Civil Litigation Lawyer
Newmarket & York Region

DEBT COLLECTION

This area of law needs little explanation. If someone owes you money and will not pay, often a firm letter from a lawyer will be effective in collecting the debt. If that is not successful, a law suit will be required. The debt may be personal such as a loan to a friend or relative. It may be a result of a business transaction.   Our civil litigation lawyers at Baker Doodnauth will help you collect what is owing to you.

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If you are the one owing the debt, we may be able to help you reach a compromise to satisfy the debt for less than the full amount owing. If there is an unjust claim against you, we will defend it vigorously on your behalf.

EMPLOYMENT LAW INCLUDING WRONGFUL DISMISSAL

At Baker Doodnauth, we understand that being suddenly terminated from your job can have a profound impact on your life. You will want to know whether you received reasonable notice and severance pay.

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You may be an employer who wants to know:

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• Do I have grounds to terminate an employee for consistent poor performance and/or insubordination towards management?

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Or, perhaps, as an employee you want to know:

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• Do I have to put up with racism or sexually harassing comments by a co-worker?

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At Baker Doodnauth, our civil litigation lawyers in Newmarket and York Region are ready to assist you in ensuring that whether you are an employee or employer your rights are protected. We will provide you with advice and an effective strategy to successfully navigate you through these hard times.

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In our employment law practice we assist clients with the following:

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• Wrongful dismissal

• Constructive dismissal

• Severance package review

• Human rights and discrimination claims

• Sexual or other harassment at work

• Employment contracts

• The rights and obligations of employers

• Law of hiring

• Long term and short term disability

• Representation at administrative boards and tribunal hearings

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Wrongful Dismissal

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Wrongful dismissal is the term used in Canadian employment law to describe a situation in which an employer fails to provide proper notice or payment in lieu of notice to an employee when the employee is terminated. Terminations can be for just cause or without cause. In the case of a just cause termination it is important to understand whether or not an employer had the required and sufficient evidence to establish that they were justified in terminating you. In such circumstances an employer may take the position that they were justified in terminating you and that no notice or payment in lieu of notice is required. Our firm will provide you with a review of the circumstances surrounding your termination and offer advice on whether you have grounds to make a claim for wrongful dismissal.

In the case of a without cause termination it is important to look at whether or not the notice package is sufficient based on a number of criteria including, but not limited to:

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• Employment Standards Act

• Terms of an employment contract

• Employee’s age

• Employee’s length of service

• Type of position of employee

• Ability to find comparable other employment

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We would also determine whether you are entitled to bonuses, benefits continuation, stock options, vacation pay and moving expenses.

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Constructive Dismissal

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Constructive dismissal is a term that describes a scenario where you are still technically employed but an employer has fundamentally breached or altered a condition of your employment. For instance, your salary has been reduced significantly or your hours are reduced or your responsibilities have been scaled back significantly without due consideration or you are being relocated to another location. Abusive treatment or a forced leave of absence may also constitute constructive dismissal.

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If such a breach of your rights has occurred it is important that you get legal advice so that you can communicate to the employer that you do not accept the breach. If the problem cannot be resolved you may have to resign and start an action for wrongful dismissal.

ESTATE LITIGATION

The death of someone in the family can, unfortunately, lead to disputes among surviving family members. The disputes are usually the result of a family member being unhappy with the portion of the estate left to him or her by the person who has died (the testator). If the person is unhappy enough, a lawsuit may result.

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Estate litigation refers to a lawsuit involving a deceased person’s estate. Unless the lawsuit is settled by the persons involved in the dispute, the court will decide to whom the deceased person’s estate will go.

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A person’s estate refers to the totality of the property that a person owns at death. The term property refers to everything the person owns, not just real estate. However, some property may not become part of the deceased person’s estate. Two people who, together, own property may be tenants in common or they may be joint tenants. If they are tenants in common, when one of them dies, his or her share of the property becomes part of his or her estate. If they are joint tenants, when one person dies, his or her share of the property goes to the person with whom the deceased person jointly owned the property and does not become part of the deceased person’s estate, or is not affected by the deceaseed person’s will or the law with respect to intestacies if there is no will.

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What happens to a person’s estate when he or she dies? It depends on whether or not the person has a will. If the deceased person has a will, his or her property goes to whomever the will directs. This is assuming that the will is valid.

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If the deceased person does not have a valid will, the deceased person is said to be intestate (without a will) and it is said that there is an intestacy.

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In the case of intestacy, if the deceased person has a spouse, but no children, all of the deceased person’s estate goes to the spouse. If the deceased person had a spouse and one child, the spouse receives the first $200,000 from the estate and half of the remainder of the estate. The child receives the balance of the estate. If the deceased person had a spouse and two or more children, the spouse receives the first $200,000 from the estate and one-third of the remainder of the estate. The children then share the balance of the estate equally. If the deceased person has children but no spouse, the children divide the estate equally.

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If there is a will, but it is invalid, then it is of no effect and there is intestacy. A will may be invalid for several reasons. Some of these reasons are as follows:

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• The will may be forged;

• The will may be improperly signed or witnessed;

• The person who signed the will may not have been mentally competent when he or she signed the will;

• The will may be the result of undue influence; or

• The will may not accurately represent the intention of the testator.

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To be mentally competent to sign a will, a person must:

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• Understand what a will is and what its effect is;

• Know what he or she owns;

• Know whom he or she should consider in deciding to whom to leave his or her estate; and

• Have no disease of the mind which affects the person in deciding to whom to leave his or her estate.

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Undue influence means influence by someone in a position of power or control that is great enough to persuade the person signing the will to leave his or her estate to someone whom the testator would not otherwise leave his or her estate.

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The most common situations leading to a challenge of a will include:

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• Favouring one child over another, sometimes for good reason, sometimes not;

• Making or changing the will when the testator is sick, old and feeble;

• The deceased, having married two or more times, favours a subsequent spouse or stepchildren over children of the first marriage;

• The deceased omits to include any reference in the will to certain property; and

• Insufficient provision in a will for a dependant spouse or dependant children.

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Wills can be revoked (cancelled) by signing a subsequent will or by declaring a former will to be revoked. When a person marries, all previously signed wills are automatically revoked and a new will should be signed.

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At At Baker Doodnauth, we have civil litigation lawyers experienced in the area of estate litigation who will ensure that your rights are protected should you have a claim or should a claim be made against you. To learn more, contact our estate litigation lawyers in Newmarket and York Region.