Soma Ray-Ellis

The plaintiff, a senior executive at RBC, was dismissed following an investigation into his financial dealings with a subordinate.

He sued for wrongful dismissal, claiming entitlement to 24 months' reasonable notice under Ontario common law.

RBC argued the employment contract was governed by UK law, which limited notice to 12 weeks, and alternatively pleaded after-acquired cause based on the plaintiff's dishonesty during the investigation.

The court held that UK law governed the contract and the plaintiff had received his contractual notice.

Furthermore, the court found that RBC had established after-acquired cause because the plaintiff deliberately withheld material information about his real estate investments with the subordinate during the investigation.

The plaintiff's claim was dismissed, save for unpaid vested compensation, and RBC's counterclaim for mistaken tax overpayments was allowed.

The defendant brought a motion seeking an order to permit a former employee, Ms. Cheryl Downing, to provide evidence by video conference from Texas during the trial.

The plaintiff opposed the motion, arguing that the defendant failed to provide direct evidence of the witness's unwillingness or unavailability to testify in person, and that the general principle of oral evidence in open court should be upheld.

The court dismissed the motion, finding the affidavit evidence, which relied on double hearsay regarding the witness's refusal to attend in person, to be non-compliant with Rule 39.01(4) of the Rules of Civil Procedure.

The court emphasized the importance of direct evidence for critical witnesses and the general principle of oral testimony in open court, as outlined in Rule 1.08.