Our Take On Things

There was a time when a Blog with this title was only, ever about Small Claims Court.  That’s not the case today. In Ontario, the Rules of Civil Procedure govern steps in a lawsuit.  The Associate Judges and Judges interpret and apply those Rules and in the past,...

(Alternate Title: Voter Turnout – SHOW THE F UP!) In light of the recent Municipal Election, I’ve swapped my law student hat for my political hat, and I decided to write this week’s blog on the importance of voter turnout and participation. The Association of...

Are you electronically spying… ahem …we mean “monitoring” your employees? Well, you will be pleased to know that nothing under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (Ontario) (“ESA”) prevents you from doing so. It is not uncommon in this digital age for employers to...

We are now just about a year after the launch of the Ministry’s Ontario Business Registry and I thought it would be a great chance to revisit my previous blog on the matter. When I first wrote about the new Registry, I mentioned the issues with learning curves and...

In my last blog post, I discussed the role of technology in improving the efficiency of our judicial system and increasing access to justice. For those of you who might not have watched the opening of the courts earlier this month, Chief Justice Geoffrey Morawetz...

There is a new frustration that is slowly becoming a problem: Small Claims Court offices making their own rules and procedures which do not follow Ministry guidelines, which is causing unnecessary delays.  Here are a few examples: We recently served a corporate...

Lots of collection litigation is rolling into the firm again.  The talk of the R word, the increase in interest rates are all coming together to have people take a hard look at their receivables.  Of course, the fact we’re just into the last quarter of 2022...

Some time ago, Inga asked me to look into some resources to present to our firm ahead of the September 30th Truth and Reconciliation Day.   I stumbled upon the Legacy of Hope Foundation, which is an organization that aims to educate and create awareness about the...

If you are an avid blog reader of ours, you may remember that my last blog post was about the importance of getting your employment agreements reviewed periodically. This ensures that your agreements are still compliant with both current legislation and case law,...

Well, there goes the summer.  Did you get to enjoy it?  I sure did, and had a few sunburns to show for it.  But as with every summer that comes and goes, I always think to myself that I can no longer wear my white pants.    Speaking of...

When I entered the legal field as an articling student in 2019, I was well aware of the legal profession’s reputation for being resistant to change. But in 2020, I watched just about every aspect of this profession adapt to become digital as courts adopted new...

As mentioned in previous blogs I’m sure, Garnishments are Court Orders that are obtained by a Creditor after judgment is awarded, where the Court orders a party (the Garnishee) to pay the Creditor the amount provided in the Notice of Garnishment. How much is garnished...

I’m taking my turn on the Firm’s Blog this week to talk about some changes you may have noticed on my social media (LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter @ingatalk) over the past month.   Some of my posts have the #LawyerMentor and #LawyerCoach labels and the content is...

Most would think that moving and adjusting to life in another country is the toughest part of being an international student. However, the most critical part of making the decision to pursue a degree in another country should be this: what happens after I get my...

Do you remember the last time you had your employee contracts reviewed by a lawyer? Hopefully, in the very least it was at the time they were created! Don’t get us started on the number of clients who previously created and relied solely on their own employment...

I’m one of those people who doesn’t really celebrate my birthday, or anniversaries.  It can get tiring year after year.  Yes, I’m a year older, thank you.  I don’t really want to be reminded of that.  I do always make sure others in my life are...

Did you ever hear the tragedy of the modern lawyer? I thought not. It’s not a story that law schools would tell you. It’s not a Sith legend but a story all too common when I sit down and chat with my peers in the legal field. Whether we’re in litigation or...

A client had a vehicle delivered to them for repairs.  However, after those repairs were complete, the owner never returned and essentially abandoned the vehicle which ended up being forgotten by our client for some time…oops! They wanted to proceed with a Notice...

There is a phrase that was common when I was a young lawyer:  it takes years to build your legal reputation and a moment to lose it. The phrase needs to be brought back into fashion. As a lawyer, my words carry extreme weight.  I choose them carefully.  If I...

It’s been a challenging and dark week since the Supreme Court in the United States overturned the decision in Roe v Wade, which protects one’s freedom to choose to have an abortion. This landmark case was important, as it provided legal and safe access to abortion in...

When a tenant and a landlord enter into a commercial lease agreement without a lawyer, they often do so wearing rose-coloured glasses. They can’t see the potential pitfalls and worst-case scenarios that lay ahead in their new-found relationship. The plan is to lease a...