The defendant brought a motion to stay a wrongful dismissal action on the basis that Ontario was a forum non conveniens and that the dispute should instead be litigated in New York State.
The court accepted that Ontario had jurisdiction simpliciter because the defendant corporation maintained its registered head office in Ontario.
Applying the forum non conveniens analysis from leading authorities, the court held that the moving party had not established that New York was clearly the more appropriate forum.
Factors such as the Ontario employment contract, the defendant’s presence-based jurisdiction in Ontario, and the loss of legitimate juridical advantages in a U.S. at‑will employment regime supported maintaining the action in Ontario.
The motion to stay the proceeding was therefore dismissed.
