Earlier this year, the Ontario Court of Appeal affirmed a trial decision awarding damages against an employment placement agency for not checking the references of an employee who would later go on to defraud her employer of more than $263,000. [more] Full article

In March of 2006, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice awarded Kevin Keays a record $500,000 in punitive damages, in addition to 24 months pay in lieu of notice, after Honda terminated Keays' employment for frequent work absences due to chronic fatigue syndrome. On September 29, 2006, the Ontario Court of Appeal held that the punitive damages awarded by the Superior Court should be dramatically reduced from $500,000 to $100,000. The Court of Appeal otherwise dismissed Honda's appeal of the Superior Court decision and, in doing so, rejected Honda's allegations of bias against the trial judge. [more] Full article

If someone has their privacy violated in Ontario, can they pursue a civil remedy in the Ontario courts? Does Ontario law recognise the tort of invasion of privacy? These questions were the subject of a motion brought by McDonald's Restaurants of Canada seeking to strike out a plaintiff's claim for unlawful invasion of his privacy on the basis that it disclosed no reasonable cause of action. [more] Full article

In its January 10, 2006 decision in Egan v. Alcatel, the Ontario Court of Appeal awarded damages for both lost salary and lost disability benefits to an employee who became disabled three months after she was dismissed. In doing so, Ontario's top court made it clear that an employer is obliged, not only to continue the salary paid to a dismissed employee during an appropriate notice period, but also to continue all employee benefits, including short and long-term disability benefits. [more] Full article