Company and Finance News:

Canadian Securities Regulators Provide Update on Transition
to New National Systems Service Provider
The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) [recently] provide[d] additional information on the transition process to the new CSA National Systems service provider, CGI Information Systems and Management Consultants Inc. (CGI). On October 12, 2013, CGI will assume responsibility for the hosting, operation and maintenance of the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR), the System for Electronic Disclosure by Insiders (SEDI) and the National Registration Database (NRD) (collectively, the “CSA National Systems”). The implementation cutover will occur over the weekend of October 12, during which time the systems will not be available to market participants. More details will be provided as the October date approaches. From October 12, 2013, the CSA Service Desk will provide a single point of contact for all CSA National Systems, user and system fees billing related enquiries and issues. For continuity purposes, the contact information for the CSA Service Desk will remain the same (telephone number 1-800-219-5381; fax number 1-866-729-8011). The CSA Service Desk will provide service in both English and French. Enquiries of a regulatory nature should continue to be directed to the appropriate regulatory authority. Read full news release posted by the BCSC. 

Swiss Bank Breached BC Securities Laws, Commission Alleges
The BC Securities Commission’s executive director has issued a temporary order and notice of hearing alleging that a Swiss private bank breached securities laws by engaging in trading and advising in securities BC without being registered in the province. The notice alleges Bank Gutenberg (formerly CAT Brokerage AG), a Swiss private bank and investment dealer offering offshore brokerage services, carried out trades and provided securities advice on behalf of at least two BC residents without being registered to do so. Furthermore, BCSC staff allege the bank offered its services through its website without prominently posting a disclaimer that expressly identifies the foreign jurisdictions in which the offering is qualified to be made, and failed to take reasonable precautions not to sell to BC residents. Read the full Vancouver Sun article. 

National Instrument Amendments
41-101 – Adoption of amendments to National Instrument 41-101 General Prospectus Requirements, National Instrument 44-101 Short Form Prospectus Distributions, National Instrument 44-102 Shelf Distributions and National Instrument 44-103 Post-Receipt Pricing and Changes to its Companion Policies, National Policy 41-201 Income Trusts and Other Indirect Offerings and National Policy 47-201 Trading Securities Using the Internet and Other Electronic Means.

New Consumer Tax Bulletins
A number of consumer tax bulletins and notices were released in August. These bulletins affect the following:

• Off-Road Vehicle (ORV) Owners
• Logging Industry
• Tobacco Wholesale Dealers
• Tobacco Retail Dealers
• PST Exemptions and Documentation Requirements
• PST Refunds
• Multijurisdictional Vehicles
• Grocery and Drug Stores
• Photographers, Videographers and Photofinishers
• Mining Industry

TSX Venture Exchange Provides Notice of Lapse of the Temporary Relief Measures
and Policy Amendments Regarding Minimum Pricing and Capital Structure
On August 7, 2013, the TSX Venture Exchange (the “TSX Venture”): (i) provided notice that the Temporary Relief Measures for private placements first announced on August 17, 2012 (the “Relief Measures”) will lapse on August 31, 2013; (ii) provided advance notice that it intends to amend its policies with the goal of easing the burden imposed on Issuers regarding certain minimum pricing rules (other than the $0.05 minimum offering price for shares/units); and (iii) advised that, effective immediately, it has removed the existing 15% limit imposed on “Founder Shares” of Issuers listing on the TSX Venture. View the full article posted on the Davis LLP. 

Energy and Mines News:

BC Hydro Releases Revised Draft Integrated Resource Plan
for Consultation – Clean Energy Act
Bill Bennett, Minister of Energy and Mines and Minister responsible for Core Review, [recently] directed BC Hydro to release its draft Integrated Resource Plan (the IRP) to the public and carry out another round of public consultation with the public, stakeholders and First Nations. The draft IRP provides a 20-year outlook of how BC Hydro expects to reliably and cost-effectively meet the anticipated future electricity needs of the province through conservation and acquisition of sufficient generation and transmission resources. The Clean Energy Act (the Act), which was introduced in 2010, obligated BC Hydro to submit an IRP by December 2, 2011 or within 18 months of the Act coming into force. The BC government first extended the due date for the IRP in May 2011 to allow BC Hydro to incorporate findings from a government review. BC Hydro released an initial draft of the IRP for public consultation in May 2012. The BC government subsequently announced on November 2, 2012 that it would delay the submission of BC Hydro’s Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) to Cabinet until August 3, 2013 – three months after the provincial election – due to uncertainty of electricity requirements for prospective liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects in northern BC. View full article by Joshua Walters with McCarthy Tetrault. 

