Inside an $800,000 wrongful dismissal awardTrying to create cause for dismissal and changing 30-year employee’s severance prompts jury to heap big penalty on employerBy Chris Forguson11/14/2012|Canadian Employment Law Today|Last Updated: 11/14/2012 Big award from juryOn June 29, 2012, a panel of eight jurors in Prince George, B.C., handed in its verdict in the case of Larry Higginson v. Babine Forest Products Ltd. and Hampton Lumber Mills Inc., following a three-week wrongful dismissal trial. The jury awarded sawmill worker Larry Higginson compensatory damages of $236,407 and punitive damages of $572,814. At the time, the punitive damage award set a high-water mark for punitive damages flowing from a wrongful dismissal in Canada.How did this case end up before a jury — a rare occasion in employment law cases? Why such a high damage award? Chris Forguson of Tevlin Gleadle Strategists, who represented fired worker Higginson in the trial, shares his account of the case. To Read the Full Story, Subscribe or Sign In Remember Me Forgot Password If you are a current Subscriber, please click here to set-up or update your login information.