Labour & Employment

  • March 27, 2026

    Federal Budget Implementation Act receives royal assent

    Bill C-15, the Budget Implementation Act, 2025, No. 1, received royal assent on March 27. According to a government release, this “key piece of legislation will help the government deliver on its plan to build one united economy, empower Canadians to get ahead, and protect our country and sovereignty — today, and for generations to come.”

  • March 27, 2026

    Auditor General report on study permits highlights IRCC failures

    Policymakers should heed the alarm bells raised by Canada’s Auditor General in a new report on the International Student Program reforms. The 2026 Auditor General’s report, International Student Program Reforms, reveals that recent efforts to cap study permits curbed international student inflows but also triggered unintended consequences and exposed significant policy gaps. These findings underscore an urgent need for smarter policy design, better federal-provincial coordination and stronger program integrity measures to ensure that efforts to manage student immigration do not inadvertently undermine Canada’s broader immigration goals.

  • March 25, 2026

    Ottawa & provinces roll out disparate views on the ‘notwithstanding’ clause at Supreme Court

    Before the Supreme Court of Canada reserved its impending historic decision on March 26, the top court heard starkly different interpretations this week about the nature and operation of the Charter’s s. 33 “notwithstanding” clause.

  • March 26, 2026

    Ottawa introduces bill targeting foreign interference, deepfakes and long ballots

    The Liberal government has introduced legislation aimed at protecting federal elections from foreign interference, cracking down on “long ballot” protest tactics and curbing election-related misinformation, according to a March 26 release.

  • March 26, 2026

    Court allows appeal of conspiracy claim in class action against Pizza Nova

    The Ontario Superior Court of Justice Divisional Court has allowed Pizza Nova franchisees’ appeal on the certification of a conspiracy claim in a class action concerning delivery driver classification.

  • March 26, 2026

    Inbound referrals: Know when to say no

    Inbound referrals are a wonderful source of work and a compliment to your reputation. They should be honoured and dealt with professionally, without exception.

  • March 25, 2026

    Correctional program officers face workplace difficulties in federal correctional system: report

    The Union of Safety and Justice Employees (USJE) is calling for greater recognition and support for correctional program officers (CPOs) in light of its new research report on the challenges of working in Canada’s federal correctional system.

  • March 25, 2026

    Feds announce new EI Board of Appeal to begin work on April 1

    On March 25, the federal government announced that the new Employment Insurance Board of Appeal (EI BOA) will begin receiving and hearing appeals as of April 1, 2026.

  • March 25, 2026

    Court dismisses former immigration officer’s vexatious litigant appeal

    The Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed the appeal of a former immigration officer who had his licence revoked and was deemed a vexatious litigant.

  • March 25, 2026

    Words matter when writing legal AI prompts

    When writing AI prompts, lawyers shape perception and outcomes, so understanding the impact of words in AI prompts is crucial. Since language acts as a filter, the specific words and phrases used in a prompt influence the AI’s interpretation of legal concepts, potentially affecting recommendations or decisions. If terms are ambiguous or carry historical biases, the legal AI response can lead to unintended interpretations. Tailoring prompts to set the stage and include sufficient background information allows the legal AI to understand the user’s intent. With prompts that are clear and unambiguous, legal professionals can reduce the likelihood of misinterpretation in the legal AI output.

  • March 24, 2026

    SCC judges probe what Charter s. 33 ‘override’ may mean for survival of Charter judicial review

    The argument that a legislature’s use of the Charter’s s. 33 “override” clause can temporarily prevent judges from striking down a law but not from reviewing the law’s constitutionality or stating that the law infringes Charter rights and freedoms sparked a lively exchange between counsel and the bench as the Supreme Court of Canada kicked off its inquiry into the constitutionality of Quebec’s controversial “secularism” (Bill 21) law.

  • March 24, 2026

    Dalhousie U and King’s College to resurrect joint journalism-law program

    Two universities in Nova Scotia are re-launching a joint degree program combining law and journalism in a bid to create professionals able to “cut through the noise” of today’s world.

