, 2022, with the (…)
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Once Upon a Time in the West: Redwater, its Trustee, and the Environmental Arm of the Law
In a decision handed down on January 31, 2019, the Supreme Court ordered that a bankrupt oil and gas company fulfil its obligation to reclaim abandoned oil wells before paying any creditors. This decision has since sparked conflicting reactions across the country: first, because it gives clear (…)
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New environmental authorization scheme: how does this affect mining companies?
A new environmental authorization scheme, which is intended to be a simplified version, was implemented under the Environmental Quality Act (“EQA”) and has been in effect since March 23, 2018. How does this new scheme affect mining companies? Is the authorization scheme truly simplified? What about (…)
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Legislative amendments regarding conservation of wetlands and bodies of water: troubled waters for developers?
Bill 132 respecting the conservation of wetlands and bodies of water, passed unanimously by the National Assembly on June 16th of this year, is in keeping with the context of a significant modernization of environmental laws in Québec. Most of its provisions come into force immediately. Described (…)
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Artificial Intelligence and the 2017 Canadian Budget: is your business ready?
The March 22, 2017 Budget of the Government of Canada, through its “Innovation and Skills Plan” (http://www.budget.gc.ca/2017/docs/plan/budget-2017-en.pdf) mentions that Canadian academic and research leadership in artificial intelligence will be translated into a more innovative economy and (…)
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Real estate developer granted injunction in dispute over flooding caused by new highway interchange
In June 2015, the Superior Court of Québec sided with a real estate developer who applied for an order requiring the Quebec Ministry of Transport (MOT) to fix a highway interchange whose construction in 2007 caused the developer’s land to be flooded 1. This article summarizes the court’s principal (…)
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Directors’ Liability
CONTENTS Directors’ liability for payroll withholding taxes Due diligence: An evolving standard To what risks of liability or being found guilty are directors exposed? Environmental liability of directors and officers Directors’ liability for payroll withholding taxes Luc Pariseau and Audrey (…)
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Site contamination: Claims for latent defects - Notice and prescription
On what grounds may a landowner who discovers soil contamination caused by an old heating oil tank sue the former owner of the property? In this bulletin we examine whether the warranty against latent defects found at Article 1726 of the Civil Code of Québec can be invoked to have the sale annulled (…)