Labour & Employment Legal Services
Michael P. Fitzgibbon
LLB, Partner
LLB, Partner
Mike co-founded Watershed LLP with Steve Mendelssohn in January 2010. Since his call to the bar in 1993 Mike has practiced management side labour and employment law at one of Canada’s largest national law firms and was an equity partner in that firm. He is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Toronto where he has, since 1996 taught labour and employment law at Woodsworth College.
Mike possesses extensive experience representing businesses throughout Canada in all areas of traditional labour and employment law. Mike has built a reputation as a practical, pragmatic and creative advisor and advocate on behalf of his clients. His approach is proactive rather than reactive, anticipating issues before they become costly problems to his clients.
He has represented employers before the Superior Court of Justice, Divisional Court in Applications for Judicial Review and in countless cases before grievance arbitrators under collective agreements and in every employment tribunal in Ontario including representing employers in certification, unfair labour practice and complex related employer and sale of a business litigation before the Ontario Labour Relations Board. He also represents employers in discrimination proceedings under the Human Rights Code before the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.
He has acted as lead-Canadian labour and employment counsel to numerous clients engaged in complex business restructuring and workforce reduction initiatives, developed and implemented proactive disability management programs designed to not only comply with legal obligations but contain costs associated with employee absenteeism and provide extensive advice on performance management systems that ensure that employer expectations are clearly communicated to employees and that employees are engaged in the process of improvement. Mike has conducted extensive employee and management training including in the areas of attendance management, performance management, workplace investigations, positive employee relations and maintaining non-union status, anti-harassment and workplace violence.
Mike has co-authored two books Recent Developments in Union Certification and Decertification and Understanding Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000, and contributed chapters to a number of others, has written on a wide range of labour and employment law topics, and speaks regularly at various conferences including at the Canadian Bar Association, Quebec Bar Association, Law Society of Upper Canada, Human Resources Professional Association of Ontario. Mike has been interviewed by, among others, MacLean’s, CBC, Report on Business, the Globe and Mail, National Post, Toronto Star, Lawyer’s Weekly, Law Times, Canadian Lawyer and the CBA National Magazine and numerous other magazines, print publications, on television and radio on a range of labour and employment law issues. He is a contributing author on labour and employment law matters to the National Magazine’s Addendum.
He is also the founder and author of one of the first Canadian legal weblogs http://labourlawblog.typepad.com/.
Mike is listed in Lawday.ca top 100 leading lawyers in Canada in the practice area of Employment Law for the year 2009 and in Canadian HR Reporter’s 2008 Employment Lawyers Directory (a Comprehensive Directory of the Top Employment Law and Immigration Law Practitioners in Canada).
Mike possesses extensive experience representing businesses throughout Canada in all areas of traditional labour and employment law. Mike has built a reputation as a practical, pragmatic and creative advisor and advocate on behalf of his clients. His approach is proactive rather than reactive, anticipating issues before they become costly problems to his clients.
He has represented employers before the Superior Court of Justice, Divisional Court in Applications for Judicial Review and in countless cases before grievance arbitrators under collective agreements and in every employment tribunal in Ontario including representing employers in certification, unfair labour practice and complex related employer and sale of a business litigation before the Ontario Labour Relations Board. He also represents employers in discrimination proceedings under the Human Rights Code before the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.
He has acted as lead-Canadian labour and employment counsel to numerous clients engaged in complex business restructuring and workforce reduction initiatives, developed and implemented proactive disability management programs designed to not only comply with legal obligations but contain costs associated with employee absenteeism and provide extensive advice on performance management systems that ensure that employer expectations are clearly communicated to employees and that employees are engaged in the process of improvement. Mike has conducted extensive employee and management training including in the areas of attendance management, performance management, workplace investigations, positive employee relations and maintaining non-union status, anti-harassment and workplace violence.
Mike has co-authored two books Recent Developments in Union Certification and Decertification and Understanding Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000, and contributed chapters to a number of others, has written on a wide range of labour and employment law topics, and speaks regularly at various conferences including at the Canadian Bar Association, Quebec Bar Association, Law Society of Upper Canada, Human Resources Professional Association of Ontario. Mike has been interviewed by, among others, MacLean’s, CBC, Report on Business, the Globe and Mail, National Post, Toronto Star, Lawyer’s Weekly, Law Times, Canadian Lawyer and the CBA National Magazine and numerous other magazines, print publications, on television and radio on a range of labour and employment law issues. He is a contributing author on labour and employment law matters to the National Magazine’s Addendum.
He is also the founder and author of one of the first Canadian legal weblogs http://labourlawblog.typepad.com/.
Mike is listed in Lawday.ca top 100 leading lawyers in Canada in the practice area of Employment Law for the year 2009 and in Canadian HR Reporter’s 2008 Employment Lawyers Directory (a Comprehensive Directory of the Top Employment Law and Immigration Law Practitioners in Canada).