Best Lawyers in Ontario, Canada for Labour and Employment Law
George Vassos focuses his practice on advocacy before trial and appellate Courts, and before various labour boards, arbitrators, mediators, adjudicators, and other administrative tribunals, as well as strategic and proactive advice on a wide variety of labour and employment law issues. His work includes: - Employment contracts - Wrongful dismissal and employment litigation - Fiduciary dutiesRestrictive covenants - InjunctionsGroup benefits - Employment standards - Human rights - Certification...
Carl Peterson is a partner of the firm and since his call to the bar in 1984, he has worked in all areas of labour law with special expertise in the construction industry and health and safety litigation. In addition to defending employers against health and safety charges, he has been quite active in developing policies and seminars for employers to prevent accidents and avoid litigation. Carl has a great deal of experience in assisting non-union and union employers develop positive employee...
Tina Lie is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Administrative and Public Law, Appellate Practice, Corporate and Commercial Litigation and Labour and Employment Law. Tina, who practices law in Toronto, Ontario, has been recognized since 2021. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Tina is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Stephen is a member of the firm's litigation and labour groups, and is the co-chair of the civil group with responsibility over employment law, civil litigation, and class actions. He is bilingual and provides client service in both French and English. His practice focuses primarily on employment law, civil litigation, class actions, administrative law, and in assisting numerous unions, employees, and administrative agencies with litigation before courts, arbitrators, and numerous tribunals a...
Laurie is a partner in the Koskie Minsky Labour & Employment Group. With a practice focus on labour law, she regularly presents complex labour matters before administrative tribunals and the court. Laurie works exclusively in the area of labour relations and represents industrial, public sector, private sector and construction trade unions before the Ontario Labour Relations Board, the Grievance Settlement Board, and at private arbitrations. Laurie has extensive experience in the areas of...
Lisa Meyer is a labour and employment lawyer in Hicks Morley’s London office. She advises employers on a wide variety of labour and employment matters spanning the life cycle of the employment relationship, from contract drafting and collective bargaining to labour arbitration and wrongful dismissal claims. Lisa regularly appears as counsel in both labour arbitration matters and civil litigation, before the Ontario Labour Relations Board and the federal and Ontario civil courts. In addi...
Josh Phillips is the Managing Partner at Ursel Phillips Fellows Hopkinson LLP. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts in Industrial Relations from McGill University and subsequently earned a law degree from the University of Toronto. Josh is also a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada in the area of Technical Production. Josh's practice is concentrated in labour law, professional discipline and appellate work, with a particular emphasis in the educational, police and cultural sectors. ...
Jordan M. Smith is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Labour and Employment Law. Jordan M., who practices law in Kitchener, Ontario, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Jordan M. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Stephen Krashinsky is a labour lawyer in Goldblatt Partners' Toronto office. His practice focuses on grievance arbitration and Ontario Labour Relations Board matters. Born and raised in Montreal, Stephen attended the University of Toronto, where he achieved both his bachelor of arts and his law degree in five years. He was called to the bar in 1981. Stephen’s legal career protecting the rights of workers began during the summer following his second year of law school, when he attended t...
Jack Siegel, a member of the Blaney McMurtry Labour and Employment practice group, focuses largely on workers' compensation, wrongful dismissal, occupational health and safety and human rights matters. Jack is a former Chair of the Workers’ Compensation Section of the Ontario Bar Association, and has been listed in Best Lawyers in Canada for Workers' Compensation Law every year since 2006, and was named by that publication as 2014 Lawyer of the Year in the field of Workers’ Compen...
Founder - Rudner Law One of the things that I love about my practice is that every client has a story. It doesn’t matter whether it is an individual seeking advice about their employment, a family-run business, or a multinational corporation. Each one has goals and issues that they need to deal with. And there’s nothing I enjoy more than becoming their Trusted Advisor, educating them, guiding them, and working with them to develop a cost-effective strategy to pursue their goals. W...
Daniel Pugen is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Labour and Employment Law. Daniel, who practices law in Toronto, Ontario, has been recognized since 2022. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Daniel is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Ron Lebi is the firm’s Director of Research and Legal Education and is an experienced labour lawyer and administrative law practitioner. He is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to Bar in 1984. Prior to joining Koskie Minsky, Ron acted for many years as Senior Solicitor at the Ontario Labour Relations Board. In that capacity, he provided legal counsel and policy advice to adjudicators and staff on a wide range of issues related to more than a dozen statutes administere...
Denise Cooney is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Administrative and Public Law, Health Care Law, Labour and Employment Law and Trusts and Estates. Denise, who practices law in Toronto, Ontario, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Denise is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
John Brooks is an experienced labour and employment law lawyer in Hicks Morley’s Toronto office. He advises and represents employers on a wide range of labour and employment matters. John regularly provides advice to employers regarding union organizing and certification and collective bargaining negotiations. He routinely acts as chief spokesperson in collective bargaining negotiations. He also advises on all aspects of the employment relationship and the handling by employers of termi...
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.