April 18, 2023
Tax

Employee Ownership Trusts – A New Business Succession Alternative

A majority of small business owners plan to exit their business over the next decade. [1] For many business owners there may not be a family successor ready and willing to take on the business. To address this impending “succession crisis”, the 2023 Federal Budget, released by the Department of Finance on March 28, 2023, […]

This Month in Family Law – December 2021

Our NS Family Law team provides summaries of recent cases which have appeared in the Nova Scotia Supreme Court and the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal.

Damages Arising From Future Loss of Income Determined on Gross,...

MacDonald v MacVicar, 2018 NSSC 272 provides judicial guidance on s. 113BA(1) of the Insurance Act, RSNS 1989, c 231 (“Act”), holding that future loss of income damages for plaintiffs injured in motor vehicle accidents should be calculated on a gross, rather than net basis. Background In MacDonald v MacVicar, 2018 NSSC 271, the court […]

April 9, 2019

New Brunswick Court of Appeal Rejects Loss of Inheritance Claim...

Written by David G. O’Brien, KC. The recent decision of the New Brunswick Court of Appeal in Higgins v. Arseneau, 2019 NBCA 21, will be of interest for anyone involved with fatality claims in New Brunswick. The Court upheld the trial decision dismissing a claim brought on behalf of siblings for loss of inheritance arising […]

March 15, 2019

To Order an Advance Payment to a PEI Motor Vehicle...

In Fraser v. Runighan 2018 PESC 261, Chief Justice T. L. Clements of the Supreme Court of Prince Edward Island considered, for the first time on PEI, a motor vehicle accident plaintiff’s motion2 for an advance payment under Rules 20.10 – 20.12 (now Rule 22.1) of PEI’s Rules of Civil Procedure. Background Pursuant to Rule […]

Rule 22 Motions: No Discovery? No Problem!

In Linda Trevors v. Anne Doucet, Lea Allard, Enterprise Rent-A-Car Canada Company, and Co-operators General Insurance,1  (hereinafter “Trevors v. Doucet”) the moving party applied for summary judgment early in the proceeding.  Discovery had not yet occurred.  The applicants were successful on the motion despite allegations it was premature. Background On May 16, 2015, a head […]

The Importance of Plaintiff Credibility in Determining Causation

A recent Nova Scotia Supreme Court case, Gale v Purcell, 2018 NSSC 319, demonstrates how the credibility of a plaintiff can play a central role in assessing causation in a motor vehicle accident. Background On September 19, 2006, the Plaintiff, Angela Marie Gale (“Gale”) sustained injuries in a motor vehicle accident (“2006 MVA”). On March […]

Revised Labour Standards for Federal Employers

On December 13, 2018, the federal government gave royal assent to a bill that promised substantial changes to the employment standards for federal employers. The changes themselves have not yet been implemented, however, this is expected in 2019 and will be subject to staggered implementation dates. Overview of Key Changes There are a number of […]

Deducting Collateral Benefits From Loss of Income Claims

On Tuesday, November 20, a panel of Cox & Palmer insurance lawyers from across the region presented our Advance 2018 Insurance Law Webinar, which covered the latest on the Common law and Legislative law approaches to deductibility related to loss of income claims. As part of the webinar materials, we prepared a paper and a handout, which we have linked below for your reference. We have also provided a link to the full webinar, which you can view and listen to at your convenience.

Recent Changes Affect Parental and Maternity Leave in Atlantic Canada

In December 2017, the federal government introduced major changes to maternal and parental employment insurance (EI) benefits.