Pension Benefits Act — Ontario Employment Law

S. v. Casco Inc.

S. v. Casco Inc. - Invalid Pension Waiver Form

This was an employer's appeal to the Court of Appeal from a Divisional Court decision upholding a trial judge's decision. The plaintiff's husband, an employee of the defendant, had signed a pension waiver form provided by the employer to select a single life pension rather than a joint and survivor pension. The trial judge found the employer liable for negligent misrepresentation and awarded damages equivalent to a joint and survivor pension. The Court of Appeal upheld the trial decision, finding that the employer's waiver form substantially deviated from the form approved by the Superintendent of Financial Services under the Pension Benefits Act, rendering the waiver invalid.

MTD Products Limited v. B.

Pension Plan Amendment Rectification: Employer Corrects Unintended Benefits

A case involving the rectification of a pension plan amendment, where the employer sought to correct the wording to reflect its original intention of providing unreduced early retirement benefits to one employee only. The court granted rectification based on convincing evidence of a mistake in the amendment’s wording and found no breach of duty in the employer's administration of the pension plan.

M. v. B.

A legal dispute concerning liability for contributions to a pension plan under the Pension Benefits Act, specifically section 29(2).

L. v. Rio Algom Limited

Pension Plan Wind-Up Jurisdiction: L. v. Rio Algom

This is a judicial review of a motion judge's decision regarding a claim by pension plan members to compel their employer to apply for a partial wind-up of a defined benefit pension plan. The Divisional Court addressed whether the court had jurisdiction to order such a remedy and whether the claim should be struck out under the Hunt v. Carey Canada Inc. test.

Workers' Compensation Board v. L.

Pension Benefits Act Protects Death Benefits from Execution

This is an appeal to the Court of Appeal from an order extending a private equitable receivership over a deceased employee's pension death benefits. The employee defrauded his employer, the Workers' Compensation Board, of over $1.1 million and was dismissed for cause. The employer obtained a default judgment and an order appointing a receiver over his future pension benefits, but the employee died before retiring, triggering a death benefit payable to his designated beneficiaries. The motion judge amended the original order to allow the receiver to collect the death benefits. The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, finding that the Pension Benefits Act exempts pension benefits from execution and that the designated beneficiaries had a contingent equitable right to the death benefits.

Monsanto Canada Inc. v. Ontario (Superintendent of Financial Services)

Monsanto Canada Inc. Pension Surplus Distribution Decision

This is an appeal to the Court of Appeal from a decision of the Divisional Court regarding the partial wind up of a pension plan. The employer, Monsanto Canada Inc., sought to partially wind up its defined benefit pension plan without distributing the actuarial surplus to the affected members. The Divisional Court decided that section 70(6) of the Pension Benefits Act requires the distribution of surplus to affected members on a partial wind up, setting aside the Financial Services Tribunal's majority decision. The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, holding that the Divisional Court correctly applied the reasonableness standard and that the employer's interpretation of the Act was unreasonable.

M. v. Toronto (City)

Pension Plan Trust Breach: By-law Invalidated

This case addresses whether By-law 186-2001, which required administrative costs to be paid from the Metropolitan Toronto Pension Plan, breached trust principles, contractual obligations, or the Pension Benefits Act. The court declared the by-law invalid for breaching trust terms, applying the Schmidt v. Air Products framework, and found no breach of the PBA due to the by-law's lack of implementation.

H. v. Ontario (Superintendent of Pensions)

H. v. Ontario (Superintendent of Pensions)

This is an appeal to the Court of Appeal from a Divisional Court decision dismissing an application for judicial review. Members of an importing company's pension plan sought to quash the Superintendent of Pensions' approval of a transfer of pension assets and liabilities from an exporting company following a business sale. The Divisional Court held that the Superintendent owed no duty of natural justice to the importing employees at the transfer stage, only to the exporting employees. The Court of Appeal agreed and dismissed the appeal because the importing employees' interests would be addressed and protected at the subsequent plan amendment stage.

Reichhold Ltd. v. W.

Pension Surplus Distribution: Employees Transferred to Successor Plan Not Entitled to Surplus

A case involving the transfer of employees to a successor employer's pension plan and whether they are entitled to share in the surplus distribution of the original employer's pension plan. The court ruled that transferred employees are not entitled to the surplus if assets and liabilities were properly transferred to the successor plan, under the Pension Benefits Act.

M. v. Ultramar Ltée.

This is an appeal to the Court of Appeal from a trial judge's decision regarding an employer's contractual obligation to pay pension benefits. The employee, D.M., was owed a monthly pension by his employer, Ultramar Ltd. The trial judge ruled that the employer's purchase of an annuity did not discharge its duty to pay the pension. The Court of Appeal agreed, noting that the pension plan lacked language releasing the employer from its payment obligation upon purchasing an annuity. The employer's appeal was dismissed.

