Is an employer liable if an employee or agent goes off on some frolic unrelated to their duties?

Alberta, Canada


The following excerpt is from Foley-Cornish v. Nabors Drilling Limited, 2007 ABQB 250 (CanLII):

The employer will not be liable if the employee or agent goes off on some frolic unrelated to the performance of his or her duties. In such cases the agent clearly departs from the scope of employment, and there is no basis for holding the employer vicariously liable. Battistoni v. Thomas, 1932 CanLII 255 (SCC), [1932] S.C.R. 144 (S.C.C.).

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