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More than a law firm – that’s the
Foglers Advantage.
77 King Street West
Suite 3000, P.O. Box 95
TD Centre North Tower
Toronto, ON M5K 1G8
2024 Fogler, Rubinoff LLP
Over the course of our firm’s history we’ve had the privilege to work with many of Canada’s chartered banks, trust companies, mezzanine lenders and other financial institutions.
Our lawyers advise lenders and borrowers in secured and unsecured credit transactions, asset-based financing transactions, construction and real estate development lending, acquisition loans, and complex banking transactions, and compliance issues.
We act for borrowers ranging from small family run businesses to large public companies with global operations. Our experienced lawyers bring a business minded, practical approach to each and every transaction, with the drive and focus to effectively manage your risk and efficiently get the deal done on your schedule.
Environmental liability affects every business, regardless of size. For many, this has become a central risk management issue, requiring experienced, knowledgeable advice to guide companies through increasingly complicated regulations.
Members of our team have extensive experience across the broad spectrum of environmental law, from compliance advice, transactions to litigation. We also manage environmental due diligence related to the sale, acquisition, and financing of real property transactions.
We have carried out major engagements with municipalities, energy proponents, small to medium sized companies, mining companies, First Nations, public interest groups, and residents.
Our Environmental lawyers have been counsel in precedent setting litigation before courts and tribunals. Key areas of our environmental expertise include:
- environmental litigation (defence of MOECC prosecutions, ERT hearings and civil actions)
- brownfields redevelopment and contaminated sites
- assessments, approvals and permitting
- legislative and policy development for municipalities, federal and provincial governments and agencies
Environmental Litigation
Environmental issues may lead to civil claims and/or various regulatory proceedings including orders and quasi-criminal enforcement actions. Our subject-matter expertise allows us to represent clients in all forms of environmental litigation proceedings including:
- civil claims for environmental liability
- nuisance
- negligence
- trespass
- strict liability
- environmental review tribunal proceedings
- appeals of renewable energy approvals
- appeals of more orders
- appeals of more approvals
- leave to appeal under the Environmental Bill of Rights, 1993
- provincial offences act proceedings
- defence of more prosecutions under various environmental statutes including:
- Environmental Protection Act
- Safe Drinking Water Act, 2002
- Ontario Water Resources Act
- Pesticides Act
- Mining Act
Assessments Approvals and Permitting
We advise on navigating regulatory processes efficiently and effectively from planning through to approval including:
- environmental assessments, federal and provincial
- renewable energy approvals
- environmental compliance approvals, including air, noise and vibration, sewage, waste disposal sites, waste management systems, mobile waste processing, cleanup of contaminated sites
- drinking water works permits
- municipal drinking water
Brownfields Redevelopment and Contaminated Sites
Environmental statutes cast the widest possible net of liability for clients who have real property interests. Risk assessment and management is critical to limiting exposure.
We advise and assist with all aspects of Brownfields Redevelopment and Contaminated Sites issues including:
- environmental clauses in leases and agreements of purchase and sale
- certificates of property use
- records of site condition
- phase I and II environmental site assessments
- risk assessments
- public and municipal consultation
- gas station decommissioning
The healthcare sector is going through seismic changes and our team is here to help participants in the health care and health services sectors navigate the current regulatory environment.
We work with our clients as regulatory lawyers, and also as their strategic advisers, litigators, and dealmakers. We provide counsel to participants in the health care and health services sectors, including:
- health professionals and facilities
- individuals
- hospitals
- medical advisory committees
- hospital boards of governors
- government
- professional associations
- independent health facilities
- health facilities not covered by the independent health facilities act
- long term care facilities
- occupational health departments of large corporations
- manufacturers of products used in the health care industry
- internet pharmacies
- cross-border facilitating companies.
Whether you are a health professional or representative of a health institution or a regulatory body, you’ll appreciate our commitment and focus on providing exceptional service in the most efficient and cost-effective manner. Our health law services include a representation of:
- physicians
- dentists
- nurses
- psychologists
- physiotherapists
- chiropractors
- pharmacists and midwives in regulatory matters including complaints
- discipline
- quality assurance
- fitness to practice and registration issues
- representation of parties in hospital privileges disputes
- incorporation of health professionals
- contract negotiations in hospital matters
- providing advice and representation to boards, agencies and commissions in the health sector
- advice to independent health facilities
- advice relating to disability insurance
- advice to health professionals with substance dependency issues
- alternative delivery systems
- privilege and other credentialing problems
- physician/hospital relations
- representation of clinics and group practices
- representation of health professionals in negligence claims
- sales, transfers, mergers and acquisitions
- advice to practitioners participating in peer assessment
- advice to physicians who have been directed to participate in the physician review enhancement program (prep)
- representation of plaintiffs in medical malpractice claims
- advice on provincial and federal regulatory requirements
- advice to intended parents, gestational carriers (surrogates) and clinics with respect to assisted reproductive technologies
- advice to patients and families with respect to mental health issues
- advice on the interpretation of agreements
- advice in dealing with freedom of information and privacy issues
- advice on labour relations, employment law and human rights issues
- negotiating agreements on behalf of and with health sector participants
- advice to physicians with respect to OHIP billing issues
- representation of parties with health law issues before all levels of court and administrative tribunals
- extensive experience representing individuals, health care practitioners and others at coroner’s inquests
Our immigration team provides expertise in a broad range of business and individual immigration applications.
