The Lawyers Weekly - March 4, 2011

Employees
should log in
to secure site

Electronic
Continued From Page 9

private password, and employers should also maintain records of all interactions.

Employees could receive a notification email summarizing activity under their ID and providing an opportunity to correct errors or identify fraudulent access. Electronic banking sites provide a good model.

When contracting under the ECA, employers should provide employees with an opportunity to review the agreement again after signing and to click again to confirm that agreement. Otherwise, the ECA provides a means for challenging the enforceability of the agreement.

If an agreement is lengthy and employees must scroll through multiple pages, the employer could require the employee to acknowledge that they have read each page by clicking on an icon before continuing through the document. However, in Rudder v. Microsoft Corp., [1999] O.J. No. 3778 (Ont. S.C.J.), the court held that a multiscreen electronic contract was not materially different from a multi-page written contract, so this precaution may be unnecessary.

As employment contracts do not fit comfortably within the realm of contracts of adhesion (an example of these being car rental agreements — typically standard form contracts in which one side has all the bargaining power and the terms are nonnegotiable), employers may also want to require (but should at least permit) employees to print out the entire agreement so that they have an opportunity to review it with their legal counsel before signing.

As with any innovation, contracting electronically with employees has advantages and disadvantages. As employers find new ways to harness available technology, the law must evolve to meet the new challenges that arise in a practical and flexible way. n

Now we have
an even

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constitution

Marlys Edwardh – The rights stuff

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Civil, Criminal, Constitutional, Labour, Administrative, Class Actions & More

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Publication: The Lawyers Weekly Size: 8” x 10” Colour: 4C

Ad Heading: Stronger constitution Ad Code: 4969-b Insertion Date: March 4, 2011 Material Due Date: February 17, 2011

Jeremy Schwartz and Jessica Young are associates at Stringer Brisbin Humphrey, Management Lawyers, in Toronto. They regularly advise and represent clients in all aspects of human resources management for public and private sector employers, including corporate policies and procedures, employment standards compliance, human rights, wrongful dismissals and severance arrangements, labour relations matters, privacy and occupational health and safety.

14|July2,2010 wwwlawyersweeklyca THELAWYERSWEEKLY

FOCUS

Real Property
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See Private Page 10
FOCUS
Civil Litigation
Alternative Dispute Resolution

While Iamgenerallya proponent of“in the alternative” arguments thisonestretchesthe limitsofsuchargumentsbeyond all recognizable borders How canone argue thatcausationis establishedonthe“butfor”test andalternativelythatcausation Causation: Pick your theory please!

Neutrality
of party-appointed

EVGENYBURGASOVDREAMS TMECOM

arbitrators:

See Causation Page 13 JASMINE AKBARALI

MYTH OR

New rules maintain arbitration’s edge RANDY PEPPER

Notacausationcaseinthe countrygetsadjudicatedwith-outreferencetoResurficeCorp vHanke[2007]1SCJNo7 Inthatseminaldecisionthe Supreme Court of Canada attemptedtoclarify when the “materialcontribution”testfor causationdisplacesthe“butfor” test

The dangers of hearing
matters in chambers
Can ‘public
hearings’ be
held in private?

“Weshouldembracethischancenotfearit”

