- Parties: The applicant was Desgagnés Marine Petro Inc. The respondent was Pierre-Marie Broudic.

- Subject Matter: In June 2020, the respondent signed a contract as a permanent ship captain with the applicant, which operated in the shipping industry. In 2021, the applicant terminated his employment based on his supposedly authoritarian leadership style, which allegedly led to a difficult work atmosphere on board the vessel and contravened the applicant’s Code of Ethics and Conduct. The respondent filed an unjust dismissal complaint. An external arbitrator appointed under s. 12.001(1) of the Canada Labour Code, 1985 made a decision allowing his complaint. The decision found that the applicant failed to meet the burden of proving the allegations in support of the respondent’s dismissal through facts, actions, or words. A judicial review application challenged this decision.

- Ruling: The appeal court ruled in the respondent’s favour and dismissed the judicial review application. The appeal court found the decision reasonable and procedurally fair. The decision, with internally consistent reasons, found that a single crew member provided the only direct evidence of incidents involving the respondent and that a review of those incidents failed to support the applicant’s claims.

- Date: The hearing was set on Oct. 31, 2024. The court released its decision on Oct. 31, 2024.

- Venue: This was a federal case before the Federal Court of Appeal.

- Amount: The appeal court awarded costs in an unspecified amount.