Tax professionals who advise clients on judicial review of the
CRA's discretionary decisions should monitor developments in
the standard of review in light of the Supreme Court of
Canada's decision in Wilson v Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd
(2016 SCC 29).
In Wilson, the appellant was a non-unionized
procurement specialist who worked for Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd.
for four and a half years. He was dismissed in November 2009 and
filed an unjust dismissal complaint under the Canada Labour
Code. At issue was whether the significant severance package
provided to Mr. Wilson rendered the dismissal just.
The labour adjudicator found that a severance payment did not
exempt an employer from a determination with respect to whether a
dismissal was just. Applying a standard of review of
reasonableness, the application judge reversed the decision of the
labour adjudicator, finding that the Code permitted the
dismissal of non-unionized employees without cause. The Federal
Court
