Drafting Effective Employment Contracts: Legal, Practical, Strategic, and Professional Considerations
Employment contracts represent an attempt to create certainty in an employment relationship. However, they will only create certainty if they are properly drafted. It is, therefore, important for drafting lawyers to understand the legal framework within which the courts operate in the employment law world. This session will provide lawyers with legal, practical, strategic and professional considerations in preparing employment contracts.
The agenda will cover: • Why employment contracts are a good idea for organizations • How courts interpret employment contracts and what you need to minimize risk and maximize enforceability • What clauses employment contracts should contain and how to draft them • What types of clauses you may want to consider depending on the specific employee • What to do when dealing with unrepresented persons and conflicts of interest
Professionalism Content: 30 minutes
Competence – Rule 2.01 (10 minutes=3.33 minutes/speaker) Addressing the issue of knowing when to seek help in specialized areas, which includes employment law – discussion of problems we see with poorly drafted restrictive covenants and termination provisions.
Conflicts – Rule 2.02 (10 minutes=3.33 minutes/speaker) Addressing the issue of knowing who your client is – you may be receiving directions from an employee of the company, but your client is the organization. Considering the organization’s interests vs the hiring manager/HR person.
Unrepresented Persons – 2.04 (10 minutes=3.33 minutes/speaker) Addressing the issue of negotiating employment contracts with unrepresented persons – canvassing the issue of urging ILA, and how to ensure the individual is not under the impression you are acting for them.
Presenters
• Kate Dearden • Carly Dunster • Adam Pennell • Maureen M. Quinlan • Paul S. Schwartzman
Toronto Lawyers Association
For more than 135 years, the Toronto Lawyers' Association, located within the Courthouse Library, has represented the interests of lawyers practising in the City of Toronto. The association was founded to support its members in three key areas: Knowledge, Advocacy, and Community. To uphold these pillars, the association offers a year-round mix of online and in-person education programs for lawyers, hosts both free and paid events to foster in-person networking, and submits advocacy pieces on behalf of its members to the Ontario bench and bar, all levels of government, and the broader public.
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