Week 2 Chapter 1 Pages 8-21 Intro to Business Law

Pg.8-21
Federal
Canadian Radio-Television and Regulates broadcasting and telecommunications
Telecommunications Commissions systems
National Energy Board Regulates pipelines, energy development, and
trade in the energy industry
Canadian International Trade Tribunal Investigates possible violations of international
trade regulations
Competition Tribunal Resolves disputes under the Competition Act

Provincial or Territorial
Workers’ Compensation Board Promotes workplace safety and rehabilitates and
compensates injured workers

Labour Relations Board Assists in resolution of labour disputes

Environmental Appeal Board Assists in the resolution of environmental
disputes
Professional Society (eg. Law Society of Alberta) Regulates and licenses the practice of a particular
profession
Municipal
Zoning and Planning Board Regulates the use of land

Building and Inspections Department Regulates and licenses building projects

License Division Regulates and licenses business operations

White-collar Crimes: As the name suggests, white-collar crimes are committed by people in suits. A
manager who steals money from the petty-cash drawer is a white-collar criminal
Corporate Crime: A crime can even be committed by a company itself. A corporate crime occurs, for
instance, when a used-car dealership adopts a policy of rolling back the odometers on its vehicles. That
company is guilty of fraud.

Tax law: Concerned with the rules that are used to collect money for public spending.
Private law: Concerned with the rules that apply in private matters. Both parties in a private dispute are
usually private persons, either individuals or organizations such as corporations. For instance, your
theatre company might sure me if I failed to perform a play as promised. Private law can apply to the
government. Private law is usually divided into three main parts:
 The law of torts: which is a private wrong, an offence against a particular person. The law of
torts covers a great deal of territory. We can split the categories into three: international torts,
such as assault and false imprisonment; business torts, such as deceits and conspiracy; and
negligence, which covers most situations in which one person carelessly hurts another.
 The law of contracts: concerned with the creation and enforcement of agreements. For business
people, this is a tremendously important area of law. Business is based on transactions, and the
Week 2 Chapter 1 Pages 8-21 Intro to Business Law

law of contracts governs virtually every one of them. Contracts are involved in sale of goods,
such as cows and computers; the use of negotiable instruments, such as cheques; real estate
transactions, such as the purchase of land; the operation of corporations; and the employment
relationship that exists between a business and its workers.
 The law of property: concerned with the acquisition, use, and disposition of property. We can
divide this into three main parts: real property, which involved land and things that are attached
to land; personal property, which involves things that can be moved from one place to another,
and intellectual property, which involves things that consists of original ideas, such as patents
and copyrights
 The law of succession: deals with the distribution of a person’s property after death, and the law
of trusts deals with a situation in which one person holds property on behalf of another.
Sources of Law:

 The Constitution: most important source of law. This document creates the basic rules for
Canadian society, including its political and legal systems. It also has two significant
consequences:
1) Every other law in the country must be compatible with it. Section 52 of the Constitution
states, “The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law in Canada, and any law that is
inconsistent with the provisions of the Constitution is, to the extent of the inconsistency; of
no force or effect.
2) The Constitution is very difficult to change. It is one thing to tinker with, say, the rules that
govern the enforcement of contracts. It is a far more serious matter to alter the
fundamental rules of Canadian society. Most laws can be changed by a legislature or a court.
The Constitution is different; as a general rule, it can be change only through a special
amending formula. This requires the consent of parliament plus the legislatures of at least
two-thirds of the provinces, where those consenting provinces represent at least 50 percent
of the country’s population.
Division of Powers

 Federal: The Parliament of Canada, which is located in Ottawa, governs the country as a whole.
It is composed of two parts:
1) The House of Commons: consists of members of Parliament (MPs), who are elected from
every province and territory.
2) The Senate: consists of senators, who are appointed
In reality, the country is run by the political party that has the most MPs. The leader of that
party is the prime minister.
 Provincial and Territorial: In addition to electing MPs to represent them nationally I Ottawa,
Canadians also elect politicians to represent them within their own province and territories. The
elected body, or legislature, is usually called the Legislative Assembly. And for the most part,
each of the 13 legislatures is similar to Parliament. Once again, even though the official head of
state is the Queen, power really is held by the party with the most elected members, whose
leader is the premier.
Federal Provincial
Criminal Law Property and Civil rights (eg. Contracts, torts)
Week 2 Chapter 1 Pages 8-21 Intro to Business Law

Any mode or system of taxation Direct taxation within the province to raise
revenue for provincial purposes
Employment insurance Creation of municipalities
Banks Matters of a local or private nature within a
province
Bankruptcy and Insolvency
Money
Negotiable instruments (cheques)
International and Interprovincial trade and
commerce
Navigation and shipping
Copyright
Any matter that is not exclusively given to the
provinces
Ultra Vires: beyond the power
Direct tax: The cost of a direct tax is expected to fall on the taxpayer. Example Income tax
Indirect tax: The cost of an indirect tax is expected to be passed on from the taxpayer to someone else,
such as the taxpayer’s customers. Example Sales tax
The distinction between direct taxes and indirect taxes has important consequences:
1) From the perspective of a provincial government, the prohibition on indirect taxation makes it
difficult to raise enough revenue to pay for all its needs.
2) While the test of an indirect tax is easy to state it often is difficult to apply. As a result mistakes
are made. A province may believe that it enacted a valid demand only to have a court later
decide that it created an indirect tax
Doctrine of federal paramountcy: determines which law applies based on the Constitution’s division of
power. The federal law wins.
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Topic Section(s) Illustration or Example
Guarantee 1 Guarantees the rights and
freedoms… subject only to such
reasonable limits prescribed by
law as can be demonstrably
justified in a free and
democratic society
Fundamental freedoms 2 Freedom of religion, expression,
peaceful assembly, and
association
Democratic rights 3-5 Right to vote in House of
Commons and Legislative
Assembly elections
Mobility rights 6 Right to leave and enter
Canada; right to live and work in
any province
Legal rights 7-14 Right to life, liberty and security
of the person; right to be secure
against unreasonable search or
Week 2 Chapter 1 Pages 8-21 Intro to Business Law

