A federal judge has knocked down lawyering fees of up to $1,130 an hour claimed as costs by an insurance company that successfully sued the Canada Revenue Agency. The Tax Court lawsuit detailed expenses claimed by Bay Street lawyers, from four-figure hourly rates to expensive hotel bills: “Hypothetical rates do not meet the criterion”.
A lawsuit alleging unfair trade practices in the federally-regulated egg trade have come up short at the Supreme Court. Justices declined to hear a case alleging two of the nation’s largest egg producers engaged in a “conspiracy” to drive out competition: ‘The case crashed in a deep ditch of dismissal’.
A federal tribunal has upheld the firing of a senior civil servant for nepotism with the loss of $123,000 in benefits. Evidence showed the manager attempted to land government jobs for her son and her cleaning woman: “What is the problem?”
Environment Canada has begun “consultations” on curbing chemical runoff in the Great Lakes in a process experts describe as ineffectual. U.S. authorities have warned this summer could see one of the largest chemically-fed algae blooms ever recorded on Lake Erie. The toxic scum produces botulism harmful to marine life: “You need to know what you’re dealing with”.
Canada’s telecom regulator is proposing national quality standards on emergency 911 networks described as fragmented and haphazard. The “reliability and resiliency” of the one-call service should be determined, said the CRTC: “There is a lot of work that needs to be done”.
Legislators should do more to help small and medium-sized businesses become exporters, says a Liberal senator. The Senate trade committee in a July 6 report proposed more guidance for a million small companies to sell overseas: “You have everybody doing bits and pieces but there is no convergence”.
Canada Post is again raising stamp prices for the sixth time in five years, to a record 90¢ to mail a letter. Employees and customers described the rate hike as senseless, noting the Crown corporation reported a $218 million pre-tax profit in the past fifteen months: “If your mail volumes are going down, your solution is to increase pricing?”
Parks Canada is spending $800,000 on private consultants for new concepts on hiking trails. The agency said the contracting is part of a “hearts and minds” campaign to promote national park use. Authorities declined an interview: ‘It’s a stronger, deeper understanding of the very essence of Canada’.
Veterans’ benefits should be paid on the same basis as unemployment insurance and other civilian entitlements, says the federal Veterans Ombudsman. Guy Parent yesterday said payments should be criteria-based and subject to audit, just like EI benefits, noting ex-service members face a “frustrating” process in claiming pensions they are owed: “There should be an element of trust”.
An 85-year old motorist who waged a Charter of Rights challenge against mandatory exams for senior drivers has lost a bid to appeal to the Supreme Court. Justices declined to hear the case: ‘Driving is a privilege, not a right’.
Cabinet is reviving a seniors’ grant program that is funding sex manuals, iPads, Italian films and a Chinese cooking course. The New Horizons For Seniors program cost taxpayers $34.1 million last year: “That’s crap”.
Canadian legislatures should narrow defamation law to protect public figures from so-called SLAPP lawsuits when speaking out on terrorism, says the Senate national security committee. The panel yesterday urged measures to shield lawmakers and pundits from “vexatious litigation” by groups accused of terrorist affiliation: “Those who have a different ideology have brought libel suits”.
Employment Canada faces a revived class action lawsuit after misplacing financial data and Social Insurance Numbers belonging to more than half a million student loan recipients. The Federal Court of Appeal said the department should be made to answer allegations of negligence and breach of confidence: “They have to work much harder”.
Environment Canada has approved the use of two oil spill dispersants as safe and “practically non-toxic” following an evaluation by federal scientists. One advocacy group disputed the claim: “Sheer bollocks”.
Cabinet has enacted a flawed union bill despite Senate warnings it must first correct sloppy drafting that compromises a federal labour board. The labour department yesterday confirmed Bill C-525 came into force June 16 though one Conservative senator called it defective: “The government is aware”.
