Though my blogs talk a lot about the legal aspects of termination, it is important to always remember that there is a human element to termination. It is hard both financially and emotionally to lose your job. This is true regardless of the reason for your termination. Therefore, the law requires that there is an element of civility during and after termination.

In Lutz v Fabian Seed Farms Inc, (2023 ABCJ 109) a judge showed the consequences of being rude in court. The key facts that you need to know about this case are that Linda Lutz worked for Fabian Seed Farms Inc (Fabian) as a bookkeeper and sued Fabian for unpaid wages. Fabian filed a countersuit claiming that Linda Lutz’s bookkeeping was bad, which lead to additional bookkeeping expenses, and that Linda Lutz and her spouse Leo Lutz were defrauding Fabian of its product. The judge found that the claim of fraud was unfounded and subtracted the cost of correcting Linda Lutz’s bookkeeping mistakes from the unpaid wages that she was owed as the award. What makes the Lutz case interesting is that when discussing costs, the judge used his discretion to not award any costs. The judge cited the parties’ problematic behaviour while in court as a reason for not awarding costs. The judge wrote that the parties’ emotions got the better of them resulting in them, leading them to be disrespectful in court.

The judge using her discretion to not award cost in the Lutz decision is surprising. Though being rude does not help the self-represented parties’ cases, normally an unfounded claim of fraud tends to attract higher costs. For example, in Ruston v Keddco MFG. (2011) Ltd., (2019 ONCA 125) the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld $125,000 in damages for an unfounded claim of fraud.

The Teljeur v Aurora Hotel Group (2023 ONSC 1324) decision is another case where being uncivil in the manner of dismissal cost the employer. That case turned on what the employer said at the termination meeting, which was secretly recorded by the employee. I have previously written a blog on secret recordings for those who are interested in that aspect of the decision. Regardless, it was found that the employee asked for a termination letter, at least three times, which the employer agreed to, but failed to do. The employer also tried to convince the employee to resign. Following that, the employer offered to pay the employee eight and a half weeks of pay, but later reverted to the Employment Standards Act (ESA) minimums. The employer’s post-termination conduct was also an issue. The employer failed to provide the employee’s ESA entitlements within the legislated period. The employer altered a term of the contract during the notice period by failing to reimburse the employee for an out-of-pocket expense that they agreed to cover. When the judge looked at the employer’s behaviour as a whole, the judge found the employer’s conduct to be bad faith in the manner of dismissal. Therefore, the judge awarded $15,000 in moral damages.

The Teljeur decision shows that costs can come for your behaviour at any part of the termination, not just your behaviour in court. As I have mentioned in a previous blog post, it is important to show common human decency when dealing with a termination. Termination is not easy for the employee or the employer, so it is important to show respect and civility.

How Suzanne Desrosiers Professional Corporation can help

Civility mistakes are often made by an unrepresented party. At Suzanne Desrosiers Professional Corporation, we understand the human element of termination. We approach all termination cases with the respect that they require and encourage our clients to do the same. Therefore, if you want to avoid unnecessary damages caused by termination, contact one of our employment lawyers. Our employment lawyers are experienced in settling termination matters civilly. Regardless of whether you are an employee or an employer, you can get in touch with one of our employment lawyers by calling us at (705) 268-6492 or emailing us at info@sdlawtimmins.com.