2026 May 29

Unite Here, Local 40 v. Civeo Corporation, 2026 BCSC 996

The  Supreme Court of British Columbia dismissed the petitioning Union’s application for a Court Order to quash an arbitration award to the employer of $400,000 general damages for widespread online defamation.  The Court ruled, however, that the Union’s ground of review concerning an award of $100,000 to the employer as punitive damages should succeed.  The Reconsideration Panel “fell into error by accepting and adopting factors that underpinned the Arbitrator’s punitive damages award when those factors had already been taken into account in the Arbitrator’s assessment of general damages for defamation. By doing so, the Reconsideration Panel was patently unreasonable by not adhering to the well-establishing principle that punitive damages bear no relation to what the aggrieved party should receive by way of compensation in general damages.”  In these circumstances, the Court remitted the matter back to the Reconsideration Panel for rehearing to assess the issue of punitive damages.