Canadian Lawyer

April 2021

The most widely read magazine for Canadian lawyers

Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/1354729

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 7 of 51

UPFRONT 6 www.canadianlawyermag.com NEWS BRIEFS Fighting Manitoba social assistance rules Man with disability can appeal being forced to go on Old Age Pension at 65 A MANITOBA man living on a disability allowance has won the right to pursue his appeal of a provincial decision forcing him to apply for his Old Age Security pension at 65 even though he would be better off, in the long run, to wait until he was 70. In February, the Manitoba Court of Appeal granted leave for Martin Stadler to have the court hear arguments on whether the Social Services Appeal Board in Manitoba erred in deciding to suspend his income assistance benefits and insisting he apply for OAS (and the related Guaranteed Income Supplement). The appeal court will now be able to look at whether the board was wrong in determining that it does not have jurisdiction to review its own legislation's constitutionality. "The first issue identified by the appli- cant potentially affects all disabled recipi- ents of income assistance benefits who are approaching, or have attained, the age of 65 years," Justice Jennifer Pfuetzner wrote in her decision. "The second issue raises an impor- Saskatchewan modernizes child and family law Recent amendments by the Saskatchewan government to modernize its child and family law legislation came into force on March 1. The legislation, passed in spring 2020, addresses surrogacy and other assisted reproduction matters and amends the criteria for the best interests of a child to more effectively consider family violence as a factor when deciding on issues such as relocations, parenting time and decision-making responsibilities. "This will remove unnecessary obstacles for families and allow parents more flexibility when making personal decisions that affect their children," said Gordon Wyant, Saskatchewan's justice minister and attorney general. Manitoba court grants leave in case of partial clawback of CERB In granting leave to appeal a case involving the clawback of Canada Emergency Response Benefits from a man living on social assistance, a Manitoba Court of Appeal judge says there is a "patchwork" of policies across Canada, with different provinces and territories creating their own rules for recovering what they believe are over-payments. Justice Christopher Mainella wrote in Cann v. Director, Fort Garry, River Heights, released in October, that there were no extensive consultations between the federal, provincial and territorial governments as to how the CERB would affect provincial and territorial social assistance programs. Test for standard of pathologist's care is not perfection A recent Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench decision ruled that the court should not adopt a test of perfection but should consider whether a doctor acted in accordance with standard recognized medical practice. In Zoerb v. Saskatoon Regional Health Authority, the plaintiff visited her dentist about swelling in her jaw. The defendant pathologist said the tissue examined was a radicular cyst, not ameloblastoma. The plaintiff was later diagnosed with ameloblastoma and went through reconstructive surgery. The court dismissed her claim, saying the pathologist may have been incorrect, but he met the standards of the day. Saskatchewan corporate law changes address regulatory burdens Saskatchewan's proposed changes to its Business Corporations Act seek to modernize and streamline corporate legislation to reflect current business practices, rules and language. Bill no. 5 intends to eliminate unnecessary and outdated requirements, regulatory burdens and red tape. It will also reflect how businesses are being conducted in the digital era by introducing updates to the use of electronic technology. "As detailed in the Saskatchewan Growth Plan, modernizing business legislation is an important step to strengthening our economy and ensuring the province remains attractive for employers," said Gordon Wyant, Saskatchewan's justice minister and attorney general. New Manitoba regulations will reduce red tape, help child-care providers Changes in Manitoba legislation, which came into effect Jan. 1, will ease regulatory burdens and address the needs of parents and children, said the province's minister of families, Heather Stefanson. She said the Community Child Care Standards Amendment Act will improve the efficiency of the licensing process for child-care centres, reinforce health and safety provisions and advance inclusion and accessibility for children. Child-care providers with positive track records can be licensed for up to three years, instead of yearly. PRAIRIES UPDATE

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of Canadian Lawyer - April 2021