More Toronto Lawyers

Know Your Rights

Appeals Lawyers

An appeal is a process for requesting a change to an official legal decision. Depending on the legal rules that apply, if you are unhappy with the result of your case you might be able to challenge it on specific grounds, such as errors of law, fact, or procedure. Appeal lawyers are specialists in appeal law and the appeal process. They will help you navigate this terrain, determine if your case has merit for appeal, and then will represent you in the appeal court.

Arbitration Lawyers

Arbitration is a legal technique for resolving disputes outside the courts, wherein the parties to a dispute refer it to one or more persons (the “arbitrators”, “arbiters” or “arbitral tribunal”), by whose decision (the “award”) they agree to be bound. Arbitration lawyers specialize in representing you in this process.

Bankruptcy and Insolvency Lawyers

Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organizations to pay their creditors. Insolvency exists for a person or organization when total financial liabilities exceed total financial assets; it is essentially a lack of financial resources. The personal and business consequences to these are complex and require legal advice and guidance. These are lawyers that specialize in helping you navigate this difficult terrain.

Business Lawyers

Business law is a branch of law that examines the matters that impact the operation of a business. It consists of several different areas, including: Contracts, Securities, Intellectual Property (Patents and Trademarks), Antitrust, Secured Transactions, Tax, Pensions & Benefits, Trusts & Estates, Labour, Employment and Bankruptcy. Business lawyers work in this broad range of legal issues in helping you operate your business.

Child Custody Lawyers

Child custody refers to the guardianship of children involved in a divorce case. It includes physical custody and legal custody; laws may decide issues regarding child custody and child support. You may require specialized representation in such instances.

Civil Lawyers

Civil law is a branch of law dealing with disputes between individuals and/or organizations, in which compensation may be awarded to the victim. If you are a party to a lawsuit in one of these contexts, you will need a civil litigation lawyer to represent you.

Corporate Lawyers

Corporate lawyers ensure the legality of commercial transactions, advising corporations on their legal rights and duties, including the duties and responsibilities of corporate officers. In order to do this, they must have knowledge of aspects of contract law, tax law, accounting, securities law, bankruptcy, intellectual property, licensing, zoning laws, and the laws specific to the business of the corporations for whom they work. If you are thinking of starting a corporation that will involve a complex governance structure, you will want to regularly use the services of a corporate law firm.

Criminal Lawyers

These are lawyers specializing in the defence of individuals and companies charged with criminal conduct. If you, or someone you know, is facing a criminal charge, then choosing a lawyer is one of the most important decisions you will make.

Divorce Lawyers

Divorce lawyers specialize in the law surrounding the dissolution of marriage and its complex matrimonial matters, such as spousal support, child support, parenting and property division.

DUI Lawyers

If you’re charged with a Driving While Intoxicated offense, you might need a DUI lawyer who is skilfully familiar with all the intricacies and nuances involved with DUI offenses.

Employment Lawyers

If you’ve been abused in some way by your employer or fired wrongfully, you may have good reason to consult an employment lawyer.

Entertainment Lawyers

Entertainment law includes a mix of categories of law that involve questions of employment, labour, immigration, securities, security interests, agency, intellectual property, and insurance surrounding the entertainment industry. Entertainment lawyers work mainly with transactions, i.e. drafting contracts, negotiation and mediation. You will need an entertainment lawyer if you are involved in any of the following areas: film, music, television, theatre, multimedia, publishing and visual arts and design.

Environment Lawyers

Environmental lawyers advise and represent clients on a wide range of matters, including air and water pollution, land use concerns, agricultural issues, parks and wilderness preservation, waste disposal, resource extraction, transportation, and international issues.

Estate Lawyers

Estate law includes such complex important matters as estate planning, managing your estate during life and disposing of your estate at your death through the use of trusts, wills and other planning documents. If you possess assets (physical or liquid) that you want or will want to bequeath to anyone (family members or otherwise), you will need an estate lawyer. You’ll want to hire an attorney who regularly handles matters in the areas of concern in your particular situation, and who will know enough about the other fields to question whether the action being taken might be affected by laws in other areas of law.

