Constance C. Olsheski

The appellants were dismissed without cause from their employment.

Their employment contracts contained termination clauses providing for notice periods less than the minimum required by the Employment Standards Act.

The Supreme Court of Canada held that because the contractual notice provisions violated the statutory minimums, they were null and void for all purposes.

Consequently, the contracts were treated as being silent on the issue of notice, and the common law presumption of reasonable notice applied.

The employer could not rely on the void clauses as evidence of the parties' intention to limit notice to the statutory minimum.

Counsel for the appellants failed to appear at the scheduled hearing of the appeal, and the Court proceeded to hear oral argument from the respondent only.

The appellants subsequently brought a motion for a re-hearing, claiming they were not notified of the hearing date.

The Supreme Court of Canada held that it is counsel's duty to ascertain inscribed hearing dates, not the Court's duty to inform them.

However, as a matter of indulgence and noting the unusual circumstances, the Court granted the re-hearing, ordering costs of the missed hearing and the motion to be paid personally by the appellants' counsel.