GenCorp Canada Inc. v. Ontario (Superintendent of Pensions)

Pension Liability Dispute: Vendor Employer Liability After Business Sale

A merits decision involving the interpretation of the Pension Benefits Act regarding liability for 'grow in' benefits after a business sale and plant closure. The court upheld the Superintendent of Pensions' order for a partial wind-up of the pension plan and dismissed the vendor’s appeal.

St-Marys Paper Inc. (In Bankruptcy)

Bankruptcy Trustee Pension Liability Appeal

This appeal addresses whether a trustee in bankruptcy becomes an 'employer' liable for unfunded pension liabilities under the Pension Benefits Act when continuing to operate a bankrupt business and rehiring employees. The court analyzed the conflict between provincial pension legislation and the federal Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, finding no operational conflict under the doctrine of paramountcy. This decision was appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada, which upheld it (ST. Marys Paper Inc. (Re), [1996] 1 SCR 3). The appeal was dismissed as moot with costs, meaning the decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal stands.

St. Marys Paper Inc. (Re)

Trustee Liability for Pension Obligations

This case addresses whether a trustee in bankruptcy, who rehired employees of a bankrupt company, is liable for the company's unfunded pension liabilities under the Pension Benefits Act. The court determined that the trustee was deemed an 'employer' under the Act and that statutory obligations regarding pension contributions could not be avoided by contractual disclaimers in re-engagement letters. The case later reached the Supreme Court of Canada (ST. Marys Paper Inc. (Re), [1996] 1 SCR 3). The appeal was dismissed as moot with costs, meaning the decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal stands.

C.U.P.E. v. Ontario Hospital Assn.

C.U.P.E. v. Ontario Hospital Assn: Pension Plan Judicial Review

A judicial review concerning the jurisdiction of the Pension Commission of Ontario to hear an appeal regarding the Superintendent of Pensions' refusal to issue an order under the Pension Benefits Act, 1987. The court examined the statutory interpretation of the Act, specifically sections 88 and 90, and the role of trust agreements in multi-employer pension plans (MEPPs) like HOOPP.

Otis Canada Inc. v. Pension Commission (Ont.)

Pension Plan Wind-Up: Successor Plan Interpretation

This is a judicial review of an administrative decision by the Pension Commission concerning the interpretation of section 81(1) of the Pension Benefits Act. The central issue was whether the Commission correctly refused to approve a wind-up report for a pension plan where the employer had transferred employees to a new plan, raising questions about whether the new plan constituted a 'successor' plan. The Divisional Court allowed the appeal and remitted the matter to the Commission for reconsideration.

Firestone Canada Inc. v. Ontario (Pension Commission)

Pension Plan Eligibility: Plant Closure & Early Retirement

An appeal concerning the interpretation of section 75(1) of the Pension Benefits Act, 1987, specifically whether it overrides pension plan eligibility requirements for early retirement benefits when employees do not meet credited service thresholds due to plant closures. The Court of Appeal for Ontario addressed whether employees could 'grow into' eligibility for unreduced pensions and the statutory interpretation of 'in accordance with the terms of the pension plan'.

D. v. S.

A legal dispute concerning pension entitlements under the Pension Benefits Act, R.S.O. 1980, c. 373, s. 1(u)(ii).

Otis Canada Inc. v. Ontario (Superintendent of Pensions) (Gen. Div.)

Pension Surplus Reversion: Otis Canada v. Ontario

This is a judicial review or declaratory judgment proceeding regarding the entitlement of an employer to surplus funds in a non-contributory pension plan upon wind-up. The court examined whether the Pension Benefits Act, 1987, and the specific plan text allowed for the reversion of surplus funds to the employer after all member liabilities were satisfied. The decision focused on statutory interpretation of the surplus reversion clause and trust law principles regarding the vesting of pension funds.

A. v. Ontario Hospital Association (C.A.)

Pension Surplus Use: A. v. Ontario Hospital Association

This is an appeal to the Court of Appeal for Ontario concerning the use of surplus in a defined benefit pension plan. The central issue was whether the employer association was entitled to reduce its contributions based on the plan's surplus and whether doing so breached fiduciary duties or statutory requirements under the Pension Benefits Act.

Firestone Canada Inc. v. Ontario (Pension Commission) (H.C.J.)

Pension Eligibility: Growing Into Early Retirement Upon Wind-Up

This is a judicial review or statutory interpretation case concerning the eligibility for unreduced early retirement pensions under the Pension Benefits Act, 1987, following a plant closure. The court addressed whether employees could 'grow into' eligibility for benefits after the wind-up of the pension plan when they had not met credited service requirements at the time of closure. The court held that Section 75(1)(b) does not override specific plan terms regarding credited service.