Law Commons^™

Atlantic Pilotage Authority V Cmsg, Innis Christie

Innis Christie Collection

INTRODUCTION. The "RESOLUTION OF CONTRACT RENEWAL DISPUTES AGREEMENT" of April 24, 2003 between the parties, under which I am proceeding here, provides: The purpose of this agreement is to establish a binding dispute resolution process to be utilized in circumstances where the parties have engaged in collective bargaining for the purpose of entering into a collective agreement but have failed to reach a settlement. Under such circumstances the following process shall be used to conclude all outstanding issues for the renewal of the collective agreement:

Re Cupe And Canadian Staff Union (Reynolds), Innis Christie

Innis Christie Collection

The Employer posted a position located in Halifax. The Grievor was denied the position because he was not prepared to relocate to Halifax due to family responsibilities. The Union grievance alleged that the Employer breached the Collective Agreement which prohibits discrimination based on marital status and place of residence, and that the Grievor's request to commute should have been accommodated. The Employer believed the position needed to be located in Halifax and that commuting from Newfoundland would not be effective.

Re Halifax (Regional Municipality) And Halifax Professional Firefighters Assn Local 268 (Mackenzie), Innis Christie

Innis Christie Collection

The Union and Grievor believe the Employer discriminated against the latter by not returning him to an agreed position after an absence due to illness. They also believe the Employer failed to accommodate the Grievor's return to the work. The remedy requested was a return to his former position, or to the agreed position after his illness, and damages. The Employer was concerned about both legal and moral issues in the event that the Grievor was not able to fully perform his duties.

Re Canada Post Corp And Cupw, Innis Christie

Innis Christie Collection

The Union grieved that the Employer has not provided sunglasses to outside workers. The Union wishes a declaration that there was a breach of the Collective Agreement and the "Canada Labour Code" and also wants the Employer ordered to provide an allowance for the sunglasses. The Employer does not accept the Union's position.

Re Canada Post Corp And Cupw (Betts), Innis Christie

Innis Christie Collection

The Union claims that the discharge of the Grievor was without sufficient cause. The Union raised a preliminary objection; stating that the letter of termination did not disclose sufficient reason to support dismissal. The Union also believed too much time had lapse between the offense and the discharge letter.

Re Izaak Walton Killam Health Centre And Nsgeu (P-05121), Innis Christie

Innis Christie Collection

This is a union policy grievance regarding the Employer's approach to the compensation of employees for time lost on storm days. The Employer was compensating only if the time lost was for less than two hours. The Union believed that the Employer should pay for the first two hours. The Union seeks full redress, including retroactive compensation. The Employer agreed to the requested remedy if the Grievance is successful.

The grievance fails. The Union could not prove its interpretation of the relevant clauses of the Collective Agreement.

Abortion: Ensuring Access, Sanda Rodgers, Jocelyn Downie

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

Access to reproductive health care is essential to women’s health, and for some women, abortion is a key component of that care. But not all women in Canada have adequate, or in some cases any, access to abortion. It is important for Canadian physicians to know the facts about access to abortion so that they can better protect and promote the health of their female patients.

Re Canada Post Corp And Cupw (Bock), Innis Christie

Innis Christie Collection

Union grievances, submitted on February 15, 2006, on behalf of Anita Bock and Earl Molyneaux alleging breach of the Collective Agreement between the parties bearing the expiry date January 31, 2007, in that the Employer violated Article 21.03 by unreasonably withholding special leave for February 1, 2006, when the Grievors did not report to work because of major snow storm. The Union sought an order that the Employer pay damages to compensate the Grievors for what they lost because they were not granted special leave with pay on that day.

Cupe, Local 805 V Prince Edward Island (Department Of Health), Innis Christie, B Crockett, Leonard Russell

Innis Christie Collection

The Union alleges that the Employer improperly set qualifications of a job posting which would favour a less senior employee, rather than the Grievor. Also, that the posting process was not fair and the Grievor had the required qualifications. As the senior employee she should be awarded the position.

