Our Take On Things
The Law has a sense of humour – honest !
April Fools Day is almost upon us and as tempting as it is to prank our Blog, I think that April Fools jokes are probably best left to my personal, rather than professional life (my family is hereby on notice of potential pranks and warned that any pranks played on...
Massive Changes to the Internet Domain Name System
Are you ready for the changes that are coming to the internet domain name registry system? If you do business on the internet, or if your online presence represents a significant aspect of your brand, then you better get ready. After years of consultation and...
Lawyer Client Confidentiality
One of the benefits of using a lawyer instead of an accountant or paralegal is that what you tell your lawyer cannot be revealed to others. Many people don't realize that if they have evaded income tax and speak to their accountant about it, the accountant can be...
Nail down the terms of the contract before the contract is breached
So, lets say you have a contract with, oh lets say your spouse. We don't handle family law here, but let's say it's a prenup. Imagine if you can, that you have stepped out on your spouse during your relatively brief marriage, more times than you have fingers and in a...
Getting the Name Right
Of all the arcane legal trivia I have picked up over the years of study and practice, one thing that I have never come across, is the reason for the various legal endings that exist for business corporations; there are nine: Limited Limitée Incorporated Incorporée...
Plain English for All
Have you ever received a document from a lawyer and not been able to make sense of it - if you are our client, the answer is likely no. If the answer is yes, please call me directly. When I was in law school 20 years ago there was a new movement called " Plain...
H1N1 – The Legal Side of this Flu
Word out of the newspapers this morning is that H1N1 is now in the Greater Toronto, Hamilton & London areas of Ontario. While you likely have a sense of what this means for you in your personal life (I suggest buying stock in antibacterial gel companies) you may...
Landlord Liability for Tenant Damages
A recent Court of Appeal case affirming an earlier Supreme Court decision, provides some interesting, and possibly surpirsing, commentary on the allocation of risk in commercial leases. In 1044589 Ontario Inc. carrying on business as Nantucket Business Centre v AB...
Go Canada – Own the Podium !
We are interrupting the usual legal topics on this blog due to the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Boy do I love the Olympics – you? Boy do I love controversy - of course I do, I’m a trial lawyer. Boy do I love the concept of Owning the Podium - if only it were actually...
Changes to a Contract
This week NBC announced that its failed experiment with late night television in prime time was coming to end – sending Jay Leno back to 11:35 p.m. and bumping Conan O’Brien back after midnight. I’m not privy to the details of either Leno’s or O’Brien’s contracts,...
Season’s Greetings
It is the time of year when we prepare to celebrate various religious, cultural and seasonal holidays and festivals. As business lawyers, we are increasingly called on to advise clients as to the best way to enjoy these celebrations with a minimum of offence and a...
Tis the season to be smart
As the holiday season is quickly approaching the issue of the Employer's liability for accidents that can be traced back, even remotely to drinking at a holiday party hosted by the Employer or simply having a beer or two, or spiked Egg Nog is something you need to...
The Importance of Knowing your Customer
Many clients come to our firm seeking help to get paid on outstanding invoices and contracts. A common question for new clients to ask is: do I have to pay if the defendant turns out not to have assets and our answer is yes – we charge our rates as stated to you up...
The Small Claims Court Limit is Changing
In only a few short months, your options when litigating a claim are going to dramatically change. On January 1, 2010, the limit for claims that can be brought in the Small Claims Courts in Ontario will increase to $25,000.00. That is a huge increase from the current...
Planning For a Business Break-up
There is a great article in the Globe and Mail this week about the breakup of the business partnership behind the popular restaurant Le Papillon. The story is an excellent example of what can go right when people plan ahead for the future of a business, and when,...
The Expectation of Privacy in the Workplace
We are often asked to act for clients who have issues that stem from a conflict of privacy expectations in the workplace. The expectation never seems to come to a head until there is point issue such as a termination or a workplace incident. At that point we’re...
New Year, New Rules
2010 - it's a whole new world out there for civil litigation - is your law firm up on all the changes? (If we're your law firm, the answer is yes, by the way.) Here is a quick highlight of two important changes: Small Claims Court now goes up to $ 25 000.00 - don't...
The Most Reliable Law Firm Ever
Have you been following this ridiculous Rogers/Bell/Telus wars regarding " the most reliable " title ? Wow. A tonne of legal fees have been spent on this and at the end of the day - how important is this victory? Most business people I speak to are not swayed by...
Termination Pay in the Contract for Employment
In Ontario, and in most Canadian jurisdictions, the law allows an employer to end a contract of employment, and to thereby terminate an employee, at any time. If the termination is for cause, then you had better be ready to prove it. If the termination is without...
Dipping Your Pen in Company Ink
Last week’s televised revelation by David Letterman regarding his affairs with former staffers has brought considerable attention to the issue of workplace romance - and all of the problems that come along with it. But from a legal perspective, how should you, the...
Papering the Deal
Many of our clients are involved either in lending transactions or are providing significant goods and services on account. As the economy fluctuates and uncertainty abounds, we are seeing an increase in the number of clients looking to “paper” these transactions and...