Julia Lyse Burke

The appellant, Karen Irwin, sued her former employers for constructive dismissal.

The respondents moved to stay the action, arguing an arbitration clause in the employment contract required arbitration.

The appellant challenged the arbitration clause's validity due to unconscionability and inconsistency with the Employment Standards Act and Human Rights Code.

The motion judge stayed the action, deferring the validity question to arbitration.

The appellant appealed, arguing procedural unfairness and that the motion judge erred by not determining the arbitration clause's validity.

The Court of Appeal quashed the appeal, finding it lacked jurisdiction under s. 7(6) of the Arbitration Act, as the motion judge was permitted to leave the validity question to the arbitrator, especially since it involved mixed questions of fact and law requiring more than superficial consideration.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario reconsidered its prior decision in light of a Supreme Court of Canada remand order, which directed disposition in accordance with *Matthews v. Ocean Nutrition Canada Ltd.* The original appeal concerned whether a wrongfully dismissed employee was entitled to hold shares and receive share bonuses during the reasonable notice period, as determined by a motion judge.

The Court of Appeal had previously found against the employee.

Upon reconsideration, the court affirmed its earlier decision, holding that *Ocean Nutrition* applies to damages arising from a breach of an employment contract, whereas the employee's claim to shares and share bonuses arose from his rights as a shareholder under a Shareholders' Agreement, not as an employee.

An employee-owned engineering firm terminated a 31-year employee without cause and paid him for his shares based on the fair value 30 days after termination, as specified in the shareholders' agreement.

The employee sought damages for wrongful dismissal and claimed he was entitled to share value calculated at the end of the reasonable notice period (26 months) plus share bonuses accrued during that period.

The motion judge granted partial summary judgment in the employee's favour, relying on the principle that a wrongfully dismissed employee should be placed in the position they would have been in if lawfully terminated.

The appellate court reversed, holding that the employee's contractual rights under the shareholders' agreement are separate and distinct from his common law employment rights, and that the shareholders' agreement clearly triggered the share repurchase process upon termination of employment, not at the end of the notice period.

Mr. Ivars Mikelsteins, a 57-year-old employee with 31 years of service, was terminated without cause from Morrison Hershfield Ltd. He brought a summary judgment motion for wrongful dismissal damages, including reasonable notice, benefits, share valuation increases, share bonuses, and a gross-up on share value.

The court determined a reasonable notice period of 26 months, awarded damages for base salary, bonus, and RRSP contributions, and 10% of base salary for lost benefits for the remaining notice period.

The court also found Mikelsteins entitled to damages for the increase in share value, share bonuses, and a gross-up, rejecting the employer's argument that the Shareholders' Agreement ousted common law entitlements.

The court adopted a partial summary judgment approach for mitigation, requiring monthly payments and allowing the employer to challenge mitigation efforts later.

The accused, a former Catholic priest, was sentenced following guilty pleas to two counts of sexual assault (section 266 of the Criminal Code).

The offences occurred approximately 20 years prior and involved inappropriate sexual touching of two female parishioners.

The accused had fled to India in 1996 and remained there for 17 years before surrendering to authorities in March 2013 after his passport was suspended due to an outstanding warrant.

The court accepted a joint submission from the Crown and defence and imposed a suspended sentence with three years of probation concurrent on both counts, along with conditions including written apologies to the victims and reporting requirements.