Statement of Claim filed in Canadian Armed Forces sexual misconduct class action

The group of former military members who launched a class action regarding sexual misconduct in the Armed Forces has now filed a Statement of Claim in the Superior Court of Ontario. Amy Graham, Nadine Schultz-Nielsen, and Larry Beattie filed their full Statement of Claim on December 13, 2016, setting out their personal experiences of sexual assault and harassment, as well as the remedies that they are seeking on behalf of... Read More

RavenLaw Supports Reach Canada’s Jamming for Justice

On March 22, 2017, RavenLaw sponsored Reach Canada’s Jamming for Justice event. The concert celebrated the opening of Reach’s new headquarters and was emceed by RavenLaw’s own David Yazbeck. Reach Canada is a legal referral organization for persons with disabilities and is dedicated to providing education and information on all matters pertaining to disabilities. RavenLaw was proud to support Reach’s event and to help raise funds for its important work. Read More

RavenLaw mourns the passing of Mary Mackinnon

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our dear friend and colleague, Mary Mackinnon. Mary joined the firm in 2006 and became a partner in 2008. She was a tireless advocate for workers’ rights who was highly respected in the legal community. Her work on behalf of individual employees, human rights claimants and unions is a testament to her deep personal commitment to social justice and... Read More

Human Rights/Social Justice Internship

RavenLaw reminds all interested students that applications for the 2017 Human Rights/Social Justice Internship are due this Friday, January 20, 2017. This is the 12th consecutive year that this paid internship has been sponsored by the firm. This exciting opportunity will provide an excellent and meaningful summer work experience to law students who are particularly interested in issues pertaining to social justice, human rights or equality rights. This year’s partner... Read More

Labour Board Finds that Federal Government Interfered with Union Representation During Bargaining

In a recent decision, the Public Service Labour Relations and Employment Board allowed a complaint filed by the Public Service Alliance of Canada, alleging that the government had interfered with the union’s administration and its representation of members during collective bargaining. The complaint was filed after Treasury Board refused to permit a union negotiator to conduct walkthroughs of various worksites, and hold on-site meetings with members to discuss bargaining issues.... Read More

Federal Court issues Interim Order in Phoenix Pay System case

On December 22, 2016, the Federal Court issued an interim Order in response to an application filed by 14 federal public service unions regarding the pay problems faced by their members since the implementation of the Government’s new pay system, known as Phoenix, in early 2016. The order outlines a number of steps that the federal government must take to resolve the pay issues. These include sharing information in an... Read More

RAVENLAW WELCOMES TWO NEW PARTNERS

Ravenlaw is pleased to welcome Kim Patenaude and Wassim Garzouzi into the partnership, effective January 1, 2017. Both Kim and Wassim began their careers with Ravenlaw and have made significant contributions to the firm. Kim is fluently bilingual and provides practical advice and representation to individual clients on issues such as wrongful dismissal, constructive dismissal, severance packages, employment contracts, non-compete clauses, long term disability benefit claims, WSIB/Workers’ compensation, discrimination, harassment,... Read More

Federal Court Quashes Minister’s Decision on Work Refusal

In a recent decision, the Federal Court quashed a decision on behalf of the Minister of Labour, in which the Minister had refused to investigate the work refusal of a federal public service employee. The Applicant employee had notified her employer that she was refusing to work for health and safety reasons in February 2015. On May 13, 2015, the Labour Affairs Officer assigned to the Applicant’s case completed a... Read More

Class action launched against the Canadian Armed Forces for sexual assault and harassment

A group of former members of the Canadian Armed Forces, represented by Raven, Cameron, Ballantyne & Yazbeck LLP have launched a class action lawsuit on behalf of women and men who experienced sexual assault or sexual harassment in their service with the Canadian military. The lawsuit was initiated on Monday, November 28, 2016, when a Notice of Action was filed in Ontario Superior Court. The plaintiffs, Amy Graham, Nadine Schultz-Nielsen,... Read More

Federal Court tells Canadian Human Rights Commission to do better

In a recent judgment, the Federal Court overturned a decision of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, and delivered a strong rebuke of the Commission’s continued mishandling of a human rights complaint. This judgment affirms the importance of a complainant’s right to be heard, and calls upon the Commission to improve its procedures. Background The complainant, Michele Bergeron, had filed two human rights complaints with the Canadian Human Rights Commission. First,... Read More