Family Lawyers

Family law covers a variety of issues, including divorce, child support, marriage, prenuptial agreements, alimony, and adoption. Family lawyers are often assumed to handle primarily divorce cases, however family law covers child welfare. Child neglect and abuse are often a subjective issue and charges may be filed unjustly by disputing separated or divorced parents. Family lawyers can often mediate problems within families and spare the grief and loss of financial resources if a court case is involved. Family lawyers are also involved in adoption and foster care for children. They represent the rights of the children and other interested parties, and can be instrumental in presenting the appropriate information and procedure with respect to adoption and foster care.

General Practice Lawyers

General practice lawyer’s cases fall in a wide range of overlapping practice areas, from drafting wills and handling personal injury cases to negotiating tax settlements with the Internal Revenue Service. Common practice areas include family law, bankruptcy, wills and probate, trusts and estates, landlord and tenant, and criminal law.

Human Rights Lawyers

Human rights lawyers represent individuals in proceedings before human rights commissions and tribunals in a broad range of issues involving the workplace, access to health services, access to education and other public services. These lawyers often intervene on behalf of clients in court cases raising human rights issues, pushing for progressive interpretations of legislation to afford the broadest possible protection to vulnerable groups. Areas of importance also include pay equity, negotiating pay equity plans, maintaining pay equity gains, and litigating pay equity disputes.

Immigration Lawyers

Immigration lawyers specialize in assisting persons who wish to immigrate to Canada. They are also skilled in the law that governs the legal status of people in matters such as citizenship, regulation of the right of entry and internal rights once established. The rights of applicants applying for immigration status to Canada are often enhanced when represented by effective legal counsel.

Insurance Lawyers

Insurance lawyers have extensive experience in all areas of insurance defence litigation, including claims involving motor vehicle accidents, product liability, fire losses, occupier’s liability, and “slip and falls”. They principally represent insurer clients. If you are the recipient of a claim involving insurance, your insurance company will likely assign an insurance lawyer to your case.

Intellectual Property Lawyers

Intellectual property (IP) is a legal field that refers to creations of the mind such as musical, literary, and artistic works; inventions; and symbols, names, images, and designs used in commerce, including copyrights, trademarks, patents, and related rights. IP rights give creators exclusive rights to their creations. IP lawyers often specialize exclusively in this area of law.

International Lawyers

International lawyers deal with the agreements between Canada and other countries. They are also often experts in the laws of one or more foreign countries with whom they frequently work. Agreements between countries create many rules that you must follow if you are doing business or even traveling outside of Canada. If you would like to do business in a foreign country or if you are having problems with or in a foreign country, an international lawyer can help you.

Labour Lawyers

Labour lawyers work with employment-related issues, acting as counsel on grievance and interest arbitrations, human rights tribunals, employment standards fact findings and adjudications, occupational health and safety matters and Workers’ Compensation Tribunals, issues involving the Canada Labour Relations Board and Ontario Labour Relations Board, hearings with Human Rights Tribunals, issues of Employment Standards, Referees, Workers’ Compensation Appeal Tribunals, grievance and contract arbitrations, Occupational Health and Safety, wrongful dismissal and other employment-related actions. If you are the recipient of a work-related grievance or issue, you should consult a labour lawyer.

Landlord and Tenant Lawyers

Landlord-tenant laws can have an affect on both the person who is leasing and the person who is renting the property. Typically, landlord-tenant disputes revolve around federal and provincial property and contract laws. The typical disputes between a landlord and a tenant revolve around the lease agreement, paying rent on time and damage to property. If you are involved in one of these disputes, you might choose to consult a lawyer to know your rights.

Libel and Slander Lawyers

Defamation is the issuance of a false statement about another person, which causes that person to suffer harm. Slander involves the making of defamatory statements by a transitory (non-fixed) representation, usually an oral (spoken) representation. Libel involves the making of defamatory statements in a printed or fixed medium, such as a magazine or newspaper. The law recognizes that every person has the right to protect his/her reputation from being damaged by false statements made against them. Representing clients in this highly specialized area of law involves an understanding of your interests and how to secure the best possible outcome.

