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OTTAWA – A change to the law that limited the right of an accused person to a preliminary inquiry does not apply to some ongoing cases, the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled.

The top court’s decision Friday helps clarify who is eligible for a preliminary inquiry — a judicial hearing to see if there is enough evidence for a trial — in light of a 2019 amendment to the criminal law.

In September 2019, a Criminal Code change abolished the right to a preliminary inquiry for an accused charged with an indictable offence punishable by less than 14 years in prison.

The government said the amendment would free up time and resources in provincial courts, while alleviating the burden on some witnesses and victims by preventing them from having to testify twice in cases.

After the change, there was disagreement among judges across the country about the circumstances under which someone charged with an offence before the amendment came into force would be eligible for a preliminary inquiry.

In its decision, the Supreme Court said a preliminary inquiry is available when an accused person could actually face 14 or more years behind bars.

The top court said a preliminary inquiry is also possible in some ongoing cases involving events that occurred before the 2019 change.

The court’s pronouncements came in the separate cases of two men accused of sexual offences punishable by a maximum of 10 years in prison when the crimes allegedly took place, long before the September 2019 amendment.

However, both requested a preliminary inquiry only after the 2019 change to the law.

The issue worked its way through the Quebec courts, with the province’s Court of Appeal concluding the amendment did not apply to the two men and that preliminary inquiries should take place.

The Crown then requested a hearing at the Supreme Court.

Five of the top court’s nine judges agreed the previous version of the law applied in these particular cases, meaning the men were entitled to preliminary inquiries.

The majority provided three sets of reasons for that conclusion.

In her reasons, Justice Sheilah Martin said where the alleged offence date is prior to September 2019, an accused who would have been eligible for a preliminary inquiry but for the amendment “remains eligible, regardless of the applicable maximum punishment.”

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association, an intervener in the case, had noted in a written submission to the court that preliminary hearings can be used to screen out meritless allegations.

“This protective function is provided by the fact that an accused will be discharged after a preliminary hearing, at an early stage of the proceedings, if there is insufficient evidence to justify a prosecution.”

Cases involving charges laid many years after the offence was allegedly committed present unique challenges to accused people, the association added.

“Evidence relating to the offence, and necessary to marshal a defence, can with the passage of time become lost, or can be rendered increasingly difficult to uncover. Memories fade, accounts become vague, witnesses die or become hard to track down,” the association said.

“In such cases, preliminary hearings become the vehicle through which the accused gains the power to subpoena witnesses, to ask questions to the investigators, the Crown’s witnesses, and potential defence witnesses, and to uncover potentially critical and previously undisclosed evidence.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 1, 2024.

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VANCOUVER – Ports in British Columbia could potentially be paralyzed again starting next week as a lockout looms in the dispute between employers and the union representing more than 700 foremen.

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce said Friday the lockout coincides with an expanded job action at the Port of Montreal, bringing more uncertainty to Canada’s supply chain.

“It’s tremendously concerning to us, particularly because of the drumbeat of disruption that we’ve seen throughout the Canadian supply chain and the transport sector over the last 12 to 18 months,” said Matthew Holmes, executive vice-president at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.

The BC Maritime Employers Association said Friday in a statement that it will “defensively” lock out members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 starting Monday at 8 a.m., shutting down all cargo operations provincewide but leaving cruise ships and operations for grain vessels unaffected.

The employers said the lockout is meant to “facilitate a safe and orderly wind-down of operations” in light of “escalating and unpredictable strike action,” as the union had issued a 72-hour strike notice for job action also starting Monday at 8 a.m.

“We did not arrive to this decision lightly,” the employers association said in its statement announcing the lockout. “This regretful action follows thorough consideration of ILWU Local 514’s continued intransigence and their provocative decision to proceed with another strike notice.”

In response, Local 514 president Frank Morena said in a union release that workers had only planned to “engage in limited job action” such as an overtime ban, and it was the employers who “completely overreacted” by threatening a “full-scale lockout.”

“Regardless of BCMEA provocations, we will take limited job action only starting Monday, Nov. 4 unless an agreement has (been) reached before then — and we are prepared to resume negotiations immediately,” Morena said in the statement.

He noted that workers are now “extremely angry” over the employers’ refusal to bargain major issues, such as staffing requirements as more automation is introduced at the ports, and the lockout is an “attempt to force the federal government to intervene in the dispute.”

There have already been a number of recent disruptions at the Port of Vancouver, Canada’s largest port, due to labour unrest.

The list includes a days-long picketing effort at several grain terminals in September, a work stoppage involving both major Canadian railways in August, and a port worker strike last year that lasted 13 days and froze billions in trade at the docks.

Expanded job action on Thursday at the Port of Montreal shut down two container terminals, stopping 40 per cent of the container capacity at Canada’s second largest port.

