Queen’s Marque
600-1741 Lower Water Street
Halifax, N.S.
B3J 0J2
Language(s) spoken: English, French
Bar Admission(s): Nova Scotia, 2007; New Brunswick, 2010; Alberta, 2014
Legal Assistant(s): Crystal Palmer
Jennifer’s 17 years of practice experience include ten years as internal legal counsel, with three years as acting General Counsel for a major public sector employer. In both private practice and in-house roles, she has acted for some of Canada’s largest employers, including national corporations, provincial health authorities, and a major municipal police service, where she served as HR legal counsel for five years and acting General Counsel for three years. Her expertise spans governance, government relations, privacy matters, and all aspects of labour and employment law, including discipline and terminations, governance issues, employment contracts, employment-related litigation, labour relations matters, policy development and review, and mergers and acquisitions.
Jennifer represents clients across multiple provinces, appearing before various levels of court and in numerous administrative law proceedings, including human rights, labour arbitration, interest arbitration, wrongful and constructive dismissal cases, occupational health and safety matters, and labour relations boards.
Her representative experience includes:
- Successfully representing an employer in upholding the termination of an employee for workplace harassment and discrimination in a labour arbitration.
- Representing employers in variety of grievance arbitrations including discipline, termination, classification and policy issues.
- Acting for a client in interest arbitration and mediation process to secure new service agreement with health care providers.
- Representing employers in a variety of matters before the Alberta Labour Relations Board including a reconsideration application, judicial reviews, inclusion of employees in the bargaining unit, and unfair labour practice complaints.
- Representing a client in making representations to Government of Alberta on overhaul of legislative framework that regulated the client’s organization.
- Successfully representing employer in matters pursuant to the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
- Successfully representing employers in having complaints filed pursuant to Alberta Human Rights Act.
- Representing clients in variety of administrative processes including before Alberta Privacy Commissioner, municipal police commission and the Alberta Law Enforcement Review Board.
- Supporting the labour and employment team responsible for conducting due diligence and advising on a client’s acquisition of a major grocery retailer.
Education & Career
Education
Dalhousie University, BA in Psychology and French, 2003
Dalhousie University Schulich School of Law, LLB, 2006
Activities
Member, Canadian Association of Counsel to Employers (CACE), 2014 – present
Member, CACE Human Rights Committee