Blog
Blog
CN Failure to Meet Service Obligations under the Canada Transportation Act Results in Multimillion Damages for Lost Profits and Vessel Demurrage
Friday, January 2, 2026Rui FernandesLitigationTransportation & Logistics, Damages, Vessel Demurrage
In the recent decision of the Federal Court of Canada in Louis Dreyfus Company Canada ULC v. Canadian National Railway Company, 2025 FC 1868, the court was asked to determine the damages resulting from CN’s breach of its service obligations pursuant to section 116(5) of the Canada Transportation Act, S.C. 1996, c 10 (the “Act”)...
Read the full post, click here.
Looking Ahead to 2026: Freight Brokers, Motor Carrier Casualty Claims and the United States Supreme Court
Friday, January 2, 2026M. Gordon HearnLitigationTransportation & Logistics, Freight, Claim
The United States Supreme Court does not usually rule on transportation cases...
Read the full post, click here.
Proposed New Requirements for Lithium-Ion Batteries in Consumer Products
Friday, January 2, 2026Rui FernandesLitigationTransportation & Logistics, Lithium-Ion Batteries
Health Canada has published a Notice of Intent regarding proposed regulations for lithium-ion batteries and consumer products containing lithium-ion batteries (under the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act (“CCPSA”))...
Read the full post, click here.
Will 2026 see the end of Driver Inc.?
Friday, January 2, 2026Carole McAfee WallaceLitigationTransportation & Logistics
Worker misclassification is an ongoing issue in many workplaces and industries...
Read the full post, click here.
Ambiguous Exclusion Clauses and Reasonable Expectations: Lessons from Busato v. Gore Mutual Insurance Company
Friday, January 2, 2026Mason KohnLitigation
The decision of Busato v. Gore Mutual Insurance Company, 2025 BCCA 79 (CanLII) is a recent and noteworthy case from the Court of Appeal for British Columbia...
Read the full post, click here.
Make a List and Check it Twice: Are Your Cyber Programs Naughty or Nice?
Friday, January 2, 2026Jamal RehmanLitigationTransportation & Logistics, Cybersecurity
As 2025 draws to a close, the end of the year offers a valuable opportunity for supply chain intermediaries – including shippers, freight brokers, freight forwarders, warehousemen, and motor carriers – to review and assess the health of their cybersecurity systems, policies, and programs...
Read the full post, click here.
Oath of allegiance under the Legal Profession Act ruled unconstitutional (Wirring v. Law Society of Alberta)
Tuesday, December 30, 2025Stephen A. ThieleLitigationConstitutional Law , Charter, Freedom of Religion , Oath of Allegiance
In certain circumstances, a requirement that a person pledge an oath of allegiance to a country, a monarch or an institution is not uncommon...
Read the full post, click here.
Vicarious liability action against employer of defendant struck as vexatious (Jones-Moore v. Moore)
Monday, December 29, 2025Dara Hirbod, Isabel YooLitigationLiability, Employer, Vexatious
Vicarious liability is a doctrine in tort law which holds one party responsible for the wrongful acts of another, on the basis of a special relationship between them...
Read the full post, click here.
Lawyer not required to produce alleged will drafting file: further production denied (Nouini v. Pizzi)
Monday, December 15, 2025Stephen A. ThieleLitigationCivil Procedure, Production of Documents , Non-Parties, Dismissal
Although the Rules of Civil Procedure require parties to produce relevant documents in a proceeding, a court can refuse a request for further productions if it is disproportionate or where a party’s conduct in seeking the further productions is tactical...
Read the full post, click here.
Crossed-out conditions in agreement of purchase and sale held to be deleted (Dehkordi v. O’Dell)
Monday, December 15, 2025Alexander Melfi, Simona Ristic, Isabel YooLitigationAgreement of Purchase and Sale, Property
In an agreement of purchase and sale (APS), buyers often include conditions that must be met before the agreement becomes legally binding...
Read the full post, click here.
Realtor cannot serve as expert damages witness for own client (Ambria (Bloomington) Limited v. Esmaeili)
Friday, December 5, 2025James R.G. CookLitigationDamages, Real Estate
Expert witnesses have a fundamental duty of independence and impartiality towards the parties in litigation...
Read the full post, click here.
Lawyers obtain permanent injunction to remove defamatory postings made against them (Judson Howie LLP v. Blackwell)
Thursday, December 4, 2025Stephen A. ThieleLitigationTorts, Defamation, Injunction
The internet permits everyone with access to a computer to post their unfiltered views about anything...
Read the full post, click here.
Civil claims struck due to privacy breach from unauthorized access to text messages (McCarrell v. McCarrell)
Monday, December 1, 2025James R.G. CookLitigationClaim, Privacy, Breach
Canadian law affords constitutional protection to privacy rights...
Read the full post, click here.
Using Generative AI in court: a penny wise, a pound foolish (T.B. v. K.M and X.L v. Z.L.)
Monday, December 1, 2025Stephen A. ThieleLitigationArtificial Intelligence, Courts
As a research lawyer, I am threatened to be replaced by generative artificial intelligence that purports to conduct legal research much like new machines threatened the jobs of labourers during the industrial revolution...
Read the full post, click here.
Law Firm Ordered to Disclose Client’s Banking Information (Stajic v. Wayland Group and Ward)
Friday, November 28, 2025James R.G. CookLitigationBanking, Disclose
Solicitor-client privilege in Canadian law is sacrosanct...
Read the full post, click here.
