Education and Public Law

For over 40 years, the Education and Public Law Group at Shibley Righton LLP has been providing comprehensive, effective and timely legal services to school boards and educator organizations in all aspects of education law and public law, including general civil and commercial litigation, employment and labour relations, contract negotiations, human rights, special education, student discipline, administrative law, judicial review and appeals, freedom of information and privacy law, conflict of interest law, health law, and constitutional law, as well as those aspect of corporate-commercial law, real estate law, construction law, and municipal law that confront today's educators.

Led by Thomas McRae and Sheila MacKinnon the members of the Education and Public Law Group have acted for school boards throughout Ontario, both public and Catholic, English- and French-language, as well as the Ontario Ministry of Education, various governmental commissions, boards and agencies, committees of the Legislature of Ontario, and other professional organizations.

In servicing its education-related clients, the Education and Public Law Group provides general counsel and advice on a full range of challenging issues, including:

• governance and amalgamation;

• funding and financing;

• legal liabilities of school boards and
  their trustees, officers, and employees;

• school board powers and duties;

• policies and procedures;

• labour relations, including collective
  agreement bargaining and administration;

• special education;

• human rights and discrimination;

• constitutional issues;

• employment issues;

• board of arbitration and board of reference
  hearings;

• teacher discipline;

• sexual misconduct;

• student attendance rights;

• student discipline, expulsion and suspension;

• school violence;

• privacy and freedom of information;

• conflict of interest;

• municipal and planning law;

• transfer of assets and liabilities under
  several legislative regimes;

• trustee representation and elections;
  and,

• school councils