seizure
Equality rights 15 Right to be free from
discrimination
Official languages 16-22 English and French are the
official languages of Canada
Minority language education 23 Limited righto have children
educated in either official
language
Enforcement 24 A court may respond to a
Charter violation with any
“remedy it considers
appropriate and just in the
circumstances
General 25-31 The Charter shall be interpreted
for the “preservation and
enhancement of the
multicultural heritage of
Canadians”
Application 32-33 The Charter applies to federal
and provincial governments
Fundamental Freedoms
(2) Everyone has the following fundamental freedoms:
 Freedom of conscience and religion
 Freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other
media of communication
 Freedom of peaceful assembly
 Freedom of association
Mobility Rights
(6)
1. Every citizen of Canada has the right to enter, remain in and leave Canada.
2. Every citizen of Canada and every person who has the status of a permanent resident of Canada has
the right
 To move to and take up residence in any province
 To pursue the gaining of a livelihood in any province
Equality Rights
(15)
1. Every individual is equal before and under the law and has the right to the equal protection and
equal benefit of the law without discrimination and, in particular, without discrimination based on
race, national or ethnic origins, color, religion, sex, age or mental or physical disability.
2. Subsection (1) does not preclude any law, program or activity that has as its object the amelioration
of conditions of disadvantaged individuals or groups including those that are disadvantaged because
of race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, sex, age, or mental or physical disability.
Examples:
Week 2 Chapter 1 Pages 8-21 Intro to Business Law

 Freedom of Religion: To protect Christian beliefs, Parliament created a law that required most
stores to close on Sunday. The law was declared invalid because it discriminated against non-
Christians. It violated their freedom of religion under section 2(a).
 Mobility Rights: Alberta created a law that prohibited law firms in that province from creating
partnerships with law firms in other provinces. That law was declared invalid because it
prevented lawyers from working in different parts of the country. It violated their mobility rights
under section 6(2).
 Equality Rights: British Columbia passed a law that prevented people who were not Canadian
citizens from practicing law in that province. That law was declared invalid because it
discriminated against people on the basis of their national origin. It violated their right to
equality under section 15(1).
Property rights: are rights to own and enjoy assets
Economic rights: are rights to carry on business activities
 Government action: the Charter was introduced to govern the relationship between the
individual and the state. Section 31(1) states that the document applies to “Parliament” and the
legislature… of each province.” Consequently, the Charter’s rights and freedoms have full effect
only if a person is complaining about the government’s behavior. The Charter does not directly
apply to disputes involving private parties
 Corporations: The Charter generally does not apply against private corporations. It may not
apply in favor of them either, depending on the circumstances. A corporation, for example,
enjoys freedom of expression under section 2(b), but not equality rights under section 15.
Section 2(b) extends to “everyone”, whereas section 15 applies only to “every individual”
 Reasonable Limits: Section 1 of the Charter states that its rights and freedoms are subject to
“such reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and
democratic society.” The Constitution therefore recognizes that it is occasionally acceptable to
violate a person’s rights.
 Notwithstanding Clause: Section 33 may allow Parliament or a legislature to create and enforce
a law “notwithstanding “the fact that it violates the Charter. That is, of course, a serious matter,
which requires the government to expressly declare that it is overriding fundamental rights and
freedoms

Charter Remedies
Declaration: A court may simply declare that the Charter has been violated. The legislature must the
find some solution to the problem.
Injunction: A court may take a more active role. It may impose an injunction that requires the
government to address the problem in a certain way. The choice therefore lies with the judge, rather
than the legislature.
Striking Down: A court may strike down or eliminate a statue that violates the Charter. That decision
may take effect immediately or it may be temporarily suspended. A temporary suspension is
appropriate where the immediate elimination of a statute would create substantial problems.
Severance, Reading Down, and Reading In: A court may save a statue by re-writing party of it. If only
one part of a statute is offensive, it may be severed or cut out. If a statue is written too broadly, it may
be read down so that it applies only where it can be justified. In contrast, if a statue is written too
Week 2 Chapter 1 Pages 8-21 Intro to Business Law

narrowly, the court may read in a broader interpretation, so that certain people are not excluded from
its benefits.
Damage: A plaintiff who wins a private lawsuit usually receives damages for the injuries or losses that
have been suffered. The same remedy may be awarded to a person who has suffered a Charter
violation. Charter damages are intended to compensate the plaintiff’s loss, vindicate the plaintiff’s
rights, and deter or discourage future wrongdoing.