Medical cannabis benefits denied: How statutory insurance plans can avoid paying workers’ compensation benefits

April 26th, 2018 by Michael Hackl

As we move toward the legalization of recreational cannabis, I thought it would be interesting to look at a recent case dealing with medical cannabis and the efforts of one person to get assistance from his province’s workers’ compensation board to contribute to the cost of the medical cannabis prescribed to him.

The case of Skinner v. Nova Scotia (Workers’ Compensation Appeals Tribunal) provides insight into how the use of medical cannabis is sometimes still perceived as an unconventional treatment despite having been legal in Canada for almost two decades, and also how administrative law gives statutory insurance schemes ways to avoid providing benefits to individuals seeking coverage for medically prescribed treatment. Continue reading “Medical cannabis benefits denied: How statutory insurance plans can avoid paying workers’ compensation benefits”

Iler Campbell spring event roundup

April 12th, 2018 by Iler Campbell

Iler Campbell lawyers have a busy spring conference season. Here’s a roundup of where you can find us leading workshops.

Celia is presenting on Cannabis in housing at the Institute of Housing Management Annual Conference on April 13th and then flying to Winnipeg to speak on the same topic for the CHF Canada 2018 Manitoba Spring Education Event on April 14th. She’ll be co‑leading a free webinar on the topic with Brian Laur, Director of Insurance Services for Housing Services Corporation on April 18 as part of HSC’s webinar series.

Michael will be speaking at AdvantAge Ontario’s Annual General Meeting and Convention on April 18 on the topic of addressing senior resident’s behavior issues.

Celia will be part of a panel on residential landlord-tenant dispute resolution at the Canadian Housing and Renewal Association’s Congress on Housing and Homelessness in Ottawa on April 26th.  We will also be participating in the tradeshow on April 25th.

Shelina and Claudia are presenting at CHFT’s Spring Member Education Event on Saturday April 28th. Shelina is co‑presenting a workshop on social media with Sophie Taylor of PHCH and Shelina and Claudia are presenting on legal cannabis and co‑ops.

On May 11 Celia will be in Sudbury speaking about human rights in housing for CHF Ontario.

Celia will be at CHFC’s AGM in Victoria, BC. She’ll be presenting June 7th on smoking and cannabis in co-ops on and on human rights in co‑ops.

Case Study: Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Extends its Membership Beyond Ontario

April 5th, 2018 by Michael Hackl

As your organization or business looks to grow or expand, all manner of new issues arise that you will need to address to ensure that the organization complies with its legal, regulatory and governance requirements.  Getting good advice and assistance at the outset of your efforts to expand can help to avoid issues later on.

We recently helped Gay Lea Foods, Ontario’s largest dairy co-operative, open its membership to dairy farmers in Manitoba. The proposition of opening an Ontario co‑operative’s membership rolls to those outside of the province presented some legal challenges that we were able to help Gay Lea overcome.

Continue reading “Case Study: Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Extends its Membership Beyond Ontario”

Impact investing: What are charities able to do?

April 3rd, 2018 by Ted Hyland

This article was first published on rabble.ca

Are charities legally permitted to make impact investments with their funds? Yes, but, getting to “yes” is not straightforward, and depends on the circumstances.

Impact investing is the use (mainly, but not exclusively) of money to simultaneously realize a financial return and a public or social good. A 2016 survey published by the Responsible Investment Association in Canada reports that in 2015 more than $9.2 billion in assets under management were identified by the survey respondents as being impact investments. A 2017 report by the Global Impact Investing Network  reveals US$114 billion in impact investments worldwide in 2016. These investments are in sectors ranging from housing and energy to microfinance, education, and arts and culture. The investment instruments include debt (e.g., loans, bonds), equity (both private and public shareholdings or units in partnerships), and real assets (in other words, tangible assets such as real estate or commodities, rather than financial capital).

Increasingly, charities are looking at using their funds and other resources to contribute to positive social, economic, cultural and environmental change (“social impact”), as well as to obtain a financial return. But does the law permit them to do so? Continue reading “Impact investing: What are charities able to do?”

Some Iler Campbell staffing news

March 13th, 2018 by Iler Campbell

With spring comes renewal, and Iler Campbell is no different! For a couple of years now, our clients have enjoyed working with a consistent team of lawyers, many of whom began with us as articling students and stayed on as lawyers. As with any profession, though, it is unusual for young lawyers to stay at a single firm. While we are sad that two of our home‑grown lawyers are leaving us, we’re equally pleased, though, both have bitten the housing bug and have taken jobs in the housing sector.

Katie Douglas, called to the bar in 2016, has left us for a job lawyering at Toronto Community Housing. Many will know her for her frequent trips to the Landlord and Tenant Board on behalf of our housing clients. Of her time here, Katie says: “I enjoyed working for Iler Campbell’s great clients and getting to know the unique challenges facing the non-profit sector. I’m sad to leave Iler Campbell but excited to continue my career in social housing.” We wish Katie much success as she tackles housing issues from the perspective of an in‑house lawyer.

Lauren Blumas started with us as a summer student in 2012 and developed a strong interest in a range of housing issues like hoarding, aging in place, co‑buying and medical cannabis in housing. Lauren has also decided to see the housing sector from the inside and has taken a management position with Victoria Park Community Homes based in Hamilton. Our loss is their gain. Lauren reflects on her time here in the following way: “I’m grateful for my time at Iler Campbell and the practical foundation it’s given me to pursue a career in affordable housing. It is the good work of Iler Campbell and its incredible clients that inspired me to dedicate my efforts to the urgent issue of affordable housing.”

Do not despair, though – clients will continue to be well‑served. Shelina Ali, Safia Lakhani, and Michael Hackl, and firm partners, Brian Iler, Ted Hyland and Celia Chandler will be joined by Claudia Pedrero. Claudia articled with us then left for awhile and gained valuable experience in condominium law at another firm. We’re thrilled she’s come back to us. Claudia will work on condominium development, financing, purchase and sale transactions, and real estate co-ownership. She will also advise non-profits, charities and co-ops on general corporate governance and housing matters. She is on the board of directors of the Parkdale Neighbourhood Land Trust, which lets her bring real‑world perspective to client service.

Size as a human right in a #MeToo world

March 5th, 2018 by Celia Chandler

This article was first published on rabble.ca

In May 2017, Quebec court judge Jean-Paul Braun decided on a case in which a 17-year-old young woman was sexually assaulted by a cab driver. Justice Braun said, “you could say she’s a little overweight, but she has a pretty face, huh?” and went on to suggest that perhaps the victim was a “little flattered” by the sexual attention, implying that her size made her unattractive to most men.

We’re living in a time when sexual assault and fat‑shaming are both concepts receiving a lot of attention. While sexual assault has dominated headlines and those headlines appear to be affecting behaviour and in some cases, laws, a larger discussion of fat‑shaming hasn’t quite broken through to the mainstream in the same way.

In Canada, size is still an acceptable basis for discrimination, not protected by human rights legislation. It ought to be. And in certain lights, the two issues are different sides of the same (sexist) coin.

Continue reading “Size as a human right in a #MeToo world”