Canada ( Attorney General ) v. Savarie
A-704-95
Marceau J.A.
27/9/96
6 pp.
Application for judicial review of decision by Umpire acting under Unemployment Insurance Act-All teachers employed by Catholic school boards in province of Quebec having terms of appointment determined by collective agreement-Under agreement, teachers credited with certain number of sick leaves which, if not used in course of year, cashable on final day of each school year-Money accordingly received subject to allocation in accordance with Unemployment Insurance Regulations, ss. 57, 58-According to Commission, mode of allocation of earnings "payable to a claimant by reason of . . . separation from an employment" that provided for in Regulations, s. 58(9)-According to Umpire, Regulations, s. 58(9) implying some direct causal connection rather than pure coincidence between separation from employment and payment of leaves convertible into cash-Causal connection not existing here as payment owing at conclusion of school year to all teachers, without distinction between those whose contracts of appointment implicitly deemed renewable and those whose contracts terminate at that point-Cause of payment not end of employment contract, but collective agreement, terms and conditions of which fixing time when payment to become payable-If, in some cases, time same as termination of appointments, merely coincidence-Application allowed-Argument adopted by Umpire based on mistaken interpretation of expression "by reason of"-Expression "by reason of" cannot be taken in strict sense of "caused by", as argument presupposes-Payment made "by reason of" separation from employment within meaning of provision when becomes due, payable at time of termination of employment, when "triggered" by expiration of period of employment-Unemployment Insurance Regulations, C.R.C., c. 1576, s. 58(9) (as am. by SOR/89-550, s. 1).