Jonathan’s expertise in employment law has lead him to become a leading wrongful dismissal lawyer in Ontario for over 20 years. His cases have run the gamut from constructive dismissal cases to cases where an employer has alleged “just cause” in an attempt to justify a firing.
Most wrongful dismissal cases settle, either before there is a need for a lawsuit or at the pre-trial settlement conference stage.
The key to winning wrongful dismissal cases is a methodical approach. Jonathan likes his clients to send him emails with one idea per paragraph about what happened as well as to briefly describe the events in the office.
Constructive dismissal cases can occur in a variety of ways- either a cut to the person’s remuneration package, or a switch of shifts or days worked, or abusive treatment in the workplace. In that latter situation, the key is to obtain objective evidence from fired or retired co-workers about the abusive conduct.
Some employment cases involve the review of a written hiring letter or a written contract. With a written contract, the key is to determine whether it is enforceable or not. Case law precedents can be reviewed to obtain an answer to that question.
At the end of the day, wrongful dismissal cases are about restoring dignity to the worker as much as they are about restoring money into his or her wallet. Jonathan and his law clerk Linda are dedicated to that process.
Jonathan’s famous wrongful dismissal cases include the 2013 decision of Wilson v Soliss Mexican Foods and go all the way back to 1996 to the Lerch v Cableshare decision.