Several recent decisions are of interest to those advising on, and litigating, employee competition cases. First, the Alberta privacy commissioner finds that employers, in some circumstances, may disclose their former employees’ restrictive covenants to third parties. Two Alberta Courts provide analysis on assessing damages in successful actions for unlawful competition.…
The B.C. Supreme Court has granted an interlocutory injunction restraining the vendor of a trucking company, Sonic Transport Ltd., from competing for a period of five years past the ending of his employment with the purchaser. Diamond Delivery bought Sonic from Leslie and Pam Calder in 2015. Leslie continued to…
WJ Packaging Solutions Corp. v Park, 2021 BCSC 316 The BC Supreme Court holds that a five-year agreement prohibiting competition by a departed employee is enforceable, with less scrutiny applied as being a commercial agreement. The decision raises interesting considerations for employers contemplating negotiating non-compete or non-solicit covenants with former employees…
City Wide Towing and Recovery Service Ltd v Poole, 2020 ABCA 305 The Alberta Court of Appeal holds that blue-pencil severance may be used to alter restrictive covenants that restrain employee competition, provided the covenant was part of the sale of a business. The practice of “blue-pencil” severance in employment…
The British Columbia Court of Appeal radically altered the law of consideration last year in Rosas v. Toca. The Court held that, absent duress, unconscionability or other public policy concerns, a mid-contract variation will be enforceable as long as the parties agree to the variation. Against Rosas stand judicial presumptions of an inequality…
Former Telus Executive Escapes Non-Compete due to “Overzealous Drafting”, but Rebuked for Pursuing Termination Payment while Negotiating New Employment with Competitor
Telus Communications Inc. v. Golberg, 2018 BCSC 1825 A battle between corporate titans Telus Communications and Rogers Media highlights the danger of “overzealous drafting” of restrictive covenants, which enabled a former Telus executive to compete against his former employer. At the same time, the Supreme Court of British Columbia rebukes…
961945 Alberta Ltd (Servicemaster of Edmonton Disaster Restoration) v Meyer, 2018 ABQB 564, 2018 ABQB 564 The Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench holds that even where the evidence did not support an imbalance of bargaining power, the more rigorous approach to interpreting restrictive covenants was warranted in respect of a…
Ceridian Dayforce Corporation v. Daniel Wright (2017 ONSC 6763),853947 B.C. Ltd. v. Source Office Furniture & Systems Ltd. (2016 BCSC 2233) A recent decision of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice refusing to enforce a non-competition clause highlights the many ways in which the drafter of a restrictive covenant can go too…
One of the most-used strategies to argue that a non-compete or non-solicit provision is unenforceable is to point to any possible ambiguity in the wording used. In the leading Canadian decision, the Supreme Court of Canada held in J.G. Collins Insurance Agencies Ltd. v. Elsley Estate, 1978 CanLII 7 (SCC), that in order…
The B.C. Court of Appeal’ decision last year in Rhebergen v. Creston Veterinary Clinic, 2014 BCCA 97, is both a win and a loss for employers seeking to restrain employees from competing with them post-employment. In both instances, the decision will have long-reaching effects over employer’s strategies to implement effective restraints and the…