“It feels like the entire business fabric and connective tissue of our country is constantly under fire,” Holmes said. “And how do we have a viable economy for small business?”

He said 2023 saw the highest number of days lost to labour disputes across all Canadian industries since 1986, and the fear is that frequent disruptions to road, rail, ship and air traffic may add up to damage to Canada’s economy that can’t be easily corrected.

“When companies can’t get their goods into the ports in Canada, they have to go somewhere else,” he said. “When they go somewhere else, it doesn’t mean they come back here. And … we’ve seen that in previous disruptions.”

The union representing foremen in B.C. has said that employers have tried to “lower existing minimum manning levels” at ports across the province, with a Canada Industrial Relations Board document noting that Local 514 made a complaint in February that one employer — DP World — “failed to engage in bargaining on a manning agreement” and “purported to have the right to unilaterally implement automated rail operations” at its Vancouver container terminal.

The board ultimately decided to dismiss the union’s complaint, saying DP World’s practices “may not be conducive to harmonious labour relations” but the company had no legal duty or obligation to engage Local 514 on a manning proposal presented earlier this year.

Local 514 said its inability to negotiate with DP World as a single employer led to a vote among the membership “industry-wide” that resulted in a 96 per cent approval in September to authorize strike action if needed.

The union accuses the employers of not showing up for negotiations on Thursday, the last scheduled day of mediated talks this week, while also failing to notify others that they would not be participating.

The employers association says its final offer to the union remains open for workers to accept unless it is withdrawn, and the group is prepared to rescind the lockout notice if the union withdraws its strike notice.

Holmes said Canadian small businesses are not taking sides in either the disputes in B.C. or in Montreal, but added it has become clear that there is a “systemic problem” in labour dispute resolution in Canada and more action from federal government is needed to prevent disruptions.

He said some of the negative impact of disruptions can already be seen in Canada’s GDP, where August saw transportation and warehousing acting as a “drag” on the overall Canadian economy.

“It means we’re going to be poorer as a nation at the end of this year as a result of those few days and the time it took to get things moving again,” Holmes said. “And we’re going to see that again and again until we figure this out.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 1, 2024.

Air Canada’s stock closed up almost 14 per cent after it announced a share buyback program, an earnings beat and a higher earnings outlook.

The positives come despite a disruptive third quarter that saw pilot contract negotiations come down to the wire, creating uncertainty for travellers and helping push down both revenue and passenger volumes.

The new contract with pilots, which includes a cumulative 42 per cent wage hike over four years, is expected to put pressure on expenses next year, but chief executive Michael Rousseau said it was an achievement to reach a deal without having to go through a pilot strike.

“I am proud that we concluded a mutually beneficial agreement without significant disruption to customers and with a contained revenue impact,” he said on an earnings call Friday.

The potential for travel disruptions offset a longer-term growth trend to see passenger volumes fall 0.1 per cent, while revenue was down four per cent to $6.11 billion.

“We saw multiple weeks of softer booking volumes as some customers postponed or cancelled their itineraries while others chose to fly with other carriers,” said Mark Galardo, executive vice-president of revenue and network planning, on the call.

Profits were also impacted by competitive market pressure, along with lower demand to France because of the Olympics, but Galardo said overall the airline saw sustained strong international demand in the quarter.

The airline reported a profit of $2.04 billion, up from $1.25 billion in the same quarter last year, though that was significantly boosted by a one-time $1.15 billion income tax recovery in the quarter.

On an adjusted basis, Air Canada says it earned $2.57 per diluted share, down from an adjusted profit of $3.41 per diluted share a year earlier.

The adjusted profit was well above the $1.58 per diluted share expected by analysts, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.

The profit beat came in above consensus on fuel and costs, noted RBC analyst James McGarragle.

The airline has also slightly boosted its earnings expectations for 2024, with adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization expected to total about $3.5 billion, up from earlier guidance for between $3.1 billion and $3.4 billion.

Air Canada also announced a share buyback program covering about 10 per cent of outstanding shares, which it said was to counter some of the share dilution the airline went through during the pandemic.

The combination of news helped push up Air Canada’s stock by $2.64, or 13.99 per cent, to $21.51 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

In its outlook, the airline said it now expects its capacity measured by available seat miles for 2024 to be up about five per cent from 2023 compared with earlier expectations for growth of 5.5 to 6.5 per cent.

Galardo said the reduction was because of a combination of supply chain pressures, aircraft availability and geopolitical pressures, while the airline will be watching to see whether other factors push down demand.

“Although demand is strong, we’ll be watching the effects from rising hotel costs and foreign exchange which may impact the coming winter season.”

Air Canada also said it now expects its adjusted cost per available seat mile to be up about two per cent from 2023, compared with earlier expectations for growth of 2.5 to 3.5 per cent.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 1, 2024.

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