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Cassandra Ma


Contact
T: 416.408.5508
E: cma@filion.on.ca

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Education/Admissions
  • Called to the Bar of Ontario (2017)
  • J.D., University of Ottawa (2016)
  • B.A., McGill University (2013)

Cassandra Ma
Director of Knowledge Management & Professional Development

Executive Summary

Cassandra Ma is the Firm’s Director of Knowledge Management & Professional Development. She is responsible for leading the Firm’s knowledge and training strategies, leveraging the Firm’s intellectual capital, and supporting the efficient delivery of legal services to the Firm’s clients. 

Prior to becoming involved with knowledge management, Cassandra was in-house counsel for a major federal Crown corporation and, before that, practiced labour and employment law as an associate lawyer at the Firm. In these roles, she advised public and private sector employers with respect to various legal and business matters and regularly appeared before labour arbitrators, employment-related administrative tribunals, and the civil courts (including the Federal Court, the Court of Appeal for Ontario, and the Ontario Superior Court of Justice). Her areas of specialized expertise include grievance arbitration, collective agreement interpretation, wrongful dismissal, disability management, human rights, workplace harassment, and workers’ compensation law.

Cassandra is a strong supporter of legal education initiatives. She develops and edits informational resources for one of the world’s leading legal research and analytics companies. She has also co-authored a number of legal publications, including international textbooks on labour and employment law, and presented continuing education programs for legal practitioners in Ontario. 

In her spare time, Cassandra volunteers with a number of non-profit organizations. She is heavily involved with the Chinese Canadian National Council – Toronto Chapter, serving as the Secretary of the Board of Directors, the Chair of the Human Resources and Policy & Governance Committees. She is a past Board Member of the Toronto City Opera and of Kensington-Bellwoods Community Legal Services. She is also an active member of Montreal's choral music community and acts as an advisor to Artists for Mental Health.

Cassandra sits on the executive committee of the Ontario Bar Association’s Workers’ Compensation Section and is a past Executive Member of the Canadian Corporate Counsel Association’s Ontario chapter.

Memberships and Professional Affiliations

  • Law Society of Ontario
  • Ontario Bar Association – Past Chair (2022-2023), Chair (2021-2022), Vice Chair (2020-2021), and Newsletter Editor (2019-2020) of the Workers' Compensation Section Executive 
  • Canadian Corporate Counsel Association – Member at Large of the Ontario Chapter Executive (2021-2022)
  • The Advocates’ Society
  • Toronto Lawyers Association
  • Federation of Asian Canadian Lawyers
  • Canadian Association of Counsel to Employers – Member of the Human Rights Committee (2019-2021)
  • Employment Lawyers Association of Ontario
  • National Association for Law Placement

Selected Publications, Presentations and Media Mentions

Educational Courses

  • "Practice Ready Certification - Employment Law", LexisUniversity/LexisNexis Canada (2022)

Presentations

  • Speaker, "Technology and Your Employment Law Practice", Ontario Bar Association: 21st Annual Current Issues in Employment Law (April 2023)
  • Speaker, "Oh, the Places They'll Go! Legal Considerations and Best Practices in Managing Remote and Hybrid Employees", Counselwell National Employment Law Forum (March 2023) 
  • Speaker, "Concurrent Jurisdiction: Navigating Human Rights Issues in Unionized Workplaces", Ontario Bar Association (January 2023)
  • Speaker, "Current Trends in Workers' Compensation: Key issues and legal developments across the country", Lancaster House (November 2022)
  • Moderator, "Post-Pandemic Workforce Management", Advocates for Employers of Canada (June 2022)
  • Moderator, "HR Roundtable: Return to Office Policies", Ontario Mutual Insurance Association (May 2022)
  • Moderator, “COVID-19 Return to Office Policies”, LexisNexis Canada (March 2022)
  • Moderator and Speaker, “Workers’ Compensation Case Law Update: Morningstar v. WSIAT”, Ontario Bar Association (December 2021)
  • Moderator, “Critical Labour and Employment Law Updates for Corporate Counsel: Navigating Workforce Transitions”, Canadian Corporate Counsel Association - Ontario Chapter (November 2021)
  • Speaker, “Current Issues in Workers’ Compensation: Major cases, significant policies, and other legal developments”, Lancaster House, Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Conference (October 2021)
  • Moderator, “WSIB Benefits While Working from Home: What You Need to Know”, Ontario Bar Association (December 2020)
  • Speaker, “Workers’ Compensation Case Law Review: Highlights and Insights from the Past 12 Months”, Ontario Bar Association (May 2020)
  • Moderator, “Critical Workplace Coverage Update: Work-Related COVID-19 Claims, Minimizing Workplace Exposure, and Health and Safety Obligations”, Ontario Bar Association (April 2020)
  • Speaker, “Remote Workforce: Employer Obligations, Health & Safety, Privacy and Emergency Changes to the Employment Standards Act, 2000”, Ontario Bar Association (March 2020)
  • Speaker, "Managing Mental Health Issues in the Workplace", FWTA Breakfast Seminar (February 2020)
  • Speaker, “Clearing the Haze: Managing Cannabis in the Workplace”, Ontario Association of Medical Radiation Sciences (June 2019)
  • Speaker, "WSIB Claims: Active management to achieve actual results", FWTA Breakfast Seminar (January 2019)
  • Speaker, "Bill 148 Update: What does it mean for unionized workplaces?", FWTA Breakfast Seminar (January 2018)

