Susan Crawford is a founding partner of Crawford Chondon & Partners LLP.

As a trusted advisor, Susan provides strategic advice and opinions to employers on a full range of labour and employment law matters, including recruitment issues, human rights, employment standards, employment contracts, policy implementation, termination issues, fiduciary obligations, pay equity, OHSA compliance and independent contractor arrangements.  Unfortunately, not all workplace issues can be resolved and when litigation is necessary, Susan is an accomplished and influential advocate.  In addition, Susan assists employers in workplace investigations and conflict resolution, as well as providing training on a variety of workplace issues.

Glenn French is the co-founder and President of the Canadian Initiative on Workplace Violence. He is a strident advocate for victims of workplace violence and harassment and a sought-after speaker and media commentator in both Canada and the US. Many of Canada’s leading organizations interested in the safety and wellbeing of their employees have retained him.

Jessyca is an experienced litigator with a passion for client-centred advocacy and a knack for negotiating through stressful situations. She has conducted hundreds of trials and hearings, advised witnesses and subjects for investigations or charges, and defended a wide array of regulatory and criminal allegations. Jessyca Greenwood’s current practice includes employment, human rights law, and workplace investigations. Having appeared before all levels of Court in Ontario and before various tribunals working with both employer and employee clients, Jessyca has a proven ability to negotiate, mediate and help opposing parties come to a resolution in difficult workplace situations. She also has extensive experience in defending subjects of workplace investigations, as well as leading them for employer clients. Additionally, she has worked with many regulated professionals, defending allegations of a breach of their professional obligations. Jessyca has a deep knowledge of the impact mental health has on businesses, workers and employers, and is an expert in mental health advocacy, crisis management and workplace safety. Since the beginning of her career, Jessyca committed herself to learning advocacy skills by volunteering at the community legal clinic. After more than a decade of managing her own law firm, in 2020, Jessyca joined SpringLaw. She speaks regularly to students and lawyers and sits on a number of boards and committees committed to access to justice, inclusion and mental health advocacy.

Samia’s practice is focused on the representation of management in many areas of employment and labour law with particular emphasis on employment law, employment agreements, policy development and implementation, human rights and accommodation and all matters relating to the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act.

Samia’s expertise includes:

• Advising Multinational and Multi-Jurisdictional Employer
• Attendance Management
• Civil Litigation
• Collective Agreement Administration
• Collective Bargaining
• Construction Labour Relations
• Compensation and Benefits Plans
• Employee Relations
• Employee Screening and Hiring
• Employment and Labour Issues in Corporate Restructuring and Transactions
• Employment Contracts
• Employment Standards
• Executive Employment Agreements and Compensation
• Grievance Arbitration
• Human Rights and Accommodation
• Labour Relations Board Proceedings
• Management Training
• Mediation and Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Occupational Health and Safety
• Policy Development and Implementation
• Responding to Union Organizing and Applications for Certification
• Strike or Lock-Out Preparation and Business Continuity Planning
• Workplace Investigations
• Workplace Safety and Insurance
• Wrongful and Constructive Dismissal Litigation

Samia is an active member of the Ontario Bar Association Labour and Employment Law Sector, including the sector’s Continuing Professional Development committee. She is also an executive member of the Canadian Association of Somali Lawyers, and a member of the Law Society of Ontario, Canadian Bar Association, Ontario Bar Association (Education, Civil Litigation, Constitutional, Civil Liberties and Human Rights, and Young Lawyers), and the Canadian Association of Women in Construction.

Norm Keith, B.A., J.D., LL.M., CRSP, practices employment, health & safety, regulatory, government investigation and business crime litigation. Norm’s employment and human rights practice includes executive compensation, workplace investigations, employment contracts & restrictive covenants, employee discipline, workers compensation, ESA enforcement, and human resources risk management. He represents employers in wrongful dismissal, workplace fraud recovery, whistle-blower cases, human rights, labour arbitrations, workplace safety, WSIB appeals and fiduciary duty litigation. Norm is the leading Occupational Health and Safety (“OHS”) lawyer in Canada. He has successfully defended more than 1,000 health & safety, environmental and workers’ compensation administrative, regulatory and criminal cases.

