Zachary Parrott

The plaintiff, Ian McPherson, was hired as CEO and Ultimate Designated Person (UDP) of Global Growth Assets Inc. and Global RESP Corporation in August 2018.

His primary task was to bring the companies into compliance with Ontario Securities Commission orders following years of regulatory violations.

In January 2019, the board removed Ms. Hanane Bouji (chair and executive) from Mr. McPherson's supervision, reporting directly to the board instead.

Mr. McPherson repeatedly raised concerns that this decision interfered with his UDP obligations under Ontario securities law and violated the Commission's prior orders restricting Mr. Bouji's (the shareholder and Ms. Bouji's father) involvement in the company.

On February 28, 2019, the board terminated Mr. McPherson's employment without cause.

The court found that Global breached Part XXI.2 of the Ontario Securities Act by terminating Mr. McPherson's employment as a reprisal for his protected activity in expressing concerns about violations of Ontario securities law.

The court awarded Mr. McPherson $5,379,808.22 (two times his remuneration from termination to judgment date) plus prejudgment and postjudgment interest.

The plaintiffs brought a motion for default judgment against the defendant Alain Checroune arising from a failed share purchase agreement for an office building.

The defendant failed to comply with prior court orders and did not participate in the proceedings.

The court granted default judgment and awarded damages for breach of contract, return of deposit, and compensation under the Business Corporations Act for oppressive conduct.

The defendant's actions included harassment of tenants, interference with the transaction, and deliberate obstruction of the plaintiffs' interests.

The Supreme Court of Canada dismissed the appeal and held Ontario courts lack jurisdiction over the claims against the Italian defendants.

The majority accepted the Ontario cardmember agreement as a presumptive connecting contract but found the presumption rebutted because the real and substantial connection to Ontario was weak given the tort occurred in Italy and the foreign defendants’ relationship to Ontario was remote.

The dissent would have restored the motion judge’s ruling and allowed Ontario jurisdiction.

The plaintiff in a proposed class action brought a motion to compel answers to questions refused by various defendants during cross-examinations on affidavits filed for a certification motion.

The Solart defendants brought a cross-motion to compel the plaintiff to answer questions he refused during his cross-examination.

The court dismissed the plaintiff's motion, finding the questions posed to the defendants were irrelevant, unanswerable, or sought legal opinions.

The court granted the defendants' cross-motion, ordering the plaintiff to re-attend and answer questions related to the common issues, as they were relevant to testing the certification requirements.

The appellant, a subtenant operating an unlicensed cannabis store, appealed the dismissal of his claim regarding improper sublease termination and denial of relief from forfeiture.

The head landlord had issued a notice of breach and later repossessed the premises after a police raid, relying on the original notice.

The application judge found that the landlord had not waived the breach because they were misled by the subtenant regarding a valid licensing exemption.

The Court of Appeal upheld this finding, affirming that a waiver requires full knowledge of rights, which was absent due to the misleading information.

The Court also upheld the denial of relief from forfeiture, considering the seriousness of the breach and the subtenant's conduct.

The appeal was dismissed, and costs were awarded to the respondents.