Lincoln Wagner is a 40-year-old man living in Ottawa.  He has a wife and two children; a boy who is 10 years old, and a girl who is six years old. He has lived in Ottawa for 15 years. He moved to Ottawa from Toronto when he got married.  He is very active and plays recreational soccer and hockey.  Weather permitting, he also occasionally goes skiing or snowshoeing.

A year ago, Mr. Wagner was hired as a project manager by DreamIt Limited (DI Ltd).  As part of his arrangement with DI Ltd, he signed a contract that stated he was an "independent contractor".  The contract wording confirmed that he "operated his own business" and was "providing services" to DI Ltd.  Over the last year, DI Ltd would advertise and bid on projects, as well as provide the materials, and Mr. Wagner would perform the work in exchange for a fixed amount per contract. This arrangement worked out for a while but after completing one major job, DI Ltd refused to pay Mr. Wagner because it alleged that Mr. Wagner's work was substandard. Mr. Wagner told DI Ltd that he intended to file a complaint with the Ministry of Labour under the Employment Standards Act. DI Ltd responded, "How are you going to do that when you're not even an employee?" 

Mr. Wagner has retained the firm to assist him with this matter.  He wants to be paid for his last job and wants to know if he had a legal right to do so.

The lawyer handling the matter is trying to determine if the client is an employee or an independent contractor.  With that goal, he has asked you to determine if a signed contract, stating that a party is an independent contractor, is determinative of that party's status at the workplace. 

1. What are the relevant facts?   
2. What is the general area of private law? (Category/division of law within private law.  Be specific.)  
3. What is the specific area? (Subcategory(ies) of law - be specific.) 
4. What are the keywords that identify the general and specific area of law?  

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

Relevant Facts 1 Lincoln Wagner is a 40yearold man living in Ottawa 2 He has a wife and two children ... View the full answer