Harmac Begins Pumping Power into BC Hydro Electrical Grid
The Harmac pulp mill has begun feeding power from its new $45-million electrical generation plant to BC Hydro, creating a second major revenue source to the Nanaimo mill for the first time in its more than 50-year history. The project marks the final phase of the five-year initiative begun by Nanaimo Forest Products, Harmac's owners since 2008, to engage in major projects to upgrade the aging mill's systems and make its operations as green as possible. Since its takeover by NFP, a four-way partnership that includes Harmac workers and three private partners, the mill has seen investments of more than $100 million in capital projects through government grants and its own funding to improve efficiencies and reduce its carbon footprint. View the full article by Robert Barron, Daily News. 

Family and Children News:

Provincial Court Releases Important Decision on Relocation, Interim
Guardianship, Needs of the Child Assessments – Family Law Act
Judge Dhillon of the Provincial Court has recently published her decision in T.C. v. S.C., an important and scholarly decision which, among other things, she addresses:

• the relocation provisions of the new Family Law Act;
• the circumstances when it is appropriate to make an interim guardianship appointment in the context of a relocation application; and,
• the preferred content of needs of the child assessments, prepared pursuant to s. 211 of the Family Law Act.

Consumer Tax Bulletin for Logging Industry
Bulletin PST 112, Logging Industry, is a new bulletin that provides information to help businesses in the logging industry understand how the PST applies to their businesses.

BC Sawmill Study Makes Surprise Finding on
Using Moisture to Prevent Deadly Explosions
Wet wood dust can explode just like dry wood dust: report
The smallest-sized wet wood dust is just as explosive as dry wood dust from BC Interior sawmills, according to a report prepared by FPInnovations for the provincial sawmill sector. The surprise finding – which raises questions about the usefulness of misting at sawmills – was part of a first-of-its-kind study in British Columbia ordered after a pair of deadly sawmill explosions in the province last year that killed four workers. “It was assumed moisture would be a bigger factor,” said Darrell Wong, one of the report’s authors. He is a manager of FPInnovations, the non-profit forestry research centre at the University of BC. But Wong said more study must be done before sawmills should consider jettisoning misting systems. Misting systems have a secondary function of knocking wood dust out of the air. View Vancouver Sun article. 

World Watching how BC Wrestles with how to Protect Drinking Water
As BC looks to update its century-old water laws, government sources and experts are looking outside the province for examples of how to move forward. Likewise, experts elsewhere are watching how BC plans to modernize its water laws for the 21^st century. “There’s a real opportunity here for BC to go from being behind the rest of North America, to leapfrogging the pack and being a leader on this issue,” said Oliver Brandes, co-director of University of Victoria’s POLI Project on Ecological Governance. “Other people from elsewhere, experts in their fields who are dealing with it, they’re seeing BC and seeing the opportunity.” A Ministry of Environment spokesman said in an email that changes are expected next year, adding “There is much to be learned through a review of leading thought and practices in other jurisdictions as we develop the new Act.” Read full article in The Province. 

Health Authority Defends Lifting Water Restrictions after Fuel Spill
Lingering traces of jet fuel from a 35,000-litre spill do not justify maintaining water restrictions on Lemon Creek and the Slocan River in the West Kootenay region, a health official insisted Wednesday. Dr. Andrew Larder, senior medical health officer with the Interior Health Authority, said in an interview that he lifted the water restrictions based on daily water test results, a groundwater risk assessment by a hydro geologist, along with daily progress reports on the cleanup. The "do-not-use" restriction advised locals not to use the water for any purpose except flushing toilets. It indicates imminent risk that water will make people sick even if it's boiled. The health authority lifted all water restrictions on Lemon Creek and the Slocan River north of the Winlaw Bridge on August 9, meaning water is safe for consumption and recreation activities. "I knew there was fuel still on the river, but I was fully satisfied that the amounts were relatively small and localized in specific locations, particularly log jams and back eddies," Larder said. Read Vancouver Sun article. 

