Preface

• Author: Geoffrey England
• Pages: 15-15

PR EFAC E

The writing for this edition was completed in late May 2008. At the end

of the editorial proce ss — and, regrett ably, too late to incorporate into

this edition — the Supreme Court of Canada handed down its ruling

in Honda Canad a Inc. v. Keays.1 This case is importa nt in two respects.

First, it holds that if an employee i s dismis sed in bad faith and suffers

consequential psychological har m, compensation for such harm must

be awarded under t he u sual principles of contract law regarding the

award of damages, namely that such harm must be in the reasonable

contemplation of the pa rties at the date t he contract was made. Previ-

ously, the courts generally extended the period of reasonable notice

of termination to account for bad faith di smissal under the Walla ce

doctrine, examined in Chapter 9 of this book. The Supreme Court’s

new r uling means that Wallac e extensions can no longer be given in

these circumst ances. Second, the Supreme Court quashed the award of

$100,000 in punitive damages ordered by the Ontario Court of Appeal.

In so doing, the Supreme Court signalled that punitive damages should

only be awarded in exceptional circumstances where the employer’s

conduct is f‌lagrantly egregious. The reader is alerted, therefore, that the

Keays decision signif‌icantly modif‌ies Chapter 9 of this book in relation

to Wall ac e extensions and compensation for wrongful dismi ssal.

1 2008 SCC 39.

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