  • March 23, 2026

    McCarthy Tétrault, Western Law to launch AI-focused corporate practice course

    McCarthy Tétrault LLP and Western Law are co-developing a new upper-year course aimed at preparing law students for AI-driven changes in corporate practice, as firms grapple with how to preserve high-quality training while artificial intelligence takes over more routine legal tasks.

  • March 23, 2026

    Seismic Bill 21 case draws record counsel & intervener presence at this week’s four-day SCC hearing

    This week’s blockbuster Bill 21 appeal at the Supreme Court involves 140 counsel of record — with 64 of them slated to make oral argument over four days on behalf of the 10 main party groups and the record 51 interveners.

  • March 20, 2026

    Feds extend temporary EI measures to support workers impacted by tariffs

    The federal government is extending three temporary employment insurance (EI) measures in an effort to protect workers whose jobs have been impacted by U.S. tariffs.

  • March 20, 2026

    Regulatory review vs. on-field decisions: CAF appeal board rules Senegal forfeited 2025 AFCON final

    On Jan.18, 2026, Senegal seemingly triumphed over Morocco 1-0 in a tightly contested championship final of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). However, nearly two months to the day after the match was played, Morocco has now been crowned champions and Senegal deemed to have forfeited the match following a decision from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) appeal board.

  • March 19, 2026

    Five associates join Stikeman Elliott’s Montreal office

    Stikeman Elliott has added five associates to its Montreal office.

  • March 19, 2026

    New Brunswick introduces pay transparency law and expands illness leave benefits

    New Brunswick has introduced legislation that is set to increase pay transparency and require employers to provide up to 27 weeks of job-protected unpaid leave for workers recovering from illness or injury.

  • March 19, 2026

    Employees must use full process in lodging safety concerns before alleging reprisal: lawyer

    Those who accuse their employer of reprisal for raising safety concerns must exhaust all necessary steps in the process before lodging such a complaint, says a lawyer of a case involving a Nova Scotia teacher alleging her school punished her for complaining about the air quality in her classroom.  

  • March 18, 2026

    The mask of professionalism: Stress of maintaining the ‘good lawyer’ image

    In the first part of this two-part series (see link below), I wrote that in addition to actual legal work, most lawyers are also expected to act, speak and dress in certain ways. This added layer of effort can feel like a performance. It requires constantly monitoring yourself to maintain the image of a “good lawyer,” and it is exhausting. Here, I turn to what can be done to reduce the stress associated with all this extra labour.

  • March 17, 2026

    SCC heard more cases in 2025 but still fewer than pre-pandemic; number expected to rise in 2026

    The Supreme Court of Canada heard more appeals last year than in 2024 and delivered its reserved judgments more quickly, but its hearings and output in 2025 were not yet up to pre-pandemic levels, according to the top court, which states it “expects to hear even more cases in 2026.”

  • March 17, 2026

    N.W.T. releases feedback on changes to union rules for public sector workers

    The Northwest Territories has released feedback on possible legislative changes around how unionized public servants are represented.

  • March 17, 2026

    Immigration petitions: Premium processing vs. ‘regular’ adjudication

    These days, to get a timely adjudication on any U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) petition, filers need to be looking at the possibility of paying the extra US$2,965 to the U.S. government for expedited adjudication, under the agency’s “Premium Processing” option. This is because “regular” adjudication typically takes months — and in some cases, years — for most case types. This means your entire immigrant or nonimmigrant process, and accordant status, can be held up by lengthy adjudication times, limiting work options and/or the ability to travel in the meantime.

  • March 16, 2026

    FCA orders RCMP review body to decide delayed appeals within 6 months

    The Federal Court of Appeal has ordered the RCMP External Review Committee (ERC) to issue findings in long-delayed disciplinary appeals within six months, ruling that the Federal Court erred in denying mandamus relief after concluding the delay was not unreasonable.

  • March 16, 2026

    Court of Appeal for Ontario confirms stay where enforcement sought against non-party to arbitration

    In Sociedad Concesionaria Metropolitana de Salud S.A. v. Webuild S.p.A., 2026 ONCA 28, the Court of Appeal confirmed that enforcement proceedings in Ontario should be stayed based on forum non conveniens.

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