BC Man's Illegal Dental Practice Shut Down
The College of Dental Surgeons of BC is warning patients to get tested for potential exposure to serious blood-borne viruses after shutting down an illegal dental practice run by a man with no known training in dentistry. Health officials say Tung Sheng Wu – also known as David Wu – was practising dentistry illegally in the bedroom of his Burnaby, BC, home with dental equipment that may not have been cleaned or sterilized properly. "Because Mr. Wu was not a licensed dentist and because he was not following the infection control procedures expected of a licensed dentist, we believe there is sufficient risk of exposure to blood-borne viruses to recommend testing for all clients," said Michelle Murti, medical health officer for the Fraser Health Authority. The Fraser Health Authority is recommending Wu's patients be tested for hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Read CBC article. 

BC’s New Limitation Act – What Employers Should Know
BC’s Limitation Act is the piece of legislation that sets out the amount of time that parties have to start court proceedings pursuing their claim. The time one has to sue is called a “limitation period”. The previous Limitation Act (the “Old Act”), provided for two, six and ten year limitation periods depending on the type of claim, with most employment related claims subject to the six year limitation period. On June 1, 2013, a new Limitation Act (the “New Act”) came into effect in British Columbia. Under this New Act, most employment related claims are now subject to a two year limitation period. The New Act’s limitation periods will apply to claims arising from acts or omissions that occur and are discovered on or after June 1, 2013. The Old Act’s limitation periods will apply to claims arising from acts or omissions that occurred and were discovered prior to June 1, 2013. So what does this mean for employers? It means that if you have employees who may have potential claims against you, you need to be aware of when those claims arise. If the employee’s claim arises on or after June 1, 2013, the employee generally has two years to sue you in relation to that claim. If the employee does not sue within two years, that employee may lose his or her claim. View the full article by Daniel Sorensen with Waterstone Law Group LLP. 

Worker Cannot Sue for Workplace Injury – Workers Compensation Act
Workers’ rights to sue over workplace accidents are severly restricted by workers compensation schemes across the country. Statutes like the Workers Compensation Act of BC provide workers with access to an insurance scheme that does not depend on finding fault or the ability of the employer to pay for a workplace injury, illness or death. But in exchange, workers cannot sue the employer or other workers. That has been described as the “historic trade-off” and the Supreme Court of Canada recently re-affirmed the principle. Read full article by Earl Phillips with McCarthy Tetrault. 

Miscellaneous News:

BC Lawyers Worried about Exclusion from New Civil Resolution Tribunal
As British Columbia prepares for the fall 2014 startup of Canada’s first civil resolution tribunal geared towards self-represented litigants and the use of technology to settle strata or small-claims disputes, there’s growing concern among lawyers about whether the individual’s legal rights may be fully represented. Newly elected Canadian Bar Association BC branch president Dean Crawford says the Civil Resolution Tribunal Act restricts the ability of lawyers to go before the tribunal to represent clients unless they have permission. The act’s s. 20 allows for a lawyer acting for a child or person with impaired capacity or where the other party has permission to be represented by counsel. Crawford says he believes the self-litigant tribunal is premised on the idea that it will speed up the dispute process. A BC government press release reflects that notion: “Resolving a dispute through the tribunal is expected to take about 60 days, compared to 12 to 18 months for Small Claims Court.” Crawford says the exclusion of lawyers may have the reverse effect as they often act as a sounding board for the validity of a complaint or they can mediate a solution. “Their exclusion could bring more cases to the tribunal and prolong proceedings,” he says, adding that self-represented litigants haven’t shown they expedite the judicial system. Read the full article by Jean Sorensen and posted on the Canadian Lawyer Magazine blog Legal Feeds. 

BC Drivers have One-in-Five Chance of Getting Roadside Ban Overturned
British Columbia has one of the country’s toughest drunk driving laws, but if drivers choose to challenge a roadside ban and the penalties and fines that come with it, they have at least a one-in-five chance of getting it tossed out. Last year, the government amended the impaired driving legislation that was introduced in 2010. The changes were aimed at bringing the law into compliance with a court ruling that concluded those accused of drunk driving had their rights violated due to their inability to challenge roadside screening tests, and to the lack of a proper appeal mechanism. The Office of the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles says in the year since the amendments, about 22 per cent of the 2,708 drivers who challenged an immediate roadside prohibition got it overturned. A total of 18,888 driving bans were issued in that time period. Read Vancouver Sun article. 

