FAQs

Our office address is Two Morneau Sheppell Centre, 895 Don Mills Road Suite 900. Please note that we are a hybrid firm.

In person meetings are by appointment only and must be booked in advance.

We start with consultations where you can get a thorough understanding of your rights, options and next steps. Consultation prices for most employees are $285.00 plus tax for a 1 hour meeting. For individuals with incomes less than $50,000.00 a year, we offered a reduced rate consultation of $175.00.

For more information and estimates of what different kinds of services after consultation will cost, please click here.

Unfortunately, at this time we do not offer pro bono consultations. We do however charge reduced consultation rates in an effort to make our services accessible to a wide variety of workers. If our consultation fee is out of your budget, we would be happy to put you in touch with community legal clinics, other firms, or the Law Society Referral Service.

We recognize that for many, this might be the first time you have encountered a lawyer or legal process. A lawyer’s role is to educate you and advise you on your rights. In our initial consultation, we will ensure to do so, so that you have a clear picture of your options. If we decide together that further action is necessary, we will guide you along the way through straightforward advice, making sense of complicated procedures, and providing you with a clear picture of what costs are involved.

Yes. We work with translation and interpretation service providers in a variety of languages so that language isn’t a barrier to accessing our services.

Our Founding Lawyer has experience litigating cases all the way to trial through interpreters for clients who speak a different language to her. Please indicate on your intake form if you need an interpreter, and for what language.

Not necessarily. In fact, most employment law cases settle well before a court action even starts. Our job is to advise you on your rights and help you come to an informed decision about what process is best for you.

It depends on what stage things are at, and how complex the matter is. A straightforward severance negotiation can be resolved in weeks to a few months. More complicated demand letter negotiations can take anywhere from 2 to 3 months to resolve. Court and tribunal matters are a far more significant time investment, taking anywhere from 1 to 5 years to get to trial. With that said, many court and tribunal cases settle along the way.

We recognize that this is not a straightforward question. Each case depends on its facts, and moreover, different communities have different ways of approaching court and legal issues. In some communities, court processes might even carry stigma or the fear of negative consequences. Additionally, litigation does not come with guarantees of a specific outcome, and can be an investment of time as much as of funds.

We believe that at a minimum, you should always obtain a clear picture of your rights as an employees. Initial consultations are completely confidential. What steps you take afterwards are your decision. If you do choose to work with us or another employment lawyer afterwards, we do find that individuals can feel empowered in taking steps to enforce their rights.

We assist with mediations in several court forums, including at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Small Claims Court Settlement Conferences, Ontario Labour Relations Board mediations for Employment Standards Act and Occupational Health and Safety Act matters, and Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario mediations.

We can’t guarantee last minute assistance, but if you are a self-represented person in need of help for these forums, please reach out to our Founding Lawyer at richa@cascadeslegal.ca to see if we might be able to help.

We have tried to price our fees with middle-income clients in mind. Nonetheless, we recognize that some of these fees may still be out of budget depending on your financial situation. We also offer contingency, partial contingency, and reduced hourly fee rates for lower income clients. Reach out to Richa at richa@cascadeslegal.ca and we can discuss what kinds of options might be available.

In negotiating for clients, we will ask for your employer to pay you “legal costs” as part of your settlement. While we cannot guarantee that every employer will agree to do so, many employers do agree to pay some amount in legal fees when settling a matter. This can be an added benefit to attempting to negotiate a settlement. In court cases, sometimes you can get an award from the court for legal fees as well. That however often comes after a trial or a mid-way step called a “motion”.

We recognize that courts and litigation are just one tool in the overall “toolbox” for challenging oppressive or systemic practices. We are happy to have a conversation with you about alternative methods of dispute resolution, be it mediation, law reform campaigns in association with an advocacy organization, Indigenous alternative dispute resolution methods, or even other cultural methods of dispute resolution you are comfortable with that we may not have thought of. We believe that we can learn from our clients and communities as much as you can learn from us.

Absolutely. One of our goals alongside our legal work is to empower local diverse communities in the Greater Toronto Area to know their rights as workers and under human rights laws. If you are a community organisation that would like Richa to come visit you to deliver a public legal education presentation, a walk in clinic day, or otherwise be of assistance to your clients, please do not hesitate to reach out at richa@cascadeslegal.ca.