In this issue:

The Supreme Court of Canada has released its long anticipated judgment in RBC Dominion Securities Inc. ("RDS") v. Merrill Lynch Canada Inc. ("Merrill Lynch") et al. which confirms the legal obligations of departing employees to their employer when they leave to accept employment with a competitor. In RDS v. Merrill Lynch, the Branch Manager orchestrated the departure of employees at the RDS Branch in Cranbrook, B.C. to the employment of Merrill Lynch taking information regarding the business of RDS and soliciting the business of the clients of RDS.

The Supreme Court of Canada reinstated the damages awarded by the Trial Judge to RDS of approximately $1.5 million that had been set aside by the B.C. Court of Appeal. The Judgment  of the Supreme Court of Canada confirms that a departing employee in a managerial position who may not be a fiduciary, has an implied duty to act in good faith which in this case meant encouraging employees to continue in their employment with RDS as opposed to orchestrating the departure to a competitor in a highly competitive industry.

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