Lying in business will be a lot more expensive after a Supreme Court of Canada ruling that establishes a ground-breaking new doctrine in contract law.
“The tide has come in,” said veteran Toronto litigator Paul Pape, who frequently represents shareholders and other parties against businesses in class-action lawsuits. “If you lie, it’s going to cost you now.”
In a unanimous ruling, a panel of seven Supreme Court justices rewrote centuries-old common law to clarify bewildering Canadian case law about the legal duty of businesses to act in good faith with companies and people with whom they have contracts. Some areas of contractual law, such as employment, franchise and insurance agreements, already require a duty of good faith, but no such standard exists in the broader arena of commercial contracts. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/supreme-court-of-canada-ruling-makes-honesty-the-law-for-businesses/article21583597/