Legal Illustrations 5

Peoples Department Stores Inc. (Trustee of) v. Wise, [2004] 3 S.C.R. 461

• The corporations' interests are not to be confused with the interests of the creditors or those of any other stakeholder.
• s. 122(1)(a) of the CBCA requires directors and officers to act in good faith and honestly vis-à-vis the corporation.
• An honest and good faith attempt to redress a corporation’s financial problems does not, if unsuccessful, qualify as such a breach
• The fiduciary duty does not change when a corporation is in the nebulous “vicinity of insolvency”
• There is no need to read the interests of creditors into the fiduciary duty set out in s. 122(1)(a) in light of the availability under the CBCA both of the Oppression remedy and a Duty of Care action

You know, I couldn't find a real picture of the Wise Brothers, or a decent picture of a People's Department Store. So what was I supposed to do? I know the exam is tomorrow and I'm not even at 60% on my summary, but this is an important case. It deserves its own illustration.