Articles 2020

The Court of Queen's Bench recently struck out significant portions of a negligence claim against Alberta's energy regulator, EnCana. The Court ruled EnCana did not owe her private duty of care, and cannot be held liable in negligence.

In a recent decision, the Supreme Court of Canada clarified section 15(1) of the Environmental Protection Act, where it is required that the MOE be notified forthwith when a contaminant that causes or is likely to cause an adverse effect is discharged into the environment.

A recent decision reinforces that courts are willing to order security for costs against environmental groups challenging development through judicial review.

The Abitibi decision and the recent decision in Nortel reveal the need for Parliament to clarify the statutory scheme to deal with historical environmental contamination in the insolvency context.