Building Our Team: Why I Love our Annual Retreat

Each year, our law firm goes out of town and spends a couple of days together in a big AirBnB planning the year, iterating and optimizing our systems, identifying pain points and ways to improve our client service delivery, and developing our legal skills.

Law Firm Retreat

Where the Real Magic Happens As a fully virtual law firm, since we started SpringLaw in 2017, these in-person annual retreats are a critical part of our infrastructure. It’s where we all really get to know each other on both a professional and personal level, where real conversations happen about what works and doesn’t work in our firm, and where a ton of problem-solving gets done.  

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Uncertainty on Both Ends of the Common Law Notice Spectrum

During 2023, we saw the Ontario Court of Appeal uphold two decisions awarding notice periods beyond what was believed to be the “24-month cap” at 27 and 30 months respectively.

Uncertainty on Both Ends of the Common Law Notice Spectrum

In another recent Ontario decision, the Court awarded 5.5 months of pay in lieu of notice to an employee with only 5 months of service prior to dismissal, which is significantly higher than the “one month per year” rule of thumb. These decisions create uncertainty for employers given the wide range of potential liability arising from wrongful dismissal claims. Fortunately, there are proactive measures employers can take to avoid this liability. 

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HR Law Compliance Steps for Super Busy Employers

Woohoo! Mandatory policies, postings, training, legally enforceable contracts… Actually, no client has ever told us they LOVE thinking through legal compliance for their workplace. Rather, it’s the thing you have to do on top of the other revenue-generating tasks to keep the lights on.

HR Law Compliance Steps for Super Busy Employers

For owner-operator employers, there is often no one to delegate this to. The internet is full of best practices and comprehensive lists of what to do, but it all eats up your time to figure out.

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Navigating the Legal Distinction: Employee vs. Independent Contractor Relationships

When bringing people in to work with your business, the distinction between an “employee” and an “independent contractor” is not just an administrative detail; it carries significant legal implications, particularly in the realms of tax and employment law.

Employees and independent contractors

If a court, the Ministry of Labour, or the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) finds a worker has been “mischaracterized” by being treated as an independent contractor when they are an employee, this can have serious and expensive implications. 

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Workplace Investigations: 5 Basic but Important Tips

There has been no shortage of high-profile workplace investigations and discussions surrounding the outcome of those investigations in the news over the past year. But what happens when you’re no longer reading about the investigation in the news and you’re suddenly at the center of one in your workplace? 

Workplace Investigations: 5 Basic but Important Tips

Whether you’re an employer who is considering whether investigating is really necessary or an employee who has asked for or been named in an investigation, read on for five basic but important tips:

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New Year, New Structure? Navigating Mass Terminations While Hiring

As we start a new year, it’s one of the most common times for an employer to review its structure, payroll, and overall organizational needs. While it’s no secret that many companies are doing mass terminations right now, a delicate trend that we are also seeing is mass terminations while simultaneously hiring new employees. This situation is not only challenging from a legal perspective but also from an employee morale standpoint. This blog post delves into Ontario employment law considerations surrounding terminating while also hiring.

Navigating Mass Terminations While Hiring

Understanding Mass Terminations under Ontario Employment Law

Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”) provides the minimum legal framework for mass terminations. According to the ESA, a mass termination occurs when an employer terminates 50 or more employees at a single establishment within a four-week period. Employers are required to provide written notice to the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development and to each affected employee.

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