Practice Summary
Our franchise clients count on Louis for first-rate counsel in employment law, including the hiring and termination of executives and other employees, as well as on competition, regulatory, and privacy issues. Louis has more than 25 years of trial and appellate courtroom experience including acting as counsel on ground-breaking cases at the Supreme Court of Canada. He provides counsel in class proceedings and other complex, multi-party litigation concerning employment, consumer and franchise issues. Many of his cases include a cross-border component. As an expert in employment law, Louis has represented senior employees in finance, law, accounting, advertising, broadcasting and manufacturing. His professional liability expertise is recognized by LawPro with his status as “preferred counsel.”
Louis Sokolov is also a member of our class action practice.
BAR ADMISSION
Ontario, 1993
British Columbia, 2022
EDUCATION
LL.B., Osgoode Hall Law School, 1991
B.A., University of Toronto, Victoria College, 1987
More About Louis Sokolov
Practice Areas
- Class Actions
- Employment and Labour Litigation and Arbitration
- Professional Liability Litigation
- Regulatory Litigation
- Privacy Litigation
- Consumer Protection Litigation
- Franchisee Association and Group Litigation
- Team Leader: Employment Law
Recognitions
- Ranked in Chambers Canada – Dispute Resolution: Class Action (Plaintiff) (2017 – 2024)
- Listed in Best Lawyers in Canada – Class Action Litigation (2022 – 2024)
- Recognized in Best Lawyers Global Business Edition – Class Action Litigation (2021)
- Listed as “Repeatedly Recommended” in Canadian Legal LEXPERT Directory – Class Actions (2018 – 2022)
- Named “Legal Eagle” by Franchise Times Magazine (2017 – 2019)
Professional Associations
- Canadian Bar Association
- Law Society of Ontario
- Canadian Franchise Association
- International Franchise Association
Selected Works
- Di Filippo and Caron v. Bank of Nova Scotia et al, 2019 ONSC 3282 (CanLII)
- Bernstein v. Peoples Trust Company, 2019 ONSC 2867 (CanLII)
- Mancinelli v. Royal Bank of Canada, 2018 ONCA 544 (CanLII)
- Bernstein v Peoples Trust Company, 2017 ONSC 752 (CanLII)
- Bozsik v Livingston International Inc., 2016 ONSC 7168(CanLII)
- Stewart v. Hosack, 2014 ONSC 5693 (CanLII)
- Harris v. Levine, 2014 ONCA 608 (CanLII)
- Fulawka v. Bank of Nova Scotia, 2014 ONSC 4743 (CanLII)
- O’Neill v. General Motors of Canada, 2014 ONSC 4742 (CanLII)
- Sankar v. Bell Mobility Inc., 2013 ONSC 7529 (CanLII)
- Sankar v. Bell Mobility, 2013 ONSC 5916 (CanLII)
- O’Neill v. General Motors of Canada, 2013 ONSC 4654 (CanLII)
- Penner v. Niagara (Regional Police Services Board), 2013 SCC 19, (CanLII)
- Mitchinson v. Niagara Child and Youth Services, [2012] O.H.R.T.D. No. 2145
- Fulawka v. The Bank of Nova Scotia (2012), 111 O.R. (3d) 346 (C.A.)
- Fresco v. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (2012), 111 O.R. (3d) 501 (C.A.)
- Waldman v. Thomson Reuters Corp., [2012] O.J. No. 792 (Sup.Ct.)
- Patel v. Groupon Inc., [2012] O.J. No. 1226 (Sup.Ct.)
- O’Neill v. General Motors of Canada Ltd., [2011] O.J. No. 4785 (Sup.Ct.)
- Vancouver (City) v. Ward, [2010] 2 S.C.R. 28
- Sedore v. Fleming, [2010] 2010 ONSC 1891 (Sup.Ct.)
- Passarelli v. Startek, 2009 CanLII 63371 (ON SC)
- Miazga v. Kvello Estate, [2009] 3 SCR 339
- Viveiros v. Goldkind, [2009] O.J. No. 3802 (Sup.Ct.)
- McIntyre v. Connolly, [2008] O.J. No. 1097 (Sup. Ct.)
- Hill v. Hamilton-Wentworth Regional Police Services Board, [2007] 3 S.C.R. 129
- Lioris v. Mahler, [2005] O.J. No. 59 (Sup.Ct.)
- Cheng v. Li, [2005] O.J. No. 1362 (Mstr.)
- Seidman v. College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, [2003] O.J. No. 5098 (Div.Ct.)
- “Class Actions” in New Perspectives on Canadian Employment Law (Markham: LexisNexis Canada, 2014), Ch. 10. (with Laura Fric)
Blogs
SOTOS LLP BLOG January 4, 2022Ontario Employment Standards Legislation Update: Disconnecting From Work, Prohibition on Non-Competition Agreements & New Gig Worker Entitlements
SOTOS LLP BLOG January 22, 2021Workplace COVID-19 Vaccination Policies
SOTOS LLP BLOG March 19, 2020Ontario and Federal Government of Canada Measures to Ease COVID-19 Employment and Business Disruptions
SOTOS LLP BLOG April 26, 2019Changes to ESA improve Employer Flexibility in Workplace
SOTOS LLP BLOG November 28, 2018Ontario Changes Employment Law (again)
SOTOS LLP BLOG May 25, 2017Recommended changes to Ontario Labour law could open the door to more unionization in franchise sector
SOTOS LLP BLOG April 6, 2016Sexual Violence and Harassment Legislation Receives Royal Assent: what does this mean for employers?
Personal Statement
I’ve spent more than twenty-five years practising law, the last twenty of which have been representing clients in areas of employment law, class actions and other civil disputes. In each and every case, my clients hire me to help solve their problems. These can range from representing companies in routine business disputes or negotiations, to assisting individuals or large groups of people obtain financial compensation for life-changing events. Some of these matters are worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Some may be only worth a few thousand dollars. No matter whether I represent companies, individuals or large classes of people, my job is to help them solve their problems in a pragmatic, efficient and empathetic way.