Canada’s Guide to Coronavirus Outbreak Legal Issues

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As the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues to spread uncertainty worldwide, many consumers are now looking for clarity in legal assistance. Here is our sanitized guide to the coronavirus outbreak that will be continually updated with the latest in legal news. 

COVID-19 Economic Aid Package Passed to Help Canadians Amid Pandemic

A $107 billion economic aid package has been passed to help Canadians cope with job losses and other economic impacts due to the coronavirus. 

Workers may be entitled to $2,000 per month for four months. Freelancers who currently don’t have access to unemployment insurance will have access to the Canada Emergency Response Benefit.

The package also provides $2 billion in extra support for Canada Child Benefit payments and an interest-free postponement of student loan payments. 

$305 million will go toward an Indigenous Community Support Fund to address immediate needs in First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nation communities.

This comes as hundreds of thousands of Canadian workers face unemployment. 

Learn more about the coronavirus economic aid package and what benefits you may qualify for by clicking here. 

Canada’s Competition Bureau Cracks Down on Price Fixing Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

Canada’s Competition Bureau is cracking down on anyone taking advantage of businesses or consumers during the coronavirus pandemic.

Violations can include deceptive marketing practices or collusion schemes with competitors that drive up the price of goods. 

Violation of Canada’s competition laws can carry steep fines of individual penalties up to $750,000, or up to $10,000,000 for corporations involved in false or misleading advertising.

Unfortunately, there have already been several instances of businesses taking advantage of consumers during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Find out here how you can report an individual or business you witness violating Canada’s competition laws.

Habitat for Humanity Residents Allowed to Stay in Homes During Coronavirus Pandemic

Hundreds of Habitat for Humanity residents in Edmonton have been given a reprieve from a contract dispute that threatened to force them out of their homes. 

Habitat for Humanity Edmonton agreed to temporarily refrain from forcing the group of 300 people from their homes during the coronavirus pandemic.

The group reportedly refused the terms of a new mortgage deal presented by the nonprofit home builder, that would force residents from an interest-free mortgage to a mortgage partially financed by a credit union.  

The Habitat for Humanity residents were seeking a court order allowing them to stay in their homes as a class action lawsuit over the dispute made its way through the legal system before the coronavirus pandemic began.

Read more about the Habitat for Humanity contract dispute by clicking here.

Coronavirus Pandemic Causes Canadian Courts to Postpone Trials

Canada’s justice system is not exempt from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Courts all over Canada have closed their doors and postponed trials.

Alberta’s Court of Queen’s Bench has adjourned all trials for at least 10 weeks, noting that only urgent matters will be granted hearings.

Ontario has also put a temporary stop to all jury trials in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

While these measures are useful in the short-term, many are concerned about how the justice system will function once the worst of the coronavirus concerns have passed.

Defense lawyers are also concerned about the amount of time people charged with a crime will remain in custody due to trial postponement.

Learn more here about the court closures.

Coronavirus Forces Prisons to Suspend Inmate Visits and Many Fear There Will Be Consequences

In an effort to slow the coronavirus spread, jails and prisons across Canada have indefinitely suspended in-person visits with inmates.

Facilities run by Correctional Service Canada are only allowing phone calls and video visitations while jails in Ontario are allowing phone calls and professional visits.

The move has many people concerned about possible backlash from inmates in Canada. 

Inmates in Italy rioted after the prisons there put restrictions on visits to contain the coronavirus spread. The riot left six inmates dead. 

Learn more about the coronavirus inmate visitation restrictions here. 

Have you been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic? Tell us your story in the comment section below!