Articles

The COVID-19 pandemic, combined with an aging population, left Québec struggling with a labour shortage—a gap that was filled by young, unskilled workers. In the process, the significant increase in the number of workplace accidents involving workers under the age 16 prompted social reflection and highlighted the lack of any protective framework for work by children. Until now, there have been few guidelines on such work in Québec, unlike in other Canadian provinces. With no minimum age for access to employment, young children only needed their parents’ consent to be allowed to work.

On June 1, 2023, the Quebec Minister of Justice introduced Bill 29, An Act to protect consumers from planned obsolescence and to promote the durability, repairability and maintenance of goods (the “Bill”), amending the Consumer Protection Act, in the National Assembly with the stated aim of strengthening the legal warranty of quality and ensuring the repairability of commonly used goods.

How will insurers adapt to the growing number of large-scale losses caused by natural disasters and other disturbances linked to climate change? With insurance claim payouts on the rise, it is time to review the situation.

On May 1, 2023, in Ontario (Auditor General) v. Laurentian University, the Ontario Court of Appeal followed the teachings of the Supreme Court of Canada set out in Blood Tribe and Lizotte to conclude that the Auditor General Act (the “Act”) does not contain sufficiently clear, explicit and unequivocal language to abrogate solicitor-client, litigation and settlement privilege.

Did you know that some professional orders in Québec are now exempt from the requirement to establish and maintain a committee on access to information and the protection of personal information?

This article provides a summary of recent legal developments in workplace health and safety. It discusses conflicting case law on the retroactive effect of An Act to modernize the occupational health and safety regime, the end of flexibility measures for COVID-19 and regulation of work by children.