Court grants full indemnity costs following dismissal of frivolous and fabricated claim (Kovacevic v. Bank of Montreal)
Wednesday, November 26, 2025James R.G. Cook, Isabel Yoo, Michael LauricellaLitigationFull Indemnity, Dismissal, Claim
The Superior Court of Justice in Ontario has been faced with significant backlogs for some time, leading to delays in civil matters...
Read the full post, click here.
Lawyer removed as counsel of record for non-profit corporation (Fodjo v. NufiCanada)
Friday, November 21, 2025James R.G. CookLitigationNon-Profit, Counsel
Lawyers owe a duty of loyalty to their clients...
Read the full post, click here.
Seller beware of provision in APS that includes HST as part of purchase price (Miculinic Investment Corp. v. 2303515 Ontario Inc.)
Friday, November 14, 2025Stephen A. ThieleLitigationSeller, HST
In real estate transactions which involve properties that are comprised of both a commercial and residential use, HST is payable on the portion of the land that is used for commercial purposes...
Read the full post, click here.
Don’t Hope for the Contractual Interpretation Stars to Align (and Ensure Your Fleet Reporting is in Order Instead)
Wednesday, November 12, 2025Conal CalvertLitigationTransportation & Logistics
The decision of West York Sales and Leasing Inc. v. The Dominion of Canada General Insurance Company, 2025 ONSC 3845 is a recent interesting case in the Superior Court of Ontario dealing with coverage under fleet insurance policies...
Read the full post, click here.
Director and Officers’ liability and the Load Brokers’ Trust Obligation under the Ontario Highway Traffic Act
Wednesday, November 12, 2025Kim E. StollLitigationTransportation & Logistics
Ontario continues to be the only province in Canada requiring that persons who arrange for carriage, typically load brokers who are “load arrangers”, must hold “in trust” any freight charges earmarked for the associated carriers...
Read the full post, click here.
Ontario’s Crackdown on Fraudulent Commercial Licenses and the U.S. Ban on Trucking Work Visas Leave Drivers in Limbo
Wednesday, November 12, 2025Saisha MahilLitigationTransportation & Logistics
On August 22, 2025, the U.S. State Department announced a pause on the issuance of certain work visas for foreign commercial truck drivers...
Read the full post, click here.
Court addresses “tort of ejectment” while granting injunction in property dispute (Saad Keval v. Hiep Nguyen)
Monday, November 10, 2025James R.G. CookLitigationInjunction, Property, Dispute
What can a property owner do when they have been excluded from their property...
Read the full post, click here.
Court rejects bid to overturn Terrebonne election result (Sinclair-Desgagné v. Attorney General (Canada))
Monday, November 3, 2025Stephen A. ThieleLitigationPolitical Law, Elections, Contested Election
The April 2025 Canadian federal election was a close contest, with a handful of electoral districts not determining a winner until the votes in the last ballot box were...
Read the full post, click here.
Developer breached Agreement of Purchase and Sale by demanding additional charges at time of closing (Taheripouresfahani v. Dormer Bond Inc.)
Friday, October 17, 2025James R.G. CookLitigationBreach, Agreement of Purchase and Sale
In litigation arising from disputed real estate transactions, courts are frequently confronted with circumstances where a buyer tries to close for less than the agreed sale price...
Read the full post, click here.
Lead lawyer responsible for use of AI by third party contractor (Reddy v. Saroya)
Tuesday, October 7, 2025Stephen A. ThieleLitigationLegal Research , Artificial Intelligence, Fake Cases
Prior to joining Gardiner Roberts LLP in 1999, I was an outsource lawyer, providing legal support services to other lawyers throughout Ontario...
Read the full post, click here.
Thunder Bay Police Officer’s Defamation Claim against Law Student Dismissed (Gibson v. Cunningham)
Monday, September 29, 2025James R.G. CookLitigationDefamation, Claim, Dismissed
A defamation claim against a law student brought by a Thunder Bay police officer was dismissed under Ontario’s “anti-SLAPP” legislation: Gibson v. Cunningham, 2025 ONSC 5504 [not yet on CanLII]...
Read the full post, click here.
Real estate agent’s “imperfect” conduct was not negligent (Duad Inc. v. Shi)
Friday, September 26, 2025James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate
In disputes between a buyer and seller arising from an aborted transaction, the real estate professionals involved may be dragged into the dispute for their roles in the circumstances at issue...
Read the full post, click here.
Disbarred lawyer’s claim against bank dismissed (Murray v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank)
Monday, September 8, 2025James R.G. CookLitigationClaim, Dismissed
Claims for negligence or breach of contract against a bank generally require that a plaintiff establish a clear unbroken link between the bank’s alleged error and any loss or damage suffered by the plaintiff as a result...
Read the full post, click here.
Father’s contribution towards purchase of property was a gift not a loan (Klemensiewicz v. Klemens)
Friday, August 22, 2025James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, Real Property Limitations Act
Due to the high cost of residential real estate in Ontario, many buyers require financial assistance from family members. Parents often...
Read the full post, click here.
Texas appeals court upholds injunction against Dallas short-term rental ban (City of Dallas v. Dallas Short-Term Rental Alliance)
Thursday, August 21, 2025Stephen A. ThieleLitigationMunicipal Law, Zoning By-Law, Short Term Rentals, Banning
Online platforms such as Airbnb and VRBO have allowed property owners around the world to easily rent their respective homes on a...
Read the full post, click here.