Articles 2020

Aujourdʼhui
Aujourdʼhui

Will the WSIB Grant Entitlement for a COVID-19 Vaccine?

  • 03 juillet 2021
  • Cassandra Ma, Canada Post Corporation

What happens when a worker receives a COVID-19 vaccine as a mandatory requirement of their employment and suffers a series and unexpected reaction? Cassandra Ma summarizes WSIB's new guidelines on the adjudication of COVID-19-related benefits.

Student Forum, Accidents de travail

Some Reflections on Some Recommendations

  • 11 février 2021
  • John Bartolomeo, lawyer and co-director, Workers' Health and Safety Legal Clinic

In this article, John Bartolomeo of the Workers' Health and Safety Legal Clinic shares his thoughts on two of 25 recent recommendations that resulted from an operational review of the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, which include various amendments to the current appeals system.

Student Forum, Accidents de travail

Soft Law and Adjudicative Independence: Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers v. Canada (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship), 2020 FCA 196

  • 11 février 2021
  • Michelle Alton and Rosemary Basa, WSIAT Tribunal Counsel Office

The following is a case summary of Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers v. Canada (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship), a Federal Court of Appeal decision considering whether the use of Jurisprudential Guides, a form of "soft law" authorized under the Immigrant and Refugee Protection Act, improperly interferes with adjudicative independence.

Student Forum, Accidents de travail

Understand the Impact of COVID-related Benefits on Loss of Earnings

  • 19 octobre 2020
  • Jennifer Chan, principal lawyer at JTC Litigation

The government's response to COVID-19 has been, thankfully, to create various benefits for suffering workers. The result, however, is potential overlap of compensation schemes that leave employees confused and in danger of "double dipping." This article discusses one area of overlap: receipt of COVID-19 benefits and Loss of Earnings (LOE) benefits for injured workers.

Student Forum, Accidents de travail
Cassandra Ma

WSIB and Working from Home: When Is a Home-Based Accident Considered to Arise in the Course of Employment?

  • 06 juillet 2020
  • Cassandra Ma

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, more Ontarians are working from home than ever before. What does this mean, however, from the perspective of workers’ compensation benefits? What obligations arise for workplace parties if a worker becomes injured while working from home? This article provides a detailed discussion about how and when work-from-home injuries may fall within the employment nexus and, by extension, be deemed compensable.

Student Forum, Accidents de travail

Understanding the WSIAT’s Unique Privacy Obligations: Toronto Star v. AG Ontario, 2018 ONSC 2586

  • 06 juillet 2020
  • Michelle Alton, WSIAT General Counsel

In Toronto Star v. AG Ontario, 2018 ONSC 2586, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice held that it was contrary to the Charter to apply the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act to adjudicative documents of administrative tribunals. This article reviews the Superior Court's decision, the subsequent enactment of the Tribunal Adjudicative Records Act, and privacy obligations specific to the WSIAT.

Student Forum, Accidents de travail

Vavilov in the WSIAT Context

  • 06 juillet 2020
  • Michelle Alton, WSIAT General Counsel, and Ana Rodriguez Garcia, WSIAT Tribunal Counsel Office Lawyer

In 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada overhauled the established framework for determining the appropriate standard of judicial review. A reasonableness standard is now the presumptive standard. This article discusses both the new standard of review framework and the recent decision in Radzevicius v. Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal, wherein the new framework was applied to a WSIAT decision for the first time.

Student Forum, Accidents de travail
Jennifer Chan

The Case for Ongoing Loss of Earnings After Termination: A Summary of WSIAT Decision No. 233/20

  • 26 juin 2020
  • Jennifer Chan

What happens when a worker has been dismissed for cause after they return to work following a compensable workplace accident? In Decision No. 233/20, the WSIAT adopts a contextual approach to addressing this issue and adjudicating post-termination entitlement to loss of earnings (LOE) benefits. In turn, the decision signals at further issue overlap between the jurisdictions of workers’ compensation agencies and the civil courts.

Student Forum, Accidents de travail