Canadian Lawyer InHouse

9 CANADIANLAWYERMAG.COM/INHOUSE SEPTEMBER 2016 says Synder. "Unfortunately, this Supreme Court decision effectively denies this same right and fl exibility to federally regulated employers who have to continue to expend signifi cant time, money and resources in the hopes of building a case of just cause against the employee." Ball says when the Federal Court of Ap- peal decision came out in 2015, he "just thought it was so wrong." "The approach of the Federal Court of Appeal was to neuter the Canada Labour Code," he says. "Why would parliament go through that attempt to create rights simi- lar to what employees have in the labour unionized context where arbitral jurispru- dence is applied and then just say Common Law applies? It doesn't make sense." Unionized employees who are termi- nated have long had the ability to seek re- instatement with back pay or other forms of compensation before independent labour arbitrators. This right has now been recon- fi rmed for non-unionized employees as well. "This is an extremely important judg- ment and confi rms that employees of fed- erally regulated corporations and agencies cannot be terminated from their jobs except for just cause," said employment lawyer James LeNoury in a statement. LeNoury represents Wilson and argued the case be- fore the Supreme Court. "It overturns the Federal Court of Ap- peal ruling and brings the meaning of 'un- just dismissal' under the Canada Labour Code in line with the accepted interpre- tation that had been followed by the vast majority of adjudicators since the law's in- troduction in 1978." The core issue in this case was whether federally regulated employers could dismiss employees without cause. Wilson was dismissed in 2009 after four years with federally regulated AECL. Al- though he'd been provided severance pay, he sought written reasons for his dismissal. Wilson suspected AECL's motive was re- prisal for earlier allegations of corruption in the department he worked in. The company provided a letter stating Wilson was termi- nated on a non-cause basis and therefore refused to provide reasons. The Federal Court of Appeal upheld AECL's decision. In Justice David Stratas' decision in 2015 he wrote that ". . . I largely agree with adju- dicator Wakeling in Knopp v. Western Bulk Transport Ltd., [1994] C.L.A.D. No. 172] supra at paragraph 77: "In conclusion, Divisions X, XI and XIV of Part III of the Canada Labour Code do not jettison the common law principles which govern the termination of an em- ployment relationship. Had Parliament in- tended to implement a drastically different legal order in which common law principles played no role, it would have said so in plain language. In enacting Division XIV of Part III of the Code, Parliament created another forum besides the courts to hear complaints of unjust dismissal and granted Code ad- judicators remedial powers common law judges are without." IH A roundup of legal department news and trends CONNECTING YOU TO YOUR LEGAL COMMUNITY New Edition Spiralbound • August 2016 $46.50* • L7798-5930 ISBN 978-0-7798-5930 Multiple copy discounts available *Plus applicable taxes and shipping & handling Stay connected with the 2016-17 Alberta Legal Telephone Directory Order your copy today. Visit www.carswell.com or call 1-800-387-5164 for a 30-day, no risk evaluation Alberta Legal Telephone Directory is all about your legal community connecting you to the lawyers and law offices you need in Alberta, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon. Published annually, it keeps you connected with new and updated names, mailing addresses, email addresses, phone numbers and fax numbers each year. Searching is easy with: • Alphabetical and geographical listing of lawyers and law firms • Alphabetical listing of Judges Also quickly and easily access: • Law Societies • Courts of Appeal • Federal Court of Canada • Government of Canada departments • Judicial districts and judicial officials • Incorporated Municipalities • Land registration and information services • Provincial government departments • Boards and Commissions • Law Related Services, Institutions and Organizations • University law faculties... and more Untitled-4 1 2016-08-11 3:44 PM

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