The Clause That Saved The Company $7 Million: Is It Bionic Or Just Good Drafting?

Terminating the employment of a senior executive can be expensive business. In normal circumstances, a dismissed employee is entitled to be paid all the remuneration the employee would have received had he or she worked through the "reasonable notice period".  For some employees, this would mean payments on account of bonuses, stock plans and other performance metrics.  However, these expenses can be managed if the employer puts proper employment contracts in place.

This type of situation was recently considered by Alberta's Court of Appeal. In the decision in Cornelson v. Alliance Pipeline Ltd., 2017 ABCA 13, the Court grappled with the question of whether a significant bonus was payable during the notice period.