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Bill C-45 made amendments to The Criminal Code whereby under the new section 217.1 "Everyone who undertakes, or has the authority, to direct how another person does work or performs a task is under a legal duty to take reasonable steps to prevent bodily harm to that person, or any other person, arising from that work or task". (i.e. an explicit duty has been established on the part of those with responsibility for directing the work of others, requiring them to take reasonable steps to prevent bodily harm arising to those whom they direct. Thus persons in positions of authority are responsible for their subordinates' health and safety.)

Both our CLEI and our C-45 products provide indemnity for the legal costs associated with the defence of criminal charges arising from Bill C-45.

Commercial Legal Expenses Insurance? Just an Extra Cost or a Real Benefit?
Commercial Legal Expenses Insurance as an addition to a Business Insurance policy may have seemed an unnecessary expense in the past, but a significant rise in litigation is causing an upsurge in the number of businesses requesting cover. (Read More)

Legal-costs insurance needs official boost, says longtime provider
Earlier this month, DAS Canada received its insurance licence from the Financial Services Commission of Ontario, a move that paves the way for it to offer insurance policies covering... (Read More)

Workers Union Pursue Criminal Charges for B.C Worker's Death
The United Steelworkers (USW) has launched a private prosecution against Weyerhaeuser Company Ltd. last week, claiming that the British Columbia-based firm was... (Read More)

Another Attempt to Lay Criminal Charges in Workplace Fatality
A recent case has tested Bill C-45, the amendment to the Criminal Code that attached criminal responsibility to an organization or corporation for negligence related to health and safety in the workplace, and... (Read More)

Workplace Safety: Another Criminal Code Prosecution
For the third time, police have laid Bill C-45 Criminal Code charges arising from a workplace fatality. Millennium Crane Rentals of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, along with two individuals, have been charged with criminal negligence causing death... (Read More)

Bill C-45 lives: Worker death sparks criminal negligence charges
In what should serve as a stark reminder for both employers and individuals, police in Ontario recently charged a corporate employer
and two individuals with criminal negligence causing death after a fatal workplace accident at a construction project... (Read More)

OH&S corporate criminal liability rears its head again in Canada
These events demonstrate that, while criminal prosecutions for workplace accidents remain rare, the police will not hesitate to pursue criminal charges as they deem appropriate... (Read More)

C-45 Makes Its Debut, Fines Grow and OHS Laws Play Catch Up with the 21st Century
The biggest headline of 2008 was the first conviction of a corporation under C-45. However, the size of a headline isn't always the best way to judge the significance of historic events... (Read More)