Articles 2022

The following paper provides a high level overview of the Morningstar v. WSIAT Case Law Update program. Helpful information was provided by both worker side and employer side representatives including an overview of the law now and helpful tips for workplace parties who find themselves representing clients before the WSIAT on a Section 31 Application based on a constructive action decision that is based on mental stress caused by harassment or bullying.

Overview of the 2021 Ron Ellis Award for Excellence in Workers' Compensation Law Event on October 26, 2021 where Rosemarie McCutcheon, Chair of the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal, received the award.

Point-form summary of what was discussed at the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal's (WSIAT or Tribunal) Stakeholder event on January 27, 2022.

This article summarizes the divisional court's decision in Morningstar v. WSIAT and the history of the decisions at the WSIAT.

This article examines the strategy for employers in reducing claim costs by characterizing obesity as a pre-existing condition for the purposes of claiming cost relief from the Second Injury and Enhancement Fund (SIEF). In reviewing recent caselaw from the WSIAT this article finds that obesity will be grounds for SIEF cost relief only where treating physicians have linked a worker's obesity to the work-related injury or its treatment.

For those who were unable to attend the recent WSIAT stakeholder event, the notes below touch upon the highlights of each presentation from the event.

Julie Weller and Tristan Hunter provide insightful analysis on a recent WSIAT decision involving chromatic mental stress entitlement and its potential implications for employers.

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

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.

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.