CHRSTOPHERGULY

Hescertainlydoingtheformer
Amongthemanyskills
requiredofcourtroomlawyersis
theabilitytoperformwithouta
scriptCourtprocedurescanbe
unpredictableandwhen
unanticipatedeventsoccur
counselmustrollwiththe
punches
IvancicTheycontinuedtolivein
thehomeafterthesaleTen
yearslater—aftertheproperty
hadnearlytripledinvalue—they
demandedthereturnoftheir
propertyTheyclaimedtheywere
thetrueownersdespitethesale
NotsurprisinglyIvancicrefused
andthePalkowskisclaimsoon
followed
In order toapply the “material
contribution” test the court
found that two requirements
must bemet First itmustbe
impossible for the plaintiff to
provethatthedefendantsnegli-
gencecausedtheplaintiffsinjury
using the “butfor” test andthe
impossibilitymustbeduetofac-
torsthatare outsidetheplain-
tiffscontrol Second itmustbe
clearthatthedefendantbreached
adutyofcareowedtotheplain-
tifftherebyexposingtheplaintiff
toanunreasonableriskofinjury
andtheplaintiffmusthavesuf-
feredthatformofinjury
Afterthe release of Resurfice
observers complained that the
courts“clarification” ofthe tests
for causationgave risetomore
questions than ans wers Many
wonderedwhatthethresholdsset
outinthedecisionactuallymean
Howeverthereisatleastone
clearprincipleemanating from
thedecisionThe“materialcon-
tribution” testcannotbe used
unlessitis impossible toprove
causationonthe“butfor”test
Andyet since Resurfice was
releasedplaintiffscounselhave
beenarguing andtrialjudges
havebeenfinding thatcausa-
tion has been proven on the
basisofthe“butfor” testand in
the alternative finding that
causation is not possible to
proveonthe “butfor” testsuch
thatthe“materialcontribution”
testmayapply
AsthefederalCompetitionBureaubattleswith
theCanadianRealEstateAssociation(CREA)over
theMultipleListingService(MLS)lawyershave
anopportunitytoreturnasthe“truequarterback”
ofthesaleorpurchaseofaresidentialproperty
accordingtoOntariolawyerMikeForcier
“Lawyerscouldbenegotiatingthecontractand
findingoutwhattheclientwantsfromthevery
beginningAndwiththeInternettheresalreadya
hugewealthofinformationoutthereonhomesfor
saleButpeopleneedsomeonetodecipherthe
details—andwhobettertodothatthanalawyer
whohasthespecializedknowledgetodealwith
closingsandnegotiations”saysForciera53-year-
oldsolegeneralpractitionerinOwenSoundOnt
whofocusesmainlyonrealestateandfamilylaw
SevenyearsagohehelpedlaunchPropertyshop
caanonlineserviceinwhichresidentialproperty
ownersselltheirownrealestatewhilerelyingona
lawyertoprovidethelegalworkandadvice
Backedbysevenlawyerssomeofwhomnine
yearsagoformedacompanycalledLawyersWeb
PropertyShopLtdthatnowrunsthewebsite
Propertyshopcacurrentlyhas64Ontariosoloand
small-firmlawyers—includingveteranrealestate
practitionerandLawSocietyofUpperCanada
bencherBobAaron—whochargeonaverage
betweenoneandone-and-a-halfpercentofthe
propertysalepricetoprovideadviceonsuchmat-
tersasconditionsforsaleandpurchasezoning
legaltitleandtitleinsurancenegotiatingthe

REALITY?

DREAMSTMECOM

Lawyers benefit from battle over multiple listing service

OntariosnewRulesofCivil Procedureweredesignedto maketheciviljusticesystem moreaccessibleandaffordable Otherprovinceshaveamended theirruleswiththesameobject-ivesButdothesenewrules encouragepartiestolitigateor arbitratecommercialdisputes? Toanswerthisquestionwe mustconsiderwhetherthenew ruleseliminateorlessenthe potentialadvantagesofarbitra-tionoverconventionallitigation

Prvacy

Intimate relations in nursing homes Facilities must find balance between protection and independence

DREAMSTMECOM

DONALEEMOULTON

Online services lets lawyers act as ‘quarterback’ for real estate transactions

Ivancicmovedtostrikethe
claimJusticeAlexandraHoy
whoheardthemotionstruckthe
claimwithoutleavetoamend
butbeforetheorderwasfinal-
izedthePalkowskissoughtleave
tomakeadditionalclaims—for
thefirsttime—forupgradesthey
hadmadetothepropertyafter
AgreementofPurchaseandSaleandconducting
legalsearchesrequiredforopinionontitleLaw-
yerspay$1000plusHST(asofJuly1)inOntario
tojointheonlineservice
Allarbitratorsonathreemember
tribunalincludingthoseappointed
byonesideowethesamedutyto
bothsidestoactwithimpartiality
andindependenceButisthisabso-
lutelytrueinreality?Andhowdoes
thisdutyplayoutinpractice?
Leadingcommercialarbitra-
tiontextsrefertothenotionthat
partyappointedarbitratorshavea
particulardutytothepartythat
appointedthemtoensurethatits
argumentsarefullyunderstood
andcandidatesforsuchan
appointmentmayacknowledge
thatdutytothepartyduringany
pre-appointmentinterviewpro-
cessNodoubtitisusefulforcan-
didatesforappointmenttohave
ThroughanagreementwithOttawarealestate
agentJoeWilliams—whomTheOttawaCitizen
recentlydubbedthecitys“mosthatedreltor”for
eschewingthestandardcommission—Property-
shopcaclientsonlypay$109plusHSTunlessthe
buyerhasanagentadthecommissionisnegoti-
atedtohavetheirhomslisedontheMLSThe
MLScontrolsabout90percentofresidentialreal-
estatetransactionsinCanadaTheonladditional
chargeis$380(plusHST)paidtoProperyshopca
whichincludesalistingonthewebsitephotosand
descriptionofthepropertyforsaleandtwosigns:a
largecustom-madeonforthelawn(withtheprice
listed)anda“tlking”onefeaturingathree-minute
pre-recordedinformationmessageontheproperty
whichprospectivepurchaserscanobtainbycallinga

