Supreme Court Of Canada Decides The “Keays v. Honda Canada” Case

On June 27, 2008 the Supreme Court of Canada released its

decision in Keays v. Honda Canada,1 the

most anxiously awaited employment decision in recent memory. As

will be seen, the Court took the occasion to clarify the

approach that is to be taken when awarding damages in

employment law. The method that was elaborated is principled,

reasoned and has as its basis the historical jurisprudence that

had, over time, been extended and altered by lower courts in

its application. The Court took the occasion to pull back on

the reigns and was quite critical of the some of the approach

taken and findings made in the lower courts.

This Alert will discuss the Keays case in some

detail with a view to explaining its practical significance.

Keays is not an easy decision to follow, and the

subtext is as important as the main findings.

SOME BACKGROUND

Kevin Keays ("Keays") commenced employment with

Honda Canada Inc. ("Honda") in 1986 working on the

production line at the assembly plant in Alliston, Ontario.

After approximately twenty months working on the production

line Keays joined the Quality Engineering Department. Keays was

selected to receive training on a new computer system, created

for the implementation of newly...

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