Chris Elrick, Author at Arbitration Matters

August 1, 2023August 1, 2023

Ontario – Courts will also enforce agreements in favour of court proceedings – #758

In Eurofins Experchem Laboratories, Inc. v BevCanna Operating Corp., 2023 ONSC 4015, the Court dismissed an application by Defendant BevCanna Operating Corp (“BevCanna”) for a permanent stay of the action or alternatively, a permanent stay of any claims caught by the arbitration clause in the agreement between BevCanna and the Plaintiff, Eurofins Experchem Laboratories, Inc. (“Eurofins”). The Court found that Eurofins’s claim sought recovery of unpaid fees under the parties’ contract, even though it also included claims for breach of fiduciary duty and unjust enrichment. Claims for unpaid fees fell within an exception to the mandatory arbitration clause. It permitted (but did not require) claims for unpaid fees to be brought in the courts. In reaching this conclusion, the Court considered whether the essential character, or pith and substance of the dispute, was covered by the arbitration clause. This focus ensures that parties are held to their agreement and avoids attempts by clever counsel to plead their way around an arbitration clause.

June 8, 2023August 8, 2023

Alberta – “Participating in” not same as “taking a step in” an arbitration – #745

In Dow Chemical Canada ULC v NOVA Chemicals Corporation, 2023 ABKB 215, Justice Wooley dismissed an application by Dow Chemical Canada ULC (“Dow”) for an order declaring the invalidity of the arbitration pursuant to Section 47 of the Arbitration Act to enjoin an arbitration between the parties. That provision requires that the party seeking the order has “not participated in the arbitration.” The Court found that Dow did participate in the arbitration and the case provides a useful framework for what it means to “participate” in an arbitration.

April 13, 2023April 13, 2023

Ontario – Court affirms narrow jurisdiction to set aside an arbitral award – #729

In Canada Soccer Association Incorporated v. Association de Soccer de Brossard, 2023 ONSC 1367, Bell J. dismissed a motion to stay an arbitral award and granted a cross-motion to enforce the award. The case is a reminder that applications to set aside arbitral awards which merely quarrel with the merits of a decision, even when dressed up as procedural grievances, attract little judicial sympathy.

February 17, 2023February 10, 2023

B.C. – Appeal requires legal errors to affect outcome – #713

In Spirit Bay Developments Limited Partnership v. Scala Developments Consultants Ltd., 2022 BCCA 407 (“Spirit Bay”) the Court affirmed the principle that courts should be reluctant to intrude in arbitral proceedings – even in cases where the award contains unhelpful discursions into irrelevant legal principles and legal errors that don’t affect the outcome.