WILLIAMG. HORTON

shouldbeequallyimportantto
thepartymakingtheappoint-
mentiswhethersuchanunder-
takingcanbeactedonbythe
appointeewithoutproducing
exactlytheoppositeofthe
intendedresultTheanswerto
bothquestionsis“no”
Thenewruleshavenoimpact
onprivacyakeyadvantageof
arbitrationovercourtproceed-
ingsLitigationisconductedin
apublicforumwhilearbitra-
tionsarenotIncommercial
mattersanyonecanattendin
courtandsearchthecourtfile
andjournalistsfrequentlydo
justthatWhilecourtsoccasion-
allysealacourtfileandrestrict
accesstohearingstheseprotec-
tionsarenotassuredandthe
publicinterestinanopencourt
systemusuallytrumpsthepar-
tiesprivacyinterests
SexisnotonlyfortheyoungForolder
individualslivinginnursinghomesand
otherlong-term-carefacilitiestheexpres-
sionofintimacyraisesimportantand
oftenuniqueissuesItmustbeappropri-
aterespectful—andlegal
GerontologyatSimonFrasertakethesitua-
tionofaresidentwhoiscognitivelyimpaired
andhavingsexwithherspousewholivesin
thecommunity“Thereisaquestionabout
theabilitytoconsent”
“Thereareconsentissues—andcul-
turalexpectations”shenotedstressing
that“ChildrencannotconsentItwillstill
beanassault”

Choceofarbtrator

“Theacuityofneedsofpeopleis
increasingAlotmorepeoplearenot
capable” she added “Staff needs to
addressthisinanappropriateway”
In the absence ofguidelines there is
often no uniform direction for staff and
only personal reactions noted Spencer
“There really is a strong need for guide-
lines Otherwise people are trying to
addresstheseonanadhocbasisandper-
sonalvaluesreallykickin”
InPalkowskivIvancic
[2009]OJNo4103counsel
appearingonaroutinepleadings
matterwereusheredoutofthe
courtroombycourtstafftomeet
withthemotionjudgeinasmall
anteroomadjacenttothecourt-
roomTherewerenostaffin
attendanceandofcourseno
membersofthepublicwere
presentWhenbothcounselwere
seatedawkwardlyontheoppos-
itesideofasmalldeskthejudge
begantodealwiththematter
Whatdoesalawyerdowhen
summonedawayfromacourt-
roomforaprivatehearing?

WILL O’HARA

“ Thingsarebecomingalotmorecom-plexServicesarebeingprovidedtomore peoplewithcognitiveimpairmentand increasingphysicalneedsWeneedtobe carefulabouttheassumptionswemake” saidCharmaineSpenceralawyerand researchassociatewiththeGerontology ResearchCentreatSimonFraserUniver-sityinVancouver

1996

& ANNA HUSA

JusticeHoygrantedthePal-kowskisleavetoamendtheir claimtoincludecompensation fortheallegedupgradestothe propertyThePalkowskisappeal totheCourtofAppeal(regarding themattersthathadbeenstruck) wasdismissed

See MLS Page 16

someencouragementhowever
slighttoofferpartiesthatare
consideringappointingthemBut
isitconsistentwithatruedutyof
independenceandimpartialityfor
suchstatementstobemade?A
differentquestionbutonethat
Thechairisthemostimportant
personinathree-membertribu-
nalTheprocessforappointingthe
chairwillalmostcertainlyensure
hisorherneutralityintheoryand
infactItisextremelyrareforthe
majorityinadividedarbitration
decisionnottoincludethechair
whoservesasthefulcrumofa
threemembertribunal
Manyofthoseassumptionsarerelatedto
competency“Fundamentallyforsomeone
toengageinintimatesexualrelationsthere
mustbeconsent”saidJudithWahlalawyer
andexecutivedirectoroftheAdvocacyCen-
trefortheElderlyinToronto

