Our Take On Things
You might be an Independent Contractor if …
The Greater Toronto Area, within the past year or so, has been “blessed” with a new a.m. radio station that plays all comedy all the time. As a result, my memories of Jeff Foxworthy and his comedy routine have been re-kindled and in a weird way, inspired this Blog....
So you think you can avoid paying a Judgment?
Business owners who pay legal fees to obtain a Judgment are often worried that they will be defeated by debtors who will somehow manage to avoid paying the Judgment. This type of concern is definitely something that needs to be factored in, when evaluating: do we...
Even Small Businesses should register their trademarks
The word trademark sounds important to many. It sounds big. It sounds expensive. As a result, many small businesses believe that registering a trademark for their name and/or log is not important. While cost is always a consideration in any business decision,...
A Quick Summary of Commercial Tenancy Distraints
If you are a commercial landlord, then you may have some knowledge of executing a distraint to collect rent owed to you. If you are owed rent monies, then you have the right (unless it’s been removed in the lease) to take the chattels of your tenant and sell them,...
Employers, it's getting harder to prove "undue hardship" in failure to accomodate.
As a Business Law Firm, a growing part of our practice is advising and representing employers in Applications before the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO). If your business has not been hit with an Application, you may feel this Blog is irrelevant to you: think...
Employers: here are some changes to the Employment Standards Act you need to be aware of.
On October 29, 2014, Ontario Employers are required to provide three new types of leave to employees who qualify for those leaves. The leaves are: 1. Crime-Related Death or Disappearance Leave; 2. Critically Ill Child Care Leave; and, 3. Family Caregiver Leave. 1....
The New Code of Conduct for Lawyers
So, the public might imagine that the Law Society of Upper Canada's release of new Rules of Conduct for lawyers next month is directly tied to the lawyer who was just caught, allegedly improperly disbursing trust money. The public would be wrong. Yesterday the Law...
Using a Lawyer is better than going it alone and there is science to prove it !
Here’s some interesting information on why having a lawyer advocate on your behalf is a good idea. A recent study came out in the Journal of Empirical Legal Studies titled “Lawyer and Nonlawyer Susceptibility to Framing Effects in Out-of –Court Civil Litigation...
So you're starting Law School this week
Normally this Blog is about Business Law Topics, well, that and the occasional rant about something one of us in the firm is going on about and needs to share with the rest of the universe. This Blog, however, is addressed to those of you starting Law School this...
The expectation of privacy at work and in work emails
I read a column in the Globe & Mail this week called "Nine to Five". An employee had written in complaining that her boss was in her office, looking through documents, though she had locked the door. The answers no doubt surprised the employee: the boss was within...
The lawyer as Mentor
As a business lawyer, my favourite hat to wear is that of business litigator. I truly enjoy my role in the court room above any other. However, there are many other interesting hats I wear and as I become more senior in the practice, those hats are worn more and more...
The end of Canadian Passport Shopping?
Our federal government has made good on its promise from 2012 to end the days of bogus Canadian citizenship applications. I for one applaud these steps. My parents and my wife’s family immigrated to Canada starting in the 1950’s. They settled in Canada, worked hard,...
The Changes to Small Claims Court in Ontario
Proceeding with an Action in Small Claims has changed as of July 1, 2014. It’s not a big change, but it is a change (honestly, we’re a little disappointed that the changes are not bigger). Prior to July 1, 2014 a defendant who wanted to defend a lawsuit had to file...
30-60-90 Sue®, still applies in the summer
Our firm has a great program to help businesses ensure they get paid promptly - it's a program that regiments when and who you contact on unpaid accounts. Interestingly though, come summer, many businesses suddenly ease up on their payment timelines. Just because...
Vacation Dilemas – to unplug or not to unplug ?
I'm just back from a two week break having enjoyed scuba diving in Ohio (I don't recommend it ... the location, not the diving) and then time up north paddling amongst the loons and other wildlife. As luck would have it, my internet connections were poor to...
A new way to be a licensed Lawyer in Ontario (it might be the better way)
I've been called to the Bar of Ontario since 1993 - that's 21 years for those keeping score. In order to become a lawyer I had to: 1. graduate from law school with an LLB; 2. attend a one month practical Bar Admission Course; 3. Article (intern) with a law firm for a...
Happy Canada Day – Unhappy CASL Day !
It's July 1, let's celebrate 147 years of our Country by bringing the commercial use of email to a screeching halt. I'm not going to repeat what you need to do to comply with the Canadian Anti-Spam Legislation here. Scroll down our Blog and read the CASL Blog for that...
Small Claims Court Delays add to Costs for users
Our firm always looks at a litigation file that we’re starting from the perspective of how to obtain money (not just a paper Judgment) for our client in the fastest, most economical way possible. This is the viewpoint from which this Blog is written. In Ontario, you...
You have a Judgment, now let's get you money.
Judgments entitling you to money are just pretty pieces of paper until you take steps to enforce it. Those Judgments can cost a lot of legal fees to obtain and there should be no satisfaction in obtaining a Judgment that only has value of principle, rather than...
Less than one month until Canadian Anti-Spam Legislation takes effect – are you ready?
July 1, 2014 everything changes for business in Canada when it comes to Commercial Electronic Messages (CEMs) thanks to Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL). There are a lot of businesses in Canada who do not understand the law will apply to them: "we don't spam" is...
Lawyers behaving badly
There are some days it is harder to maintain my cool than others, the humidity in the GTA today makes it harder, but that it not what I'm talking about. Those days are when, generally, young counsel, stoop to name calling, taking positions not supportable by case law...