Business Law in Canada

What you'll learn

• Explain the sources of Canadian law, the division of powers, the effect of the Charter on business, precedent and the role of administrative agencies, and classify legal issues that arise in business.
• Describe the court system and the stages of a civil action, compare negotiation, mediation, arbitration and litigation, calculate limitation deadlines and judgment interest and evaluate settlement decisions using expected value.
• Analyze whether a contract has been formed, applying the rules on offer, acceptance, consideration, intention, capacity, legality and form, including the battle of the forms and online contracting.
• Interpret contract terms, apply the Tercon test to exclusion clauses and the duties of good faith and honest performance, and identify defects, discharge by frustration or force majeure, and conditions, warranties and repudiation.
• Calculate expectation and reliance damages limited by remoteness and mitigation, distinguish liquidated damages from penalties, identify equitable remedies and apply sale of goods legislation on implied conditions, property and risk and remedies.
• Analyze negligence claims using duty, standard of care, causation and remoteness, and apply the Hand formula, occupiers' liability, contributory negligence, negligent misstatement and vicarious liability.
• Identify business torts, including deceit, defamation, injurious falsehood, inducing breach of contract, passing off and breach of confidence, and analyze product liability and product safety reporting duties.
• Apply agency principles and compare the legal features of sole proprietorships, partnerships, limited partnerships, LLPs and corporations, including veil piercing, directors' statutory liabilities and franchise disclosure.
• Explain corporate governance, directors' fiduciary duty and duty of care, the business judgment rule, the oppression remedy and derivative actions, and the basics of securities regulation and prospectus exemptions.
• Classify workers, calculate overtime and termination entitlements, apply human rights accommodation duties, reasonable notice, termination clause rules and restrictive covenant law, and describe collective bargaining.
• Apply consumer protection, Competition Act, PIPEDA and CASL requirements to pricing, advertising, environmental claims, competitor contacts, data breaches and electronic marketing.
• Analyze leases, intellectual property ownership, secured transactions and insolvency priorities, and conduct a legal risk audit that scores and responds to risks across the course.