Norm has extensive experience in advising and representing organizations in matters involving alcohol & drugs in the workplace, harassment, sexual harassment, and violence in the workplace. He has written a leading texts in these areas: Human Resources Guide to Preventing Workplace Violence (2nd ed.) and Alcohol & Drugs in the Canadian Workplace (2nd ed.).

Catherine is a member of the Quebec Bar and CRHP Association and has worked as a harassment and violence specialist for over 10 years. Her current responsibilities with Bell’s Corporate Services include overseeing the investigation practice and leading prevention initiatives in support of Bell’s workplace harassment and violence prevention policy. Catherine has also worked as an active consultant on behalf of Bell with the Labour Program for the development of the new Work Place Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations and applicable Interpretations, Policies and Guidelines (IPG)

Dara Marcoccia is a seasoned HR professional who has been working in Human Resources for over 21 years both in the private and public sector.    Her focus and passion is human resources operations and she has worked for the last seven years at Trillium Health Partners as the Director, HR Services.  In this role she supports employee and labour relations, recruitment, employee health safety and wellness and major projects.  She is a results-oriented leader with a track record of  transforming HR to drive service excellence and build strategic partnerships.  She is a devoted employee advocate and strives to create a positive employee experience in all areas of HR.   When she is not at work you will find Dara playing Pokemon Go with her 10 year old son Mateo.

Tanya has worked in the airline industry for over 30 years in a variety of roles, both unionized and non-unionized. Her current responsibilities within Human Resources include providing advice, guidance, and recommendations on employee relations matters and she is responsible for the oversight of the national workplace harassment and violence investigation function. She holds a certificate in workplace investigations from the Association of Workplace Investigators (AWI-CH) and conducts internal workplace investigations across all work groups. Tanya also leads a successful joint union-management workplace investigation process. From 2019-2020, Tanya participated as an active industry consultant for the development of interpretation guidelines for Bill C-65 and the new Federal Workplace Harassment and Violence Prevention Regulations. In 2016, Tanya was named as one of the Top 25 HR Professionals in Canada by the Canadian HR Reporter.

Carla Oliver is an Health and Safety Consultant specializing in the areas of risk management, occupational health and safety, workers’ compensation and organizational legal compliance. Carla has worked with multinational organizations in planning, implementing and monitoring EHS management systems that incorporate various legislative requirements as well as corporate directives. Carla conducts training courses and seminars for employers on a variety of topics including due diligence for managers and supervisors, workers compensation claims management, identification, assessment and control of hazards, and violence and harassment in the workplace.  Carla is a Canadian Registered Safety Professional (CRSP).

Rika Sawatsky is a lawyer in the Constitutional Law Branch of Ontario’s Ministry of the Attorney General.  Prior to joining the Constitutional Law Branch, Rika worked in the labour and employment practice group at a full-service international law firm in Toronto.  As employer counsel, Rika appeared before a variety of administrative bodies and courts for labour and human rights disputes.  Rika also advised employers on accommodation, accessibility, health and safety, and domestic violence laws.

Samantha Seabrook is a labour and employment lawyer and the founder of Seabrook Workplace Law. Samantha’s practice focuses on workers’ compensation, health and safety, accommodation, and human rights. Samantha has extensive experience as a workplace investigator.  She uses a candid and equitable approach to investigations that engenders the trust and respect of all parties. Samantha draws on her experience as a labour and employment lawyer to drive a fair and open investigation process. Samantha conducts investigations into such matters as:

• Discrimination
• Workplace harassment and bullying
• Workplace violence
• Employee behaviour
• Sexual harassment and sexual assault

Tanya graduated from McMaster University in 2002 with an Honours Commerce degree, minoring in Economics. She then attended Osgoode Hall Law School, where she graduated in 2005 and was called to the bar in 2006. In 2010, Tanya opened Walker Law Professional Corporation (“Walker Law”), a commercial litigation law firm originally located on Bay Street.

On August 9, 2016, Tanya was sworn in by the Law Society of Ontario to be the first black elected female bencher from Toronto in the now 224-year history of the Law Society and was re-elected in 2019.

Tanya appears regularly on national television stations such as CityTV, CBC and CTV as a legal analyst.

Tanya Walker – Litigation Lawyer & Managing Partner at Walker Law