We work with our clients to deliver high-quality, cost-effective and efficient solutions in all areas of the complex and evolving area of Canadian citizenship and immigration regulatory requirements. Our immigration law services include:
- Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) based Work Permits
- Work Permits under Intra-Company Transfer provisions, NAFTA, GATS, Canada-Chile FTA and other LMIA exempt work permit categories
- Temporary Resident Visas
- Business Visitor assessments and applications
- Provincial Nominee Program applications for businesses, investors and individuals
- Permanent Residence applications under Express Entry Canadian Experience Class, Federal Skilled Worker Program, Federal Skilled Trades Program and Provincial Nominee Program
- Renewal of Permanent Resident Cards
- Start-up Visa Applications
- Canadian Citizenship Applications
- Temporary Resident Permits to overcome inadmissibility
- Employer Compliance Reviews
- Family Class Applications, including sponsorships and super visas
We are pleased to have as our immigration counsel Immi Sikand of Sikand Law, which firm provides a broad range of immigration services for individuals and businesses. Immi is certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada as a Specialist in Citizenship and Immigration Law. She can be reached at 647.875.2114 or by email @ [email protected].
Our firm’s Indigenous Practice Group brings with it a depth of experience in advising Indigenous clients on a broad range of matters, including providing advice and acting in disputes concerning the assertion of inherent jurisdiction and other Indigenous and treaty rights; setting up effective business structures that facilitate the expansion of a community’s economic development; aboriginal and treaty rights advocacy; and consultations with government and industry.
Our team of lawyers has developed innovative legal structures and frameworks for, and successfully represented, groups of Indigenous communities across the country who wish to work together to pursue business opportunities, including through limited partnerships, joint ventures, corporations and trusts. We help our Indigenous clients manage existing and incoming assets, and offer advice and guidance on governance models that reflect and respond to our clients’ priorities.
First Nations across the country turn to us for strategic guidance on:
- Setting up economic development corporations and business structures, including joint ventures and partnerships with respect to various industries, including energy, construction and transportation;
- Drafting governance policies for boards of directors of economic development corporations and providing guidance on the application of governance policies;
- Advising Councils and communities on the development of laws and policies based on inherent jurisdiction, recognition agreements such as the Framework Agreement on First Nation Land Management and statutes such as the First Nations Fiscal Management Act and the Indian Act, and the design and operation of the self-governance institutions which will implement those laws and policies;
- Collaborating with Indigenous clients on the joint presentation of information at community consultation and information update meetings; and
- Consulting on the negotiation of impact benefit and community benefit and cooperation agreements with government and industries.
Members of our group work with our First Nation clients to develop and implement sound governance policies, institutions and practices which reflect the interests, priorities and objectives of their communities.
The laws, policies and codes which we have developed for our clients have proven capable of supporting some of the largest economic development projects undertaken on reserve land in Canada, and have provided the legal basis for entirely new forms of governance and environmental protection institutions which successfully carry indigenous value systems and decision-making processes forward into modern business and governance activities.
We strive at all times to identify our clients’ objectives and we respond accordingly by helping our clients overcome their challenges and achieve their goals. The Indigenous Practice Group understands the unique circumstances and complexities of Indigenous affairs and the dynamic relation between the various parties. We anticipate potential problems, employ techniques to avoid them and find creative solutions to overcome them.
Our experienced team handles complex restructuring, bankruptcy, insolvency and creditors’ rights matters, regularly working to improve our clients’ financial and collateral positions.
We advise on all types of insolvency and restructuring matters, including debt collection, privately appointed receiverships and court appointed receiverships to proceedings under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency (BIA) and Companies’ Creditors Arrangement (CCAA) Acts.
To avoid bankruptcy, we often assist and advise debtors (including corporations, partnerships and individuals) regarding their “restructuring” or “reorganization” options under the proposal provisions of the BIA and the CCAA and other applicable statutes of Ontario and Canada. We have also acted for Proposal Trustees, Receivers and Monitors under various applicable Provincial and Federal legislation. In particular, we have advised the following:
- debtors and proposal trustees of their obligations under the BIA after the filing of a notice of intention to file a proposal;
- debtors and proposal trustees regarding the drafting and content of BIA Proposals;
- monitors under the CCAA; and
- secured creditors and landlords regarding their rights under the BIA and CCAA.
Our experience allows us to represent the interests of various stakeholders in restructuring and insolvency situations and we regularly offer restructuring and insolvency advice in industries such as retail, automotive, health care, transportation, railway, airline, general manufacturing, communications, mining, travel and insurance.
Our dedicated team of IP professionals immerse themselves in our clients’ technologies and industries, and clients benefit from our interdisciplinary and commercially-focused approach to matters.
