Mitch Kitagawa successfully represented The Co-Operators when the plaintiffs sought leave to appeal to the Supreme Court to challenge an Ontario Court of Appeal’s ruling from February 2013. The Court of Appeal upheld a contractual one year limitation period in a commercial property policy. The Co-Operators denied the claim and…

Pat Santini was recently honoured by Villa Marconi at its annual Raise The Roof corporate dinner. Since its launch in 2005, this gala dinner has netted over $900,000 and remains the single largest fundraising event for Villa Marconi. Pat was recognized for his contribution to the Italian community in Ottawa….

Accommodating a disabled employee can be one of the most frustrating experiences for an employer and employee. The parties are often suspicious of each other and generally do not understand their respective rights and obligations. To make matters worse, the stakes are high: Typically, the employee is in a vulnerable…

Non-compete clauses are a well-known provision found in employment contracts.  But they also should be part of a business’ shareholders’ agreement as well.   Non-compete clauses for employees have a reputation for being very difficult for employers to enforce as the Courts often view the specific requirements of the clause…

Limitations on the activities of Medicine and Dentistry Professional Corporations Over the past several years, as the tax benefits have become more widely known, the use of medicine professional corporations (“MPCs”) by physicians and dentistry professional corporations (“DPCs”) by dentists has become widespread. As time passes and the professional accumulates wealth…

Take-aways from the Supreme Court of Canada’s ruling in Bhasin v Hrynew et al, 2014 SCC 71 Facts of the case The corporate respondent Canadian American Financial Corporation (“Can-Am”) is a company that markets education savings plans to investors through agents, here known as enrollment directors. The appellant Bhasin and…

Selecting a guardian for minor children is an important step all parents should take.  But over the course of a minor child’s life it is not uncommon for the circumstances that led to the selection of the original guardian to change.  Families or guardians can move far apart, problems with…

There are several important provisions to include in a family business shareholders agreement that extent beyond the management of the business.  These include disability of a shareholder, death of a shareholder, marital breakdown and finance. Disability of a shareholder This is particularly important when the shareholder is actively involved in…