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ARTICLE · 23 OCTOBER 2008

Canada´s Supreme Court Defines Departing Employees Duties

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On October 9, 2008, the Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC") issued an important decision, in RBC Dominion Securities Inc. v. Merrill Lynch Canada Inc., 2008 SCC 54, addressing the duties owed by a producing branch manager and investment advisor(s) when they leave one brokerage house to join another. The case has application to other employees.

CanadaLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Tracey Cohen
Tracey Cohen
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The Facts

On October 9, 2008, the Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC") issued an important decision, in RBC Dominion Securities Inc. v. Merrill Lynch Canada Inc., 2008 SCC 54, addressing the duties owed by a producing branch manager and investment advisor(s) when they leave one brokerage house to join another. The case has application to other employees.

In this case, the branch manager and all but two junior investment advisors of RBC Dominion Securities Inc.'s ("RBC") branch offices in Cranbrook, and Nelson, B.C., left en masse to join the Cranbrook branch of Merrill Lynch Canada Inc. ("Merrill Lynch"). The branch manager was directly involved in the recruitment of the other investment advisors by Merrill Lynch. They left without providing notice and, in the weeks preceding their departure, they orchestrated the copying and transfer of client records to Merrill Lynch. RBC's office was effectively hollowed out and all but collapsed.

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