See Neutrality Page 13

JAMESENDCOTMAGESCOM

AgainarbitrationwinsJudges
haveavarietyofbackgroundsand
expertiseInthecourtsystemthe
partiescanbeassignedajudge
whoisunfamiliarwithspecific
commercialissuesPartiestoan
arbitrationagreementhowever
canchoosetheirownindepend-
entandimpartialarbitratorwith
commercial la w or industry-
specificexpertise
Notthatlongagotheissueofintimacy
amonglong-term-careresidentswasnot
anissueatall“Wereverygoodatmeeting
thephysicalneedsspiritualandrecrea-
tional[needs]Traditionallywehavent
beengoodatrespondingto[residents]
sexualneeds”saidJohnOKeefeasenior
socialworkeratNorthwoodcareIncin
Halifaxwhichprovidesarangeofliving
accommodationsforseniorsandothers
“Atonetime”headded“wetriedto
keeppeopleapartNowwehaveevolvedto
thepointwherewetrytosupportconsent-
ingadults”

GOLD STANDARD ADR:

Muchofthecourtsbusinessis
conductedbyjudgesintheir
chambersandinretiringrooms
andanteroomsbuttheopen
courtprincipleisafundamental
canonofourlegalsystemBoth
counselwerefacedwiththepros-
pectofobjectingtotheclosed-
doorhearing
ThePalkowskisthenserveda
proposedamendedstatementof
claiminwhichthey
claimed—forthefirst
time—remediesundertheCon-
veyancingandLawofProperty

Chartered Arbitrators & Mediators

See Rules Page 12 Find a Professional www.adrcanada.ca

“Ifapersonhassomedegreeofdemen-
tia”shenoted“itdoesnotmeantheyarenot
competentornotcompetentallthetime”
OKeefe developedsuchguidelinesfor
Northwood a decade ago They include
guidanceondistinguishingbetweenappro-
priateandinappropriatesexualandintim-
ate behaviour; on dealing withresidents
whoarecognitivelyaware—andthosewho
are not;andon inappropriate intimate
behaviourdirectedtowardstaffthemselves
Dutyofcareisacriticallegalissue said
Wahlpastchairofthe CBANational Elder
La w Section“Thehomehasaresponsibility
Thesearepeopleshomes Theseareadults
There has been a prolifera-
tionoftaxsheltersinvolving
charitabledonationsinrecent
years Althoughthedetailshave
alwaysvariedamong shelters
andhavechangedovertimeas
thecourtsand Parliamenthave
decidedagainstvariousshelter
structuresonecommonfeature
intheshelterhasbeentaxpayers
whosomehowobtainacharit-
abledonationtaxcredit worth
morethanthehardcashpaidby
thedonorinrelationto whatever
wasdonatedtothecharityas
partoftheshelter Theshelter
structuresalsotypicallyrequired
the charity to pay significant
“fundraisingfees”tothepromot-
ersofthetaxshelter
In Innovative Gifting Inc v
Houseofthe Good Shepherd
[2010]OJNo 2210Justice Rob-
ertsoftheOntarioSuperiorCourt
ofJusticedecidedthatpromoters
ofoneparticularcharitabledona-
tiontaxsheltershouldnotonlybe
prevented from collecting their
outstanding fundraising fees but
shouldalsoberequiredto return
anyfeesalreadypaid
Innovative Gifting Inc (IGI)
hadapproachedanumberofsmall
Canadiancharitieswithanofferof
giftsofsharesandcash IGI
claimedthattheshareshadbeen
o wnedbya Swissphilanthropist
whowantedtogivethesharesto
individualsin Canada who were
willingtodonatethesesharesand
somecashto Canadiancharities
andreceiveacharitable donation
receiptequaltothesumofthecash
andthethentrading valueofthe
sharesTherecipientcharitywould
thenberequiredtopayafundrais-
ingfeeequaltoasmuchas18per
centofthetotaldonatedamount
(or90percentofthecashdonated
amountifnoshareswerereceived)
IGIdidraiseinexcessof$1mil-
lionincash whichitprovidedto
thecharitiesalong withsharesina
publiccompany withasignificant
apparentvalue Thecharitiesthen
paidtheirfundraisingfeesofover
$11million Thevariouscharities
involvedeventuallybecamesuspi-
ciousofIGIandstoppedreceiving
Tax shelter
promoter faces
civil liability

ThecasearoseoutofthePal-kowskisclaimofabeneficial titletoahometheyhadowned until1996whentheysolditto

ADR Institute of Canada

See Intimacy Page 17 FOCUS

Wills, Estates, Charities & Trusts

Consentiscompoundedbyquestionsof
competencyandacceptedpatternsofbehav-
iourForexamplenotedSpencerwhoisalso
anadjunctprofessorintheDepartmentof
Oneindicationofthatsupportisthe
developmentofguidelinesaroundthe
expressionofintimacySuchguidelines
saidWahlareimportant“Long-term-
carehomesarepeopleshomesItshould
beanormalizedenvironment