As of August 1, 2022, bakerlaw has joined forces with Ross & McBride LLP.
Our team is excited to become part of the formidable group of human rights, employment, and constitutional lawyers at Ross & McBride. Our current and future clients will continue to receive the personalized, high-quality representation that has become synonymous with bakerlaw, and will benefit from the collaborative, cross-functional approach to complex issues that both we and Ross & McBride value. With the added resources of larger, full-service firm, this collaboration will allow us to take on new clients for the first time since October 2021. If you are seeking legal advice, please contact us at contact@rossmcbride.com
The content on this page is no longer being updated here. For news and updated content you can find it on the Ross & McBride News page.
Human Rights Day 2021
- December 10, 2021
- BakerLaw
- Comments Off on Human Rights Day 2021
Today marks the 73rd annual Human Rights Day, which celebrates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) (link) as put forth by the United Nations in 1948.
This year’s theme for the celebration is “EQUALITY – Reducing inequalities, advancing human rights”, which relates to Article 1 of the UDHR – “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.” » Read the rest
Lawsuit alleges a disabled inmate forced to sleep on the floor for 21 days
- October 4, 2021
- Daniel Mulroy
- Comments Off on Lawsuit alleges a disabled inmate forced to sleep on the floor for 21 days
Kitten Keyes is an inmate at the Grand Valley Institution for Women in Kitchener, Ontario. Keyes is a person with disabilities who uses a wheelchair and states that she was forced to sleep on the floor of her cell for 21 straight days because her cell was not accessible. » Read the rest
Issues with Artificial Intelligence: The Need for Regulation
- July 6, 2021
- Daniel Mulroy
- Comments Off on Issues with Artificial Intelligence: The Need for Regulation
The Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) has initiated a multiyear, multidisciplinary project to research the development, and impact of artificial intelligence (AI), automated decision-making (ADM) and algorithms on access to justice, human rights, and due process.
A recent publication from the LCO, Regulating AI: Critical Issues and Choices (link), discusses the issues that arise from the use of AI and ADM, and calls for significant regulatory reform in Ontario. » Read the rest
New Online Complaint System seeks to Hold Canadian Businesses Accountable for Human Rights Abuses
- April 28, 2021
- Khalid Mahdi
- Comments Off on New Online Complaint System seeks to Hold Canadian Businesses Accountable for Human Rights Abuses
In March 2021, the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) launched an online form (link) that would allow foreign individuals, organizations and communities to file complaints of possible human rights violations arising from the operations of Canadian companies operating abroad. » Read the rest
BC Human Rights Tribunal makes historic damages award to victim of racial harassment – but leaves him to swallow high legal costs
- February 8, 2021
- Laura Lepine
- Comments Off on BC Human Rights Tribunal makes historic damages award to victim of racial harassment – but leaves him to swallow high legal costs
On January 28, 2021, the BC Human Rights Tribunal awarded a former corrections officer nearly $1 million in damages for the racial discrimination he experienced in the workplace.
The decision marks the highest general damages award from the BC Tribunal. It comes just over 1.5 years after the Tribunal found that Levan Francis, a Black man, experienced discrimination in employment on the grounds of race and colour, as well as retaliation. » Read the rest
Stopping Gender Discrimination at Work: Is the System Broken?
- January 29, 2021
- BakerLaw
- Comments Off on Stopping Gender Discrimination at Work: Is the System Broken?
There are long-established laws aimed at protecting women from gender-based discrimination at work. However, as revealed by Robyn Doolittle at the Globe and Mail, in the most recent installment of the series, “Power Gap” (link), actually achieving a just resolution can be a challenge. » Read the rest
Actual Abilities of Witnesses Matter; Not Stereotypes
- November 13, 2020
- Anoop Kalsi
- Comments Off on Actual Abilities of Witnesses Matter; Not Stereotypes
In the November 6, 2020 decision of R. v. Slatter, 2020 SCC 36 (link), the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) confirmed that it is the actual ability of witnesses to recall and recount events that matter most when assessing credibility; this is the case whether the witness has a disability or not. » Read the rest
(In)Accessibility in the Legal Profession
- November 3, 2020
- Khalid Mahdi
- Comments Off on (In)Accessibility in the Legal Profession
Among key factors that shape the ability of Canadians to access justice, the physical accessibility of courthouses is too crucial an issue to be overlooked. For lawyers with disabilities, the inaccessibility of provincial courthouses is not simply an issue of physical access, but also the ability to participate as members of the legal profession. » Read the rest
Scholar Strike Seminars in Support of Black Lives Matter
- September 3, 2020
- BakerLaw
- Comments Off on Scholar Strike Seminars in Support of Black Lives Matter
Looking for ways to support Black Lives Matter and learn more about it?
Scholar Strike Canada has an impressive line up of digital “Teach-Ins”. You can find the schedule here (link).
HRTO Delays Compromise Access to Justice
- September 1, 2020
- BakerLaw
- Comments Off on HRTO Delays Compromise Access to Justice
Most of bakerlaw’s work occurs at the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO). Since the Ford government came to power, the Tribunal has been struggling to address cases in a timely manner. At first, there was the consolidation of the Social Justice Tribunals into Tribunals Ontario (link). » Read the rest