Publications

  • Co-Author, Canada: 2023, Looking Ahead, L&E Global (January 2023)
  • Author, "Human Rights Tribunal Confirms It Has Concurrent Jurisdiction to Decide Human Rights Claims of Unionized Employees" (December 2022), Canadian Employment Law Guide, No. 200
  • Author, "Human Rights Tribunal Confirms It Has Concurrent Jurisdiction to Decide Human Rights Claims of Unionized Employees" (2022), 32:9 Employment and Labour Law Reporter 72
  • Author, "The Right of Family Members to Sue in Respect of a Workplace Fatality", Ontario Bar Association (April 2022)
  • Author, "Working to Equality: Practical Steps for Designing an Effective Anti-Discrimination Strategy", Canadian Workforce Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, HR Insider (March 2022)
  • Author, “The Weighty Impact of Obesity on Workers’ Compensation Claims Costs”, Ontario Bar Association (October 2021)
  • Author, “Will the WSIB Grant Entitlement for a COVID-19 Vaccine?”, Ontario Bar Association (July 2021)
  • Author, “Waiting to Act Is Not a Reasonable Option: Workplace Health and Safety in the Time of Coronavirus”, Ontario Bar Association (March 2021)
  • Co-Author, Workplace Safety and Insurance Act: Quick Reference, 2021 ed., Carswell (2020)
  • Co-Author, Public Health in Workplace, 4th ed., Carswell (2020) 
  • Co-Author, Global Legal Insights: Employment & Labour Law, 8th ed., Global Legal Group (2020)
  • Author, “Human Rights Violation Found to Arise from an Employee’s Forced Complicity in a Sexual Relationship”, Labour Notes, No. 1655 (November 2020)
  • Author, “WSIB and Working from Home: When Is a Home-Based Accident Considered to Arise in the Course of Employment?”, Ontario Bar Association (July 2020)
  • Author, “Working to Equality: Practical Steps for Designing an Effective Anti-Discrimination Strategy”, HR Insider (July 2020)
  • Author, “Combatting Coronavirus: Legislative Supports for Ontario Workplaces in the Wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic”, Ontario Bar Association (March 2020)
  • Author, “A Retrospective on Workers’ Compensation Law in 2019”, Ontario Bar Association (February 2020)
  • Co-Author, Workplace Safety and Insurance Act: Quick Reference, 2020 ed., Carswell (2019)
  • Co-Author, “Cross-Canada Problems at Labour Arbitration: Trends from the Ontario and Federal Arbitral Jurisprudence”, Canadian Association of Counsel to Employers Annual Conference (September 2019)
  • Co-Author, The International Comparative Legal Guide to Employment & Labour Laws and Regulations, 9th ed., Global Legal Group (April 2019)
  • Co-Author, Workplace Safety and Insurance Act: Quick Reference, 2019 ed., Carswell (2018)
  • Co-Author, “Protecting Ontario Workers from Harassment: Changes to the Occupational Health and Safety Act under Bill 132”, Law Society of Upper Canada (March 2017)

Online Resources

  • Co-Author, "Reprisals (ON)" practice note, LexisNexis Practical Guidance (2022)
  • Co-Author, "Reprisals (Federal)" practice note, LexisNexis Practical Guidance (2022)
  • Co-Author, "Responding to a Human Rights Application (ON)", LexisNexis Practical Guidance (2022)
  • Author, "Statement of Particulars (Complainant) (Canadian Human Rights Tribunal) (Federal)" precedent, LexisNexis Practical Guidance (2022)
  • Author, "Statement of Particulars (Respondent) (Canadian Human Rights Tribunal) (Federal)" precedent, LexisNexis