News & Insights | Law Firm for Alberta & Ontario

Fired Bank Employees providing Financial Services or Selling Securities – Major Concerns

June 10, 2025 [bank employee, fired, termination with cause, regulatory]

For employees in the banking and financial services sectors terminated from their job, the path to re-establishing a career in the financial services or securities sales sectors can be fraught with significant challenges. When your employment is terminated, especially where your former employer alleges the termination was for cause, this triggers a whole series of events that you will want to get ahead of and attempt to deal with. ... continue reading

Why do Rich People use Holding Companies/strong>

June 1, 2025 [incorporation, corporate law, tax planning, succession planning]

Individuals and families of substantial wealth often utilize holding companies for a variety of strategic reasons, primarily centered around asset protection, tax efficiency, and succession planning. Nevertheless, these same financial and legal principles are also applicable to individuals who have financial aspirations with their own business-commercial enterprises and wish to protect their family personal wealth ... continue reading

Dying without a Will. What Happens to your property?

May 30, 2025 [intestacy, probate, wills, estate planning]

Should you die without a legally valid will, also known as dying "intestate," you will have no say in how the assets of your estate are distributed upon your death. Instead, the laws of your particular jurisdiction (for example, in Alberta the Wills & Succession Act) will determine ... continue reading

Reducing the Cost of Probate

May 25, 2025 [probate, wills, estate planning]

In many cases, probate is an unavoidable reality upon death. And given that probate all too often cannot be avoided, it is best to look at efficiencies that can reduce the cost arising from probate, together with expediting the process and curtailing the frustration for all persons involved. ... continue reading

Caution re Free Business Contracts: What to Look Out For!

May 15, 2025 [business, contracts, templates]

I realize that I cannot stop business people from using freely available business contracts that they find on the Internet and modify for their own commercial purposes. Because irrespective the warnings that I might offer, there are enough people that will proceed with someone else’s business contract and ... continue reading

What is a Prenuptial Agreement?

May 8, 2025 [contracts, estate planning, marriage]

A prenup, or prenuptial agreement, is a written agreement between two people who are contemplating marriage and addresses the division of assets if that marriage breaks down. Prenuptial agreements thereby alter or confirm the legal rights and obligations ... continue reading

Retired and Retiring Bank Employees

December 27, 2024 [bank job, retirement, employment law]

Whether you’ve recently retired, or are planning to retire, from your Canadian bank job, you need to put some serious investigation and analysis into what you are legally entitled to. Unfortunately, Canada’s banks have become so powerful that they act with virtual impunity, especially when it comes to their own employees and what they are owed. ... continue reading

Fired for Cause (allegedly) - Employer Reasons

October 26, 2024 [fired, termination, just cause, employment law]

It is amazing how conceited many employers can be when they assert that they are firing an employee for cause and thus attempting to avoid making any further payment to that fired employee. There are numerous reasons that employers cite for firing with cause; however, these are allegations that are presented from the biased perspective of the employer and typically fail to account for other legal considerations ... continue reading

Have You Been Fired from Your Banking Job WITH Cause

October 14, 2024 [bank job, fired, termination, just cause, employment law]

When your banking career has been abruptly ended with your employer firing yourself for cause, presenting its version of the facts and supported by a heavily slanted investigation, how do you fight those allegations (whether or not they are accurate)? Although addressing those allegations is important, Canadian bank employees have made the mistake of focusing almost exclusively on this single aspect of their employment relationship and it has come at a tremendous financial cost. Instead, fired bank employees need to look beyond the bank's allegations ... continue reading

Capital Dividends - Don't Overlook Tax-Free Dividends

October 1, 2024 [corporate structuring, dividends, taxation]

Capital dividends are private corporation dividends that are paid tax-free to their Canadian-resident shareholders, such that no part of the dividend is included in computing the recipient shareholder’s taxable income. The election to pay capital dividends to its shareholders ... continue reading

Anti-Slavery Report Filing

May 23, 2024 [reporting, corporate law, business law]

May 31st Deadline for Filing Business’ Report on Forced Labour and Child Labour in Canadian Company’s Supply Chain

If your Canadian business meets the following criteria, it is legally obligated to file by May 31, 2024, a report on its actions with respect to Forced Labour and Child Labour in its supply chain ... continue reading

What is an Amalgamation and the Need for its Strict Application

May 17, 2024 [corporate law, business law]

The misappropriation of the legal parameters of an amalgamation are such that lawyers seek to misrepresent a post-amalgamation corporation for something that it is not, in an effort to achieve an outcome that is not legally permissible, yet may achieve their corporate client’s preferred outcome. Nevertheless, the legislative statutes do provide considerable precision as to the legal effects of amalgamation, which have been further clarified by the Supreme Court of Canada. ... continue reading

Walmart Layoffs, Relocations and Employee Action

May 15, 2024 [employment law, layoffs, job relocation, severance pay]

What is the employee impact arising from Walmart's relocation and layoff initiative and what actions should employees consider? Even if you've acted, there might be more to consider! As an employee lawyer who looks at aspects of employment arrangements and employee layoffs from an angle that most other lawyers would appear to either overlook or not be interested in investigating, the recent announcement of substantial layoffs by Walmart at the corporate level was particularly intriguing.. ... continue reading