Fish farm company silences activist opponent with defamation order
The BC Court of Appeal has ordered well-known anti-fish farm activist Don Staniford to pay $75,000 in damages because the mock cigarette packages he had made criticizing Norwegian-owned fish farm companies lacked footnotes or other appropriate citations. The court also granted a permanent injunction muzzling Staniford’s attacks on the fish farms: Mainstream Canada v. Staniford, 2013 BCCA 341. According...
Continue reading the post titled Fish farm company silences activist opponent with defamation orderNeighbours must pay their fair share to prune boundary trees
A new case from the Ontario Superior Court has ruled that the costs associated with pruning and maintaining trees growing on property lines should be shared between owners of neighbouring properties, and municipalities must take this principle into account in issuing maintenance orders against homeowners.
Continue reading the post titled Neighbours must pay their fair share to prune boundary treesInstitute of Corporate Directors Webinar on No-fault Director's Liability
Many of you will be attending the Institute of Corporate Directors‘  very popular webinar this Thursday, on the Ministry of the Environment’s campaign to impose no-fault environmental liability on corporate officers and directors. I will be one of the presenters, together with Neil Baker of Baker v. Director, and Brian Rosenbaum of Aon. The ICD  will...
Continue reading the post titled Institute of Corporate Directors Webinar on No-fault Director's LiabilityCascades/ Superior paper mill cleanup: final settlement?
Going after individuals for cleanups of historic contamination continues to pay off for the Ontario Ministry of the Environment.
Continue reading the post titled Cascades/ Superior paper mill cleanup: final settlement?Kawartha Lakes appeal heard by Court of Appeal
The City of Kawartha Lakes has appealed to the Ontario Court of Appeal from a Ministry of the Environment Order, which imposed cleanup liability on the City for contamination it did not cause. The City argues that the MOE should have imposed those cleanup costs on the polluters, meaning either those who caused the spill, or...
Continue reading the post titled Kawartha Lakes appeal heard by Court of AppealImminent extinction of sage-grouse a red flag: oil wins in Canada, not environment
In ecology, an “indicator species” can act a red flag that environmental conditions are deteriorating. When the population of the indicator species declines, biologists who are monitoring the situation get a red flag that something is wrong. The pending extinction of the sage-grouse in Canada should act as a similar warning that our environmental laws, and...
Continue reading the post titled Imminent extinction of sage-grouse a red flag: oil wins in Canada, not environmentAbitibi wins, Newfoundland cleanup order unenforceable after insolvency
Provincial governments must do more to ensure that cleanup costs are provided by financial assurance during the active life of a business, and not rely on getting innocent third parties to pay for cleanups after the fact.
Continue reading the post titled Abitibi wins, Newfoundland cleanup order unenforceable after insolvencyFinancial Assurance after business closes
An MOE order for financial assurance can be enforced even after the business has closed and been evicted from its premises, and even without a full hearing by the Environmental Review Tribunal. The ERT had enough evidence to know that the cleanup would cost much more than the existing financial assurance, so dismissed the operators’...
Continue reading the post titled Financial Assurance after business closesNew Amendments to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 May Require Employers to Find Themselves Guilty of Violating the Act
The majority of employers in Ontario are required to abide by the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the “ESA”), legislation that includes standards for, among other things, the provision of a minimum wage, statutory holiday pay, overtime and limitations on hours of work. Where employees believe that their rights under the ESA have been violated, they...
Continue reading the post titled New Amendments to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 May Require Employers to Find Themselves Guilty of Violating the ActMOE Interrogations
Can Ministry of the Environment investigators force people to answer their questions?
Continue reading the post titled MOE InterrogationsReceive Blog Posts
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