We help our clients meet all of their trademark, patent, industrial design and copyright requirements. From the legal clearance of trademarks of all types, patentability and validity searches and patent drafting, through the registration process, through the enforcement of trademark, patent, industrial design and copyright rights in trademark opposition proceedings and litigation, our expertise provides our clients with the ability to react quickly and the know-how to secure the necessary protection effectively and efficiently.
We offer creative solutions to clients whether they require the management of a sizeable portfolio of IP assets, whether they are embarking on an acquisition or licensing program, or whether they own a small number of trademarks, logos, slogans, patents or designs which are central to their success in the marketplace. Our approach focuses on the needs of our clients, and provides flexibility to meet the brand-centred demands of the marketplace and the need to protect innovative technology.
At Fogler, Rubinoff LLP, our litigators explore every avenue to resolve our clients most critical disputes with strategies that balance advocacy and pragmatism.
We view matters through the lens of our clients’ business objectives, drawing on the substantial experience of our firm across all major industry sectors. Our approach has created a long track record of success for our clients, from motion practice to strategic settlements, trials and on appeal.
When business and commercial disputes can’t be resolved through simple negotiation, we are positioned to take matters to the next level. Our litigators are problem-solvers, using the legal system – whether through mediation, settlement, or going all the way to trial – as the means through which we achieve creative yet practical results for our clients.
Specialized groups within the litigation department provide advice and advocacy in civil, quasi-criminal and administrative proceedings. We are committed to a client centered and practical approach to address your litigation needs. Our lawyers prepare and outline strategies offering imaginative, creative and ‘out-of-the-box’ advice with a view to achieving an early and favourable resolution of disputes. If settlement is not possible, our experienced lawyers and sophisticated support facilities allow us to forcefully advocate on our clients’ behalf throughout the litigation process.
We work with our clients to develop commercially reasonable solutions to problem transactions and situations, including the use of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms.
We work closely with clients as they plan and develop their commercial, industrial, condominium and residential real estate projects.
Our familiarity with all aspects of conveyancing and zoning, our committed participation in community affairs, and our experience in government and the administrative process give us the know-how to solve your real estate problems effectively and efficiently. We can advise and act for you on the entire development approval process, including:
- land-use planning
- zoning by-law amendments
- official plan amendments
- severances and variances
- site plan approvals
- plans of subdivision
- negotiating with interest groups
- negotiating development agreements, including site plan, servicing and cost-sharing agreements
- appearing before tribunals, the Ontario Ontario Land Tribunal and other boards, committees and councils
- expropriations
Personal information and business data are increasingly valuable but inherently risky assets that are protected by both technological and legal safeguards.
These safeguards are in flux given fast-changing technology, evolving privacy and data protection laws, and ever-escalating cybersecurity threats – the latter recently resulting in massive privacy and data breaches at government departments and market-leading brands in the retail, ISP and financial services sectors.
Businesses facing privacy and data protection challenges require expert legal advisors who provide innovative and practical solutions. Our multi-disciplinary privacy and data protection team includes client-and-peer-ranked leading and technologically-savvy business, regulatory and litigation lawyers, some of whom are also trained as engineers.
The experience and services of our lawyers covers the full spectrum of risk mitigation, incident response and dispute resolution and includes advising on:
- Canadian federal and provincial privacy and data protection laws applicable to private sector businesses;
- privacy and data protection gap and risk assessments;
- implementing and auditing personal information and data protection practices, including privacy policies and consents;
- data classification and information management programs;
- data protection provisions for third party service provider/outsourcing agreements;
- privacy and data protection issues related to websites, apps, e-commerce and cloud computing;
- privacy and data protection issues and requirements in business transactions including mergers, acquisitions, securitizations and financings;
- privacy and data security breaches, incident management and regulatory notification issues;
- security solutions and crisis management relating to lost or stolen devices (like phones, laptops or flash drives), cyberattacks, ransomware, misdirected email, fraudsters and rogues;
- competition law compliance risks associated with information sharing among competitors and industry associations as part of responses to cybersecurity and other threats or for other legitimate purposes;
- investigations by and complaints before Canadian federal and provincial privacy commissioners;
- government access to information and freedom of information requests and proceedings;
- privacy-related litigation, including investigations, surveillance and e-discovery issues;
- workplace privacy issues, including email, Internet and social media use policies affecting an employee’s expectation of privacy;
- privacy and data protection training and awareness programs;
- Canadian privacy laws and Canada’s Anti-spam Legislation (CASL) applicable to promotional electronic messages sent, and computer programs installed, by manufacturers, distributors, retailers, app developers and other Internet-based businesses;
- issues under CASL and Canadian privacy laws regarding marketing and advertising campaigns, including refer-a-friend campaigns, social media marketing, big data, programmatic ad trading, and online behavioural advertising;
- Canadian personal health information protection laws applicable to health care institutions, health products/services companies (including pharmaceutical companies) and other organizations in the life sciences sector;
- outsourcing involving personal information or other sensitive data that requires protection;
- international privacy and data protection issues, including transferring of data outside Canada and complying with information transfer agreements under foreign laws such as the European Union’s Data Directive and General Data Protection Regulation; and
- government relations and regulatory affairs involving emerging privacy and data protection issues relating to law and public policy both within Canada and abroad.
