Periodically I am appointed by the Superior Court (or the Ontario Public Guardian and Trustee) to act for the interests of an incapable person, who needs representation and support. Often this arises in disputes among family members over the incapable person’s power of attorney for either property or personal care, or both. This is a […]
The Supreme Court has now decided that the police have no power to arrest a person who is acting lawfully, even if the justification would be to prevent a potential crime from being committed. For example, if you were involved in a protest, but you were acting lawfully, the police have no authority to arrest
YOU CANNOT BE ARRESTED IF ACTING LAWFULLY “NO ANTICIPATORY ARREST“ SUPREME COURT Read More »
There is no dispute in Ontario that employers are permitted to apply reasonable rules and standards on employees in the workplace. They may discipline and fire employees, if appropriate steps by them are taken and there are proper grounds to do so, at law. Employees who break the rules or engage in serious misconduct in
What if you learn that someone has reported a debt against you that is wrong or is being disputed by you? Since your credit rating and your ability to secure credit may be significantly compromised, you wish to challenge the reporting but what is the recourse. Collection agencies in Ontario are governed by the Collections
KILLER CREDIT – TIPS FOR DEALING WITH CREDIT AGENCIES REPORTING DEBTS Read More »
Decisions regarding custody and access have an immense impact on the best interests of the child. In order to ensure that the best interests of the child are met, there are three commonly employed methods of incorporating a child’s views and preferences into the judicial process. Representation of the child by a lawyer is perhaps
DOES YOUR CHILD’S VOICE MATTER IN YOUR FAMILY LAW DISPUTE? Read More »
Background checks of potential employees and volunteers has always been an important recruiting and screening tool for potential employers. Ontario has overhauled its legislation, effective November 1, 2018. Now, the Ontario government has applied uniform, standardized checks available and the information that can be obtained. No more discretionary decisions by the local police service. Everybody
BACKGROUND CHECKS ON EMPLOYEES – IT AIN’T SO EASY ANYMORE – THE NEW DEAL Read More »
No party in a Family Court case should presume he or she will be awarded his or her costs for the case. Generally, costs are only addressed by the Family Court at the end of the case, when the issues are decided on a final basis by either the Court or by settlement between the
FAMILY COURT – DON'T ASSUME YOU WILL GET YOUR LEGAL EXPENSES BACK – THE RULES: Read More »
You likely have loyalty-based reward points of some kind, such as Air Miles or Aeroplan. You might be surprised that the reward points you accumulate may not be transferable by you to your beneficiaries. It depends on the contractual terms and conditions of your program, which you likely have never read or considered. You should
Your usernames and passwords for your online accounts should be an important part of your Estate plan. You should include them in your Will, or in a memorandum to your Trustee for your estate. You should keep these updated regularly. Currently the law in Ontario and Canada does not properly address digital assets on death.
USERNAMES AND PASSWORDS – A KEY PART OF YOUR ESTATE PLAN Read More »
Distracted driving in Ontario is now the most common cause of accidents on the road, including fatalities. Increasingly you notice the vehicle ahead of you does not promptly move forward on the green light (because a mobile device is being used). Alternatively, you regularly see the driver beside you using a cell phone while stopped
DON’T EVEN HOLD YOUR PHONE IN YOUR CAR – THE LAW IS CLEAR (AND STRICT) Read More »
At WARDS LAWYERSPC we pride ourselves on doing the best job possible for every one of our clients. We are proud to be recognized by those in our community for our hard work.