Licensing Lawyers

A licensing agreement or license is a contractual right that gives someone permission to engage in a defined activity or to use certain property, that is owned by someone else. These regulations are essential to enforcing the owner’s rights in his or her property. A license allows the holder of a property right (the “licensor”) to make money from an invention or creative work by charging a user (the “licensee”) a fee or royalty to use the licensed product. These lawyers can help you enter into and properly adhere to licensing agreements.

Litigation Lawyers

Litigation, or a lawsuit, is a civil action brought before a court in which the party commencing the action, the plaintiff, seeks a legal or equitable remedy. Litigation lawyers specialize in representing your case before the court.

Municipal Lawyers

These lawyers have expertise in all areas relating to local government, including environmental law, expropriations, municipal liability, commercial real estate, labour and employment, energy and infrastructure and regulatory law. If you are involved in matters related to building, property planning and development, you will want to seek advice from a lawyer skilled in municipal law.

Patent Lawyers

atent law is a branch of intellectual property. Patent lawyers specialize in patent prosecution (the registering of a patent and all future related issues, such as renewal) and litigation around patent infringement. If you are the holder of a patent, or if you are considering investing capital and labour into developing a device or product that you think might already be patented, you will need the advice and guidance of a patent lawyer.

Real Estate Lawyers

Real estate lawyers help you to ensure a smooth transaction when buying or selling a home, condo, timeshare or commercial property (including leases). They specialize in the law that covers transactions between real estate brokers and sellers. In any real estate transaction a real estate lawyer will have to deal with the deed, the bill of sale, mortgage, promissory note, title commitment, and the closing statement. Your lawyer will help you to prepare and evaluate all of the documents necessary to complete a transaction efficiently and correctly. They review all of the closing documents and make any required changes. Once the closing is complete, they will deal with the recording of the deed, mortgage, or any other necessary documents. Before entering into any contract you should consult with your real estate lawyer in Toronto.

Securities Lawyers

Securities law is the body of laws governing the issuance and selling of securities. A security is an exchangeable, negotiable instrument representing financial value. Securities include debt securities (such as banknotes, bonds and debentures) and equity securities (e.g. common stocks). They may be represented by a certificate or an electronic book entry, and include shares of corporate stock or mutual funds, bonds issued by corporations or governmental agencies, stock options or other options, limited partnership units, and various other formal investment instruments. Securities lawyers specialize in all aspects of law related to investments.

Sports Lawyers

Sports law is an umbrella term used to describe the legal issues at work in the world of both amateur and professional sports. Sports law overlaps with labour law, contract law, antitrust law, and tort law. Issues like defamation and privacy rights are also an integral aspect of sports law. These lawyers specialize in legal issues surrounding the player-agent, player-employer relationship and the increased media scrutiny of sports law topics.

Tax Lawyers

A tax lawyer can assist you in very different situations: (1) if you have a problem with income taxes with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA); (2) if you run your own business; (3) if you use GST or payroll remittances. A tax lawyer will assist you in filing an appeal. If you have failed to file tax returns or failed to declare income, a lawyer can arrange to save you from penalties or prosecution for tax evasion. Tax lawyers also provide tax planning to reduce your taxes, or help you if you are involved in a commercial law suit. A tax lawyer can help determine how to structure your law suit, or settlement, so as to obtain the best tax treatment possible. Finally, they can help you to draft your will and plan your estate in the most tax effective manner to minimize taxes on death.

Technology Lawyers

Technology Lawyers assist with patent registrations, trademark filing, patent ideas, copyrights, and other trademark issues as well as intellectual property. Some also assist and facilitate in licensing, franchising, trade disputes, and settling or filing claims of unfair transaction or competition.

Wrongful Dismissal Lawyers

Wrongful dismissal is also called dismissal without just cause. Before you consent to sign any paper with your employer, you should evaluate your options through obtaining qualified legal advice. Your employer cannot dismiss you without cause. The employer has a duty to treat employees fairly and reasonably. A competent lawyer can guide you and provide counsel about what action may or may not be appropriate given your specific situation.