Commercial Litigation and Dispute Resolution Blog

On September 27, 2016, I blogged about the decision of the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench blocking approval of an arrangement in Re Marquee Energy Ltd,. and the Alberta Oilsands Inc. In that decision, the Court held that Alberta Oilsands shareholders must be allowed a shareholders vote even though the only company being “arranged” was Marquee Energy Ltd. The appeal of ...

On November 13, 2015, I blogged about the Supreme Court of Canada granting leave to appeal in two related cases: Endean v. British Columbia, 2014 BCCA 61 and Parsons v. Ontario, 2015 ONCA 158.  These cases raised the issue of the scope of inter-jurisdictional coordination for national class actions in Canada by determining whether or not judges of provincial superior courts ...

On September 14, 2016, Mr. Justice Macleod of the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta gave oral reasons for judgment in Re Marquee Energy Ltd. and The Alberta Oilsands Inc. (unreported, Action No. 1601-11071, Judicial Centre of Calgary).  In doing so, he ordered that The Alberta Oilsands Inc.’s (“AOI”) shareholders be required to vote to approve that arrangement in ...

In companion cases released on June 3, 2016, the Supreme Court of Canada (the “SCC”) confirmed the central importance of solicitor-client privilege to the rule of law in Canada. In Canada (National Revenue) v. Thompson, 2016 SCC 21, and Canada (Attorney General) v. Chambre des notaires du Québec, 2016 SCC 20, the Court considered provisions of the Income Tax Act (the ...

On December 4, 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada (the “SCC”) issued its decision in Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce v. Green, 2015 SCC 60. In the highly anticipated decision, a deeply divided Court rendered their reasons for a trilogy of appeals that arose from securities class action cases against CIBC, IMAX Corporation, and Celestica Inc. In each case the plaintiff ...

On November 5, 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada (the “SCC”) granted leave to appeal in two related cases: Endean v. British Columbia, 2014 BCCA 61, and Parsons v. Ontario, 2015 ONCA 158. The resolution of these two cases will shape the scope of inter-jurisdictional coordination for national class actions in Canada by determining whether or not provincial judges may sit ...

On September 4, 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada issued its decision in Chevron Corp v Yaiguaje, 2015 SCC 42. In a unanimous decision, the Court dismissed Chevron’s appeal, holding that Canadian courts have jurisdiction to enforce a foreign judgment whether or not the original dispute or the parties to it had any connection to Canada.  The decision will have far-reaching ...

Today, the Supreme Court of Canada, in a judgment that revealed a deep divide between Justices from Quebec and those from the rest of Canada, wrote the final chapter in the long-gun registry saga. In a 5 to 4 decision, with all 3 Quebec Justices in the minority, the Court dismissed Quebec’s constitutional challenge to federal legislation that mandated the destruction of ...

On September 16, 2014, I blogged concerning the filing of a Notice of Civil Claim in British Columbia in Adolfo Garcia v. Tahoe Resources Inc.  That case concerns a claim against a Canadian parent company for mining activities conducted through a foreign subsidiary in Guatemala.  I noted a trend towards seeking redress against Canadian parent mining companies in Canadian ...

On November 13, 2014, the Supreme Court of Canada released its much anticipated decision in Bhasin v. Hrynew, 2014 SCC 71.  In its decision, the Supreme Court of Canada for the first time expressly recognized “good faith” as an organizing principle in the operation of contract law in Canadian common law provinces.  This is a significant alteration to the law of contracts in ...