Regulatory Litigation

Markson Law advises and represents clients in respect of compliance and regulatory litigation. The firm has experience prosecuting and defending individuals and public and private corporations under an array of federal and provincial regulatory statutes, including the Competition Act, the Auditor General Act, the Income Tax Act, the Excise Act, the Railway Safety Act, the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, the Radiocommunication Act, the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, the Ontario Water Resources Act, the Environmental Protection Act, the Fisheries Act, the Copyright Act, the Canada Labour Code, the Consumer Protection Act, and the Liquor Licence Act.

Past prosecutions involved corporations such as Air Canada, Bombardier, CN Rail and Canada Shipping Lines, and Markson Law has further been involved in the successful defence of other major Canadian corporations in Canada.

Pre-charge and Pre-trial Advocacy

In suitable cases where the client is under investigation and regulatory charges have not yet been laid, a principled course of intervention and cooperation may be pursued to dissuade the regulatory agency from laying charges. Once charges have been laid, pre-trial advocacy can undermine the existence of a reasonable prospect of conviction and demonstrate that the prosecution is not in the public interest, thereby engaging the legal duty of the Crown to withdraw or stay the charges.

Although a regulatory trial or hearing may often be necessary, the firm's emphasis on pro-active, creative and focused pre-charge and pre-trial advocacy consistently spares clients from unwarranted charges and unnecessary trials and hearings.  

Exceptional Dispositions

Extraordinary efforts are made to earn and secure the favourable exercise of prosecutorial and judicial discretion. Exceptional dispositions require persuasive advocacy and the identification and pursuit of every available mitigating fact and factor. However serious or minor the offence may be, the acceptable result is the truly exceptional outcome.