Employment Litigation

We review severance offers for employees who have been terminated and given a deadline to sign, comparing the offer against what the law actually requires. Our lawyers calculate your entitlement to common-law reasonable notice, which turns on your age, length of service, position, and prospects of finding comparable work, and which regularly exceeds an employer's first offer. Having the offer reviewed before you sign is the single most valuable step you can take after a termination.

We pursue wrongful dismissal claims for employees who were dismissed without cause and without adequate notice or pay in lieu of it. Our lawyers build the claim around your full entitlement, including bonus, benefits, and other compensation lost during the notice period, not simply base salary. A dismissal that felt final and non-negotiable is often the beginning of a claim worth substantially more than the employee assumed.

We act for employees whose employer changed a fundamental term of their employment, such as pay, role, or reporting structure, without agreement, which the law can treat as a dismissal even though no one said the words. Our lawyers assess whether the change was significant enough to amount to constructive dismissal before you resign, since resigning at the wrong moment can forfeit a valid claim. Understanding this line before you act is what protects your position.

We act for employees dismissed for alleged just cause, the most serious form of termination and the one that denies any severance. Our lawyers test whether the employer can actually meet the high legal standard that just cause requires, since employers assert it far more often than the facts support. Where cause cannot be proven, the termination becomes one without cause, and your entitlement to notice is restored.

We act for employees subjected to harassment or discrimination based on a protected characteristic under the BC Human Rights Code, including sex, race, disability, age, and family status. Our lawyers document the conduct and the employer's response, or failure to respond, which is central to both the claim and its value. Discrimination at work is not something an employee has to simply absorb, and the law provides real remedies for it.

We represent employees in complaints before the BC Human Rights Tribunal, the forum that hears discrimination claims arising in the workplace. Our lawyers prepare the complaint, manage the tribunal's process, and pursue the remedies it can order, including lost wages and damages for injury to dignity. Navigating the tribunal's specific procedure is where experienced counsel materially affects the outcome.

We act for employees enduring bullying or psychological harassment that has made a workplace untenable, whether or not it targets a protected characteristic. Our lawyers assess the available avenues, which can include a constructive dismissal claim, or a human rights complaint depending on the facts. Choosing the right avenue at the outset is what gives the claim its strength.

We act for employees whose employer failed to accommodate a disability or medical condition to the point of undue hardship, as the Human Rights Code requires. Our lawyers establish what accommodation was requested, what the employer offered, and where the duty to accommodate broke down. An employer's obligation to accommodate is a legal duty, not a courtesy, and we hold employers to it.

We recover unpaid wages, overtime, vacation pay, and other amounts an employer has withheld, whether through an Employment Standards Branch complaint or a civil claim. Our lawyers advise on which route recovers more in a given situation, since the two forums differ in what they can award and how long they take. Wages you earned are yours, and the right process is the one that actually gets them paid.

We assist workers in appealing a denied or terminated WorkSafeBC claim, including claims for physical and psychological workplace injury. Our lawyers prepare the appeal through the review and appeal levels the system requires, supported by the medical evidence these decisions turn on. A first denial is not the end of a WorkSafeBC claim, and a properly prepared appeal frequently changes the result.

We draft employment contracts and termination clauses that hold up when they are tested, which is where many employers are exposed. Our lawyers draft termination provisions with the clear, statutorily compliant language BC courts require, since a clause that could fall below the Employment Standards Act minimum is struck down entirely and replaced with far costlier common-law notice. A contract drafted correctly at hiring is the cheapest protection an employer will ever buy.

We build workplace policies and employee handbooks that set clear expectations and reduce an employer's exposure to harassment, discrimination, and wrongful dismissal claims. Our lawyers tailor each policy to how the business actually operates rather than supplying a generic template. Well-drafted policies are what allow an employer to enforce standards consistently and defensibly when an issue arises.

We guide employers through a termination before it happens, structuring the notice, the severance, and the release so the departure does not become a claim. Our lawyers advise on timing, documentation, and the offer itself, since how a termination is carried out often matters as much as the decision to terminate. Getting the process right is what keeps a lawful termination from turning into litigation.

We defend employers against wrongful dismissal, constructive dismissal, and related claims brought by former employees. Our lawyers assess the real exposure early and pursue the resolution that protects the business's finances and reputation most effectively, whether that is a negotiated settlement or a defence at trial. Knowing the true value of a claim at the outset is what prevents an employer from either overpaying or overfighting it.

We advise employers on the enforceability of non-competition and non-solicitation clauses in British Columbia, where courts treat restraints on a person's ability to earn a living with real skepticism. Our lawyers assess whether a given clause is drafted narrowly enough to be enforceable, since a covenant that reaches too far is generally unenforceable altogether. A restraint that is reasonable in scope, time, and geography is the one a court will actually uphold.

We help employers protect confidential information and intellectual property when an employee leaves, through properly drafted confidentiality terms and, where warranted, enforcement action. Our lawyers distinguish genuinely protectable confidential information from ordinary knowledge and skill a departing employee is free to take with them. Drawing that line correctly is what makes a confidentiality obligation enforceable rather than merely aspirational.

We act in disputes triggered by a departing employee, including alleged breaches of a restrictive covenant, solicitation of clients or staff, or misuse of confidential information. Our lawyers move quickly where a former employee's conduct threatens the business, including seeking urgent relief when the situation demands it. Acting promptly is often what limits the damage a departure can cause before it spreads.

We conduct and advise on workplace investigations into harassment, discrimination, and misconduct complaints, a process employers are increasingly expected to handle properly. Our lawyers ensure the investigation is fair, thorough, and defensible, since a flawed investigation can create more liability than the underlying complaint. A properly run investigation protects both the complainant's rights and the employer's position.

We advise employers on their obligations under BC's Pay Transparency Act, including the annual pay transparency reporting now reaching progressively smaller employers. Our lawyers confirm whether and when a business must report and help it prepare a compliant report on time. Staying ahead of these requirements is far simpler than responding to a compliance problem after a deadline has passed.