Brian is a management-side labour, employment and human rights lawyer in Fasken’s Toronto office.
Fasken is proud to be a Partner Company in the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) in Geneva, Switzerland. The Fasken Labour, Employment and Human Rights Practice Group (comprised of over 120 lawyers globally) has been ranked Band 1 in the Chambers Canada Rankings for a number of years up to and including 2024. The Fasken Labour, Employment and Human Rights Practice Group was also recognized as Employment Law Firm of the Year in the Chambers Canada Rankings for 2021 and, again, in 2023.
Brian has also held the top ranking of Band 1 in the Chambers Canada Rankings for a number of consecutive years. In 2021-2022, Brian was recognized as a Senior Statesperson in the Chambers Nationwide and Ontario Rankings, and the recipient of the Chambers Canada Lifetime Achievement Award celebrating his career and contributions to the legal profession and to the practice of law across Canada. He is also a co-recipient of the 2021 Canadian Freedom of Association Award presented by the Canadian Industrial Relations Association (CIRA). Brian is a co-recipient of the 2024 Bora Laskin Award for outstanding contributions to Canadian labour law.
Brian was counsel to the Canadian Employers Council (CEC) — the official "voice" of Canadian business, on the international stage, including at the ILO, in respect of the world of work — for decades until the CEC dissolution in 2024. During this period, on behalf of the CEC and its members, Brian spent some time on the Governing Body and the Committee on Freedom of Association (CFA) at the ILO. Also, in January 2021, the CEC submitted a Report to the Canadian government setting out the views and perspective of the Canadian business community on a wide variety of unfolding international and domestic developments impacting the world of work and global workplaces.
He is also counsel to the Federally Regulated Employers - Transportation and Communications (FETCO). FETCO is the principal organization representing the interests of federally-regulated employers, including its interactions with the Canadian Government. FETCO is now the “voice” of Canadian business, on the international stage, including at the ILO, in respect of the world of work.
Brian advises Canadian businesses (operating both inside and outside of Canada) on how best to identify, prevent and monitor the human rights impact of their operations and activities, including supply chains, as well as guiding them on corporate reporting obligations under Canada’s new Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act.
Brian was a member of the Labour Consultation Group, appointed by the Canadian Government, in respect of the social/labour provisions of the recently enacted Canada-US-Mexico trade deal (CUSMA) signed July 1, 2020, with the first review scheduled for July 1, 2026. He is also a member of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement: Domestic Advisory Group (CETA:DAG) (Labour and Sustainable Development chapters) under the provisions of the provisional trade deal between Canada and the 27-member EU.
Brian participates in the affairs of the International Labour and Employment Relations Association (ILERA). In 2018, he presented a paper on "Globalization: Reverse or Reform?" at the ILERA World Congress held in Seoul, South Korea, and in 2020, he spoke on the topic of “Globalization and Labour Law” at the ILERA Regional: Americas conference. In June, 2024, Brian co-authored and co-presented a paper entitled “Access to effective remedies: fashioning a global framework for the arbitration of labour disputes” delivered at the ILERA World Congress held in New York, USA.
Brian is co-author of the book Canadian Labour and Employment Law for the U.S. Practitioner (4th Edition) published by Bloomberg BNA Books, Washington, D.C. He is also co-editor and an co-author of the book Federal Labour Law and Practice, published by Canada Law Book.
Brian is an associate editor of the Canadian Labour and Employment Law Journal (CLELJ) and a member of the International Association of Labour Law Journals.
Brian sits on the Advisory Board of the Centre for Industrial Relations and Human Resources (CIRHR) at the University of Toronto and the Centre for Law in the Contemporary Workplace at the Faculty of Law, Queen’s University.
He is an Adjunct Professor at the CIRHR where he co-teaches the course on "International Developments in Labour and Human Resource Policy".
Over the last few years, Brian has been actively involved in the rapidly evolving ESG (Environmental/Social/Governance) field with special attention on the "S" (Social) in ESG and ESG Investing, otherwise known as Business and Human Rights (BHR).
Brian is a co-author of the recently released (January 2023) annual Fasken "2023 ESG Disclosure Study". The Study records the current status of the Social (S) progress, alongside Environmental/Governance, within the Canadian corporate community as of the end of 2022.
He is co-author of the chapter "The Regulation of Multinational Labour and Employment Practices Through a Galaxy of Norms" in the recently released book, Corporate Social Responsibility – Sustainable Business: Environmental, Social and Governance Frameworks for the 21st Century, published in 2020 by Kluwer Law International in partnership with the International Bar Association.
Since 2021, Brian has lectured in the Osgoode Hall Law School Certificate Program in “ESG, Climate Risk & The Law”.
Brian is a member of the Advisory Panel of the Access to Remedy Institute (ARI) connected with the Center for Human Rights at the American Bar Association (ABA). The Center focuses on the development of the BHR field within the global economic system, including the construction of a comprehensive repository of BHR materials (see BHR Repository). ARI works to enhance the application of just systems to uphold the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (the UNGPs) and to protect Human Rights in Business.
Brian participates in the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights (BHR) held each year in Geneva, Switzerland. The 13th Annual UN Forum on BHR will take place November 25-November 27, 2024.
Finally, Brian is a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers in the United States. He is also AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest peer review rating awarded to a lawyer/attorney for his legal skills and sense of ethics.
