The Civil Resolution Tribunal of British Columbia has dismissed a $5,000 claim by City Realty against a real estate contractor after finding the company fundamentally breached its agreement by failing to investigate a workplace harassment complaint.
The tribunal found City Realty’s inaction amounted to a fundamental breach of its independent contractor agreement (ICA) with a real estate agent and her corporation, freeing the respondents from any obligation to pay the remaining office fees.
Dispute over unpaid fees
City Realty entered into an ICA with the worker and her personal real estate corporation, which required monthly payments for office use, management fees, advertising, and other services. When the worker terminated the contract in September 2023, City Realty alleged she owed $5,000 in unpaid fees and sought recovery through the tribunal.
The worker, who represented herself, argued that she owed less than $800 after partial payment but withheld further amounts because City Realty failed to address her harassment complaint about another realtor. She said the company’s response — allegedly suggesting she ask her boyfriend to handle the matter — breached the ICA.
Tribunal examines breach claim
While the worker’s corporation did not file a formal response, the tribunal treated the case as contested because she participated personally. Tribunal member Mark Henderson noted that City Realty did not respond to the harassment allegations in its submissions, allowing the tribunal to infer that the company did not investigate the complaint.
The tribunal found that City Realty’s Policy and Procedure Manual prohibited workplace bullying and harassment and required the employer to investigate complaints promptly. Henderson determined that this obligation formed an implied term of the ICA, consistent with the company’s duty to provide a safe working environment.
“I find that this implied term included City Realty’s obligation to comply with its sexual harassment and bullying policy by investigating harassment complaints promptly,” the tribunal wrote.
Failure to investigate deemed fundamental breach
The tribunal found that City Realty’s failure to investigate the harassment complaint undermined the purpose of the ICA, particularly the worker’s ability to use the office space—a key benefit under the agreement.
“To the extent that City Realty’s failure to investigate the harassment complaint undermined the safe workplace, I find that it impaired [the worker’s] use of the desk rental, which was a primary benefit of the ICA,” the decision said.
Because that failure destroyed the contract’s essential purpose, the tribunal ruled that the worker was entitled to terminate the ICA and owed no further office fees.
Claim dismissed
As a result, City Realty’s claim for $5,000 was dismissed in full. The tribunal also declined to award City Realty reimbursement for tribunal fees, noting it was the unsuccessful party. Neither side claimed additional dispute-related expenses.
For more information, see City Realty Ltd. v. Maxwell Personal Real Estate Corporation, 2025 BCCRT 1549 (CanLII).
