COVID-19, Temporary Layoffs and Claims of Constructive Dismissal
Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 provides employers with the ability to place employees on a temporary layoff for a specific period of time.* However the pre-COVID-19 case law (I fully expect that there will be a post-COVID case law era) has largely held that unless the employment contract expressly provides for the possibility of a […]
Injuries Sustained During High Impact Sports
In 2019, over 600,000 Canadians laced up their skates and took to the ice. Children as young as twelve years old register to play football and soccer is the fastest growing sport in Canada with over one million participants. Inevitably, such fast-paced, high-impact sports run the risk of resulting in injury. It begs the question, […]
Vendor Financing in the Purchase of a Business
In carrying out a purchase and sale of a business, it is not uncommon for a potential purchaser to have difficulties in obtaining financing through traditional financial institutions such as banks or credit unions. As an alternative, the vendor may be agreeable to providing some or all of the financing to the purchaser. Vendor financing […]
A Burning Issue: Disclosure in Family Law
A recent case (and article from the Ottawa Citizen) provides an example of the lengths to which some parties will go to avoid full and frank financial disclosure. Mr. McConville claims to have burned just over $1 million rather than share it (or any information about it) with his ex-wife, and is found by the […]
I’ve Heard of Defamation, but What is It?
In law, people have a free-standing right to their good name and reputation in the community. This is particularly important for people who occupy positions of trust, such as teachers, lawyers, doctors, and politicians. When false words are written or spoken that damage someone’s reputation, that person can sue the speaker or author of those […]
Incorporation for Real Estate Agents (updated July 8, 2020)
In an effort to “create a stronger business environment”, the Ontario government passed Bill 145, the Trust in Real Estate Services Act, in March 2020, which amended the Real Estate and Business Brokers Act to allow real estate professionals to incorporate and, therefore, benefit from lower tax rates, tax deferrals, income splitting opportunities and transfers […]
Employees Living with Cancer
I received a call the other day from a client, the owner of a local business, who had just learned that one of his employees was going to be undergoing cancer treatment. He wanted to know what his obligations were as the individual’s employer and whether there were ways he could help. Over the past […]
Jingle All the Way: Access Over Christmas
Most Separation Agreements or Court Orders will make special provisions for access over the holidays. Whether that means just Christmas Eve until Boxing Day, or the whole Christmas school break will depend on the particular family and the ages of the children. Families of different faiths will often make special provisions for access over Eid […]
I’m on Salary. Does That Mean I Don’t Get Overtime?
Employees can be paid hourly, on commission, or receive a salary. Employees and employers often are curious as to overtime entitlement. Many assume that when an employee is “on salary”, they are not entitled to overtime. Importantly, however, this is only true where the salaried employee is a manager (not just in title, but in […]