CVSE Circular - Amended National Safety Code (NSC) 10 Cargo Securement Standard
National Safety Code (NSC) 10 standard on cargo securement was amended by the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA) and approved by all provinces and territories. These amendments are effective January 1, 2014 and include the following amendments:

• Interpretation Section – Definitions: Light Vehicle
• Division 2 – General Performance Criteria: Friction Mats
• Division 3 – Metal Coils: Rows of Metal Coils with Eyes Crosswise
• Division 6 – Intermodal Containers

Property and Real Estate News:

Condominium Conflict Resolution: Recognizing the Role of Culture
There is a trend in strata corporations to adopt increasingly detailed rules to govern how residents live and interact. One could say that if everyone used “common sense”, there would be no need for any rules at all. The problem, in my view, is not an absence of “common sense”. Rather the problem is that what one person may view as “common sense” is not shared amongst all people (often not even amongst a few). In the condominium context, some people feel it makes “common sense” to grow tomato plants and hang laundry on balconies, while others maintain that it only makes “common sense” that an exterior uniform appearance is essential. Some people feel it makes “common sense” to prohibit pets from residing in the building, while others maintain that their pets should be allowed to “do their business” on the balcony to the detriment of anyone or any plants on the balcony below! For others still, rules are only considered at all, if they get caught breaking them. Read the full article by Richard A. Elia published in the VIOSA August bulletin. 

BC Condo Owners Want Better Municipal Oversight of Temporary Occupancy Permits
Issue could affect resale of thousands of Lower Mainland units
A BC condo owners association will petition municipalities to adopt a new measure to ensure owners don’t get caught with incomplete occupancy permits that can undermine their ability to sell. The change is a simple one: it would require municipalities to notify strata corporations within the first year of occupancy whether the permit is complete, says Tony Gioventu, executive director of the Condo Home Owners Association of BC. If the requirements under the permit have not been met, a strata corporation will have an opportunity to file legal action while developer bonding is still in place. That will ensure there is money that can be used to complete work needed to get the occupancy permit, said Gioventu. Read Vancouver Sun article. 

BC Court of Appeal Clarifies the Law on Deposits in British Columbia Real Estate Contracts
The BC Court of Appeal recently resolved a conflict between two of its previous decisions, clarifying the effect of a standard provision in real estate contracts that many of the Province’s real estate professionals may take for granted. The issue is whether a seller has the right to keep a deposit even if it suffers no damage as a result of a purchaser’s failure to complete, and the Court of Appeal’s recent uncertainty on this issue has caused confusion about many of the standard form real estate contracts currently in use in the Province. In the most recent decision, Tang v. Zhang, 2013, BCCA 52, the court was asked whether the Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board’s standard form Contract of Purchase and Sale gives a seller the unconditional right to keep a deposit when a buyer’s breach of contract has not caused the seller to suffer clear monetary losses. Specifically at issue was the “time of the essence” clause, which states that if the buyer fails to complete the purchase, the seller can terminate the contract, and the amount paid by the buyer as a deposit “will be absolutely forfeited to the seller... on account of damages, without prejudice to the seller’s other remedies.” Read the full Real Estate Law Bulletin posted on the Davis LLP website. 

Wills and Estates News:

BCSC Orders Executor to Make an Interim Distribution
In Reznik v. Matty, for the first time, the British Columbia Supreme Court ordered that an executor must make an interim distribution of estate funds (as opposed to gifts of real property). The Court also ordered costs of the proceeding against the executor personally. Three residuary beneficiaries of the estate of Phillip Matty (the “Estate”) asked the Court to compel the executor (who was also the fourth residuary beneficiary) to make an interim distribution. In reaching his decision to accede to the beneficiaries’ request, Funt J. emphasized the following facts:

• the Estate had significant assets, including liquid assets;
• the Estate had few anticipated future costs;
• the administration of the Estate had been underway for over 10 years; and
• one beneficiary had immediate need for the money to support his family.