Business
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January 21, 2026
Family agreements, part one: Governance of multigenerational family businesses
The lifecycle of an owner-managed business can vary significantly. In some instances, the owner-manager may choose to sell the business or wind it up when they retire. Conversely, the owner-manager may instead choose to transition the business to the next generation, maintaining it as a family enterprise. Where the business is to be transitioned to the next generation, effective succession planning is essential. As part of such succession planning, a family shareholders’ agreement (a “family agreement”) often serves as the “family rule book.”
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January 21, 2026
B.C. court bars franchisor from blocking sale over related company’s debt
A B.C. Supreme Court judge has ordered a franchisor to release part of franchise sale proceeds held in trust, finding it had no legal basis to withhold consent to a sale until the resolution of a dispute concerning an alleged debt owed by a separate, related corporation.
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January 21, 2026
Alberta Court of Appeal considers jump principle in determining appropriate sentence
Before dawn on a winter morning in Calgary, a brief encounter in a deserted school parking lot set in motion a chain of events that would carry a 20-year-old man from street-level allegations to years of appellate scrutiny and a penitentiary sentence measured in years.
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January 21, 2026
Watson Goepel names Dalene Visser and Shashika Stanislaus as partners
Watson Goepel LLP has welcomed Dalene Visser and Shashika Stanislaus to its partnership, according to the Vancouver firm.
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January 21, 2026
Cox & Palmer names 3 new partners in St. John’s
Cox & Palmer has promoted Neala J. Kielley, Kyle Mercer and Brett M.K. Ludlow to partner in its St. John’s, N.L., office, according to the firm.
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January 21, 2026
Billable hours, client trauma and vicarious stress in legal practice
Lawyers who live in a billable-hour world know that time is money, but for those working with traumatic subject matter, time equals exposure. The more hours spent inside a client’s worst days, the more likely it is that the work follows you home at night.
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January 20, 2026
B.C. postpones Heritage Conservation Act amendments to seek more feedback
The British Columbia government is postponing the introduction of proposed amendments to its Heritage Conservation Act, which were originally anticipated for spring 2026.
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January 20, 2026
B.C. court finds retroactive share repurchase at low valuation unfair to former employees
The B.C. Supreme Court has held that the retroactive amendment and application of shareholder agreements to compel the repurchase of shares held by former employees under a stock option plan was unfairly prejudicial, and ordered the company to pay more than US$100,000 in compensation.
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January 20, 2026
Alberta regulator warns investors of AI-driven scams, private chat frauds in 2026
The Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) is warning the province’s investors about the top three scams and misleading tactics to be wary of in 2026, and how they can protect themselves.
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January 20, 2026
New Alberta rules aimed at boosting water storage, conservation
Alberta has revealed new rules for water use in the province.