Few areas of employment law cause as much confusion as the duty to accommodate persons with disabilities in the workplace. Under the Ontario Human Rights Code (“Code”), every person has a right to equal treatment with respect to employment without discrimination because of disability.
The primary strategy in dealing with wrongful dismissal files in the early stages involves making judgment calls about which key issues will make a significant difference to a satisfactory settlement or litigation result in the case. While that may be true of any legal matter, wrongful dismissal advocacy is particularly amenable to early settlement or, […]
This paper will provide an overview of the common features of Long Term Disability (“LTD”) insurance contracts, and will provide a primer on the remedies and damages available in LTD litigation. Finally, we will offer practical tips on managing LTD litigation.
When an employer has grounds to believe that one or more of its employees are engaged in activity that is contrary to the company policy and/or contrary to law, there are a number of important issues to consider when deciding how to proceed. These issues can be broken down into a series of questions. The […]
The Supreme Court’s recent decision in Khosa represents its first significant guidance with regard to the implementation of the standard of review analysis post-Dunsmuir (Dunsmuir v. New Brunswick, [2008] 1 S.C.R. 190, 2008 SCC 9). This decision provides some insight into how the standard of review analysis should be conducted after elimination of the most […]
In 2008, legislative amendments to the Ontario Human Rights Code (“Code”) removed the right of parties to appeal decisions of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (“HRTO” or “Tribunal”) to the courts. With the removal of appeal rights, decisions of the HRTO can now only be revisited by way of a judicial review before the […]
As a result of Bill 168, the Occupational Health and Safety Act, (the “OHSA” or “Act”) now imposes obligations on employers to maintain policies and programs with respect to preventing both workplace violence and harassment. While the requirement to maintain such policies and programs is well established, what is less certain is what remedies will be […]
The Ontario Human Rights Code, R.S.O. 1990, c. H.19 (“Code”) underwent a major overhaul with the full coming into force of the Human Rights Amendment Act, S.O. 2006, c. 30, on June 30, 2008. Among other changes, these significant reforms have created a new human rights process which permits Applicants (formerly known as “Complainants”) to […]
As the Human Rights Tribunal’s processes are becoming more developed and widely understood, the opportunities for using these processes strategically are increasing. For both Applicants and Respondents there are particular junctures in the Part IV Application process where a strategic advantage may be gained or lost.The disclosure regime under the Rules of Procedure, for example, […]
For most of us, the summer season brings with it opportunities to travel and enjoy the great outdoors. For students, summer represents a valuable opportunity to gain employment experience. Hiring a summer student or intern can help many lawyers and firms accomplish what needs to get done, while allowing regular employees to take well-deserved breaks. […]
