Glossary

• Author: Netta Romano
• Pages: 547-549

547 547

Glossary

administrative tribunals bodies created by a statute to admin -

ister that statute; administrative agenc ies are empowered to

investigate complaints, make rulings, a nd sometimes issue orders

agent a party who has the capacit y to bind another part y in

contracting with others

aggravated damag es damages awarded to compensate a

party for non-monetary losses intentionally or maliciously caused

by the other party’s conduc t

application a claim of a human rights violation

arbitration a process whereby an indep endent third party

hears both sides of a dispute and im poses a binding resolution

balance of probabilities civil st andard of proof requiring

evidence that an allegation is mo re likely than not to be true

bargaining agent th e trade union that is authorized to represent

a group of employees and bargain on th eir behalf with an employer

bargaining unit a group of employees r epresented by a union

binding requiring a l ower court to follow a precedent from a

higher court in the same juris diction (see also stare decisis)

bona fide occup ational qualific ation or bona fide occupa-

tional requirement a reasonably necessar y qualification or

requirement imposed in a sincere belief that it is re lated to job

performance

bumping rights on a layoff, the right of emplo yees with greater

seniority to displace more junior employees

case law law made by judges, rat her than legislatures, that is

usually based on the previous d ecisions of other judges

cause of action the factual basis on which a legal claim c an

be made

civil law law that rela tes to private, non-criminal matters, such

as property law, family law, and tort law; alter natively, law that

evolved from Roman law, not English common law, and that is

used in certain jurisdicti ons, such as Quebec

codify enacting common law into legislation

coercion persuading a p erson to do something by using force,

threats, or intimidation

collective agreement a contract of employment bet ween an

employer and a union governing th e terms of employment for a

group of workers

common law law made by judges, ra ther than legislatures, that

is usually based on the previous d ecisions of other judges

community of inte rest where workers sha re enough similarity

in aspects of work pe rformed that it makes sense to group them

together for collective b argaining purposes

conciliator a neutral t hird party who helps oppos ing parties

reach a settlement

conditional of fer of employment a job offer that is subject to

certain requirements being met

condonation implied acceptance of con duct that would other-

wise support discipline or dismissal

constitutional law in Canada, a body of writte n and unwritten

laws that set out how the country wi ll be governed, including the

distribution of powers between the federal government and the

provinces

constructive dismissal fundamental breach by an employer o f

an employment contract that entitles an employee to consider

themselves dismissed an d to sue the employer for wrongful

dismissal

contract law an area of civil law that gove rns agreements

between people o r companies to purchase or provide g oods or

services

contra proferente m a doctrine for interpreting contrac ts;

where the terms of a contract can bear two o r more meanings,

the ambiguity is interpreted aga inst the party who drafted it

contributory neglig ence a common law defence in an action

arising from negligence in which it i s asserted that the plaintiff’s

own negligence directly c aused or contributed to the injur ies

suffered

damages losses suf fered as a result of the other party’s actions

defamation something that tends to har m a person’s reputa-

tion, either through slander (things said) or libel (things written)

defendant in civil law, the part y against which an action is

brought

dependent contractor a wo rker whose income is derived

almost exclusively from the prin cipal

direct discrimination discriminatio n that on its face denies a

person equal participation based on the person identifying with

a prohibited ground

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