Patient Safety Law: From Silos To Systems, Jocelyn Downie, William Lahey Prof., Don Ford, Elaine Gibson, Mary Thomson, Tom Ward, Fiona Mcdonald, Alison Shea

Reports & Public Policy Documents

Patient safety has become a significant and pressing policy issue. Around the world, governments, the health care sector and the public are increasingly cognizant of the need to improve the safety of care delivered by their health systems. Pressure for change has been created by highly publicized incidents in a number of countries involving unsafe acts that were significant both in scale and consequence and a number of empirical studies that revealed the high rates of unsafe acts and their consequences. The costs of unsafe health care – both personal and fiscal – to individuals, their families and their communities …

Connecting Care And Challenge: Tapping Our Human Potential - Inclusive Education: A Review Of Programming And Services In New Brunswick, A. Wayne Mackay

Reports & Public Policy Documents

Due to the short time frame for this Review, this cannot be considered an exhaustive report. There is however quite a massive volume of information and sources introduced here touching on the particulars required by the Terms of Reference.

In section I we present legal considerations that have an impact on education in various ways, all of which are related to inclusion and the application of equality rights in Canada. Those considerations include accommodation of students with disabilities, the student-teacher relationship, discipline, safe-schools, and a framework for analysis: the new 3 R’s in education: Rights, Responsibilities and Relationships. Included are …

The Recasting Of Copyright & Related Rights For The Knowledge Economy, P Bernt Hugenholtz, Mireille Van Eechoud, Stef J. Van Gompel, Natali Helberger, Lucie Guibault

Reports & Public Policy Documents

In the European Union, copyright law is increasingly a matter for the European legislator. Member states retain ever less competence to regulate intellectual property rights.

This study critically examines the 'acquis communautaire' in the field of copyright and related (neighbouring) rights, focusing on the seven copyright specific directives, from the 1991 Software directive to the 2001 Information Society Directive. It also deals with distinct issues that are on the agenda of the EU: After reviewing arguments for and against the extension of the term of protection of phonograms (sound recordings), the authors conclude there is no convincing case for extending …

Book Review: Gary Botting, Extradition Between Canada And The United States (Ardsley: Transnational Publishers, 2005), Robert Currie

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

Both domestic and international laws regarding the extradition of fugitive criminal offenders are in a state of flux throughout the world. The current legal landscape reflects tension between the interest of state authorities in promoting “security,” on the one hand, and increasing recognition that human rights obligations are at play, on the other. Gary Botting’s book, Extradition Between Canada and the United States, successfully addresses this tension by way of a detailed examination of what is probably the most integrated extradition partnership outside the European Union.

The Potential Impact Of Aboriginal Title On Aquaculture Policy, Diana Ginn

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

This chapter discusses the potential impact of aboriginal property rights on the development of aquaculture policy by considering whether such rights could provide a basis for First Nation peoples to participate in aquaculture or to manage the participation of others in this industry. The purpose of the chapter is to describe the relevant law as it now stands, to identify issues that have not yet been decided and to consider how the courts might approach such issues in the future.

Emergency Contraception, Abortion And Evidence-Based Law, Rebecca Cook, Bernard Dickens, Joanna Erdman

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

Courts and legal tribunals increasingly decline to serve as religious or moral guardians, and require social evidence to support litigants' claims. Recent cases on emergency contraception and abortion are examined to show how judicial interpretations can take account of evidence of the impact that different understandings of the law will have for how ordinary people can plan their lives and reproductive choices. In an emergency contraception case, an interpretation was rejected that would have criminalized choices that millions of decent, law-abiding physicians, pharmacists and women routinely make. In an abortion case, three judges unanimously rejected a government ministry's defence of …

Religious Discourse In The Public Square, David Blaikie, Diana Ginn

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

Full, open, and civilized discourse among citizens is fundamental to the life of a liberal democracy. It seems trite to assert that no discourse should be prohibited or excluded simply because it is grounded in religious faith or employs religious beliefs to justify a particular position. Yet there are those who contend that it is improper for citizens to use religious arguments when debating or deciding issues in the public square, that metaphorical arena where issues of public policy are discussed and contested. In this article we challenge this position, examining the various arguments that are put forward for keeping …

The Challenges Of Institutionalizing Comprehensive Restorative Justice: Theory And Practice In Nova Scotia, Jennifer Llewellyn, Bruce Archibald

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The Nova Scotia Restorative Justice Program ("NSRJ") is one of the oldest and by all accounts the most comprehensive in Canada. The program centres on youth justice, and operates through referrals by police, prosecutors, judges and correctional officials to community organizations which facilitate restorative conferences and other restoratively oriented processes. More than five years of NSRJ experience with thousands of cases has led to a considerable rethinking of restorative justice theory and practice in relation to governing policies, standards for program implementation and responses to controversial issues. The purpose of this paper is to explore the significance of the Nova …

Common Law Police Powers And Exclusion Of Evidence: The Renaissance Of Good Faith, Steve Coughlan

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

Canadian courts have become far more willing in recent years to rely on the common law as a source of new police powers. Where once the test from R. v. Waterfield was an exception and an afterthought to what was otherwise the general rule of insistence upon statutory sources for police powers, more recently that test seems to be in the forefront of judges' minds as they decide cases. That 1963 British decision has been cited by Canadian courts roughly as often in the last eight years as in the first 35 years after it was decided. Since 1999 the …

Privacy Goes To The Dogs, Steve Coughlan

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

It becomes increasingly clear, with the decision of the Newfoundland Court of Appeal in R. v. Taylor, ante, that the question of whether police use of sniffer dogs constitutes a search, and if so when, will need to be addressed by the Supreme Court of Canada. In particular the question of whether R. v. Tessling has changed the approach to reasonable expectation of privacy as dramatically as some courts have suggested must be settled. Other questions will also need to be addressed.

The Regulation Of Tidal Energy Development Off Nova Scotia: Navigating Foggy Waters, Meinhard Doelle, Dawn A. Russell, Phillip Saunders, David Vanderzwaag, David V. Wright

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The vast potential for tidal power development in the Bay of Fundy region of the Atlantic coast has been recognized for decades. At the same time, finding an effective way to harness this power in a cost effective, sustainable and environmentally responsible manner has been an ongoing challenge. In the 1980s, barrage based tidal power technology was piloted in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia. It was found to be unsuitable from both environmental and cost perspectives.

More recently, pilot projects underway around the world are using new, open turbine technology that is expected to significantly reduce cost and environmental impact. This …

Access To Justice And The Evolution Of Class Action Litigation In Australia, Bernard Murphy, Camille Cameron

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The federal and Victorian class action regimes are intended to facilitate aggregation of multiple claims. Aggregation can improve efficiency by combining similar claims and can enhance access to justice by providing a mechanism to litigate small claims. This article considers whether these efficiency and access aims are being achieved. The authors argue that whilst some developments in class action jurisprudence have been consistent with these legislative aims, other have not. Several features of Australian class action jurisprudence and practice have hampered the healthy development of the legislative regimes, including adverse costs orders, unclear threshold requirements, evasive posturing and unresolved class …

Indigenous Self-Determination And Research On Human Genetic Material: A Consideration Of The Relevance Of Debates On Patents And Informed Consent, And The Political Demands On Researchers, Constance Macintosh

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

Genetic research involving indigenous populations provokes many legal, ethical and cultural issues. Arguably, of these issues, two dominate the literature. The first is whether human genetic materials are or ought to be patentable, which is often argued against on the basis that such patents offend human dignity generally and are culturally offensive to many indigenous peoples. The second is whether researchers must obtain informed consent from representatives of indigenous groups as a whole before attempting to obtain consent for participation from individual members of that group. I argue that there is limited benefit in continuing to debate the patentability of …

Aboriginal Title And Oceans Policy In Canada, Diana Ginn

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The Oceans Act of Canada sets out a broad framework for the unified management of Canada’s oceans based on an ecosystem approach. In particular, the Oceans Act calls on the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans to lead and facilitate the development of a national strategy to guide the management of Canada’s estuarine, coastal and marine ecosystems. The Oceans Act also reflects awareness that aboriginal rights may affect the development or implementation of policy surrounding oceans management. For example, s. 2(1) of the Act states that “. . . nothing in this Act shall be construed so as to abrogate or …

