August 2020

One of the most salient considerations in actions for wrongful dismissal is whether the plaintiff claims extraordinary damages against his or her former employer. In a wrongful dismissal claim, “ordinary damages” are typically defined as the amount of pay in lieu of reasonable notice that an employee was presumptively owed at common law, but for which the employer never paid them upon termination. These damages are almost always claimed in such matters as they essentially form the main “cause of action.” They arise from the contractual breach of the implied term of reasonable notice that employers are bound by at…

The oppression remedy is a valuable legal tool that allows for redress when corporate conduct is oppressive or unfairly prejudicial to, or unfairly disregards the interests of, shareholders, creditors, directors or officers of a corporation. At common law, courts are quite hesitant to intervene in a corporation’s affairs due to an often-cited rule called the ‘business judgment rule.’ The judiciary has humbly recognized that not only does it lack the material expertise with respect to running a corporation, but that businesses operate in incredibly complex systems. Therefore, a presumption is granted to business directors and executives that in making a…