The appellant alleged workplace and sexual harassment, obtained workers’ compensation benefits for an employment injury under Quebec’s no-fault compensation regime, and also sought compensatory and exemplary damages under the Quebec Charter.
The majority held that the remedy in s. 49 of the Charter is a civil liability remedy, including the exemplary damages component, and that s. 438 of the Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases bars such actions against the employer once the same events have been compensated as an employment injury.
The Court emphasized that the statutory compensation scheme is a final compromise replacing fault-based civil recourse with fixed-sum benefits and employer immunity.
The appeal and the respondents’ cross-appeal were dismissed, with La Forest and L'Heureux‑Dubé JJ. dissenting in part on the availability of exemplary damages and arbitral forum.