Problematic Principles: The Cma On Public/Private Health Care, Jocelyn Downie, Nuala Kenny, Chantelle Rajotte

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

In June 2006, the Canadian Medical Association [CMA] published a discussion paper, "It's about access! Informing the debate on public and private health care," to evaluate how best to manage the public and private health care sectors in order to improve access to high-quality health care. The report comes at a critical time for the health care system in Canada, with the talk of renewal and reform at the forefront of public discussion. In their report, the CMA "identified 10 first-order policy principles that should guide any policy and decision-making related to the public-private interface." The CMA's use of these …

Aquaculture Law And Policy In Canada And The Duty To Consult With Aboriginal Peoples, Richard Devlin, Ronalda Murphy

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

In November 2003, a Mi’kmaq elder from the community of Eskasoni launched a court action seeking to stop seismic testing in the waters off Cape Breton. He claimed that the government of Nova Scotia had failed to consult with his First Nation before issuing an approval to allow the testing by Corridor Resources, as part of its oil and gas exploration program.1 Aboriginal communities throughout Canada assert they must be consulted before governments or corporations make decisions that could impair the constitutional rights of Aboriginal peoples. Invocation of the duty to consult as an independent source of legal entitlement is …

Climate Change And The Use Of The Dispute Settlement Regime Of The Law Of The Sea Convention, Meinhard Doelle

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

This article explores the connection between obligations to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions under the climate change regime and obligations to protect the marine environment under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Within the context of the state of the science on the links between climate change and the marine environment, the article considers whether the emission of greenhouse gases as a result of human activity constitutes a violation of various obligations under the UNCLOS. Having identified a number of possible violations, the article proceeds to consider the application of the binding dispute settlement process …

Consumer Privacy And Radio Frequency Identification Technology, Teresa Scassa, Theodore Chiasson, Michael Deturbide, Anne Uteck

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

Radio Frequency ID tags are poised to replace the UPC barcode as a mechanism for inventory control in the wholesale and retail contexts. Yet the tiny chips offer a range of potential uses that go beyond the bar code. In this paper the authors define RFID technology and its applications. They explore the privacy implications of this technology and consider recent attempts in the U.S. and European Union to grapple with the privacy issues raised by the deployment of RFIDs at the retail level. The authors then consider the extent to which Canada's Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act …

A Principled Approach To Property Rights In Canadian Aquaculture, Phillip Saunders, Richard Finn

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The 1995 Federal Aquaculture Development Strategy summarized some of the difficulties facing aquaculture development in a federal state such as Canada, where the jurisdictional entitlements relevant to this “new” (or at least newly significant) industry are by no means clear:

Aquaculture is a formidable policy challenge. As a new industry, it straddles the line between fishing and farming, cuts across significant regional differences and is placed in a context involving the participation of municipal, provincial/territorial and federal governments.

Assessing Human Trafficking In Canada Flawed Strategies And The Rhetoric Of Human Rights, Constance Macintosh

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

This paper will present the argument that Canada’s rhetoric of protecting the human rights of trafficking victims is at odds with its practice. Trafficking victims are treated essentially the same as any other irregular migrant, and the specter of trafficking is invoked to justify acts which arguably violate Canada’s international human rights obligations. This paper will offer an overview of what little information is available regarding the extent of trafficking in Canada, and then will conduct a close examination of the Canadian approach to trafficking and its victims. In addition to considering the logic and consequences of the Canadian strategy …

The Taxation Of Aquaculture In Canada: A Comparison With The Taxation Of Agriculture And Its Policy Implications, Faye Woodman

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

In Canada, at both the federal and the provincial government levels, the tax rules applicable to agricultural producers under the Income Tax Act and other taxing statutes often apply with relatively few modifications to the aquaculture sector. The agriculture rules differ in significant aspects from those applied to other taxpayers. They also tend to be more generous. Thus, the aquaculture sector operates under regimes of taxation in Canada that may be characterized as preferential, but may also have been developed with the needs and circumstances of agriculture, not aquaculture, in mind. This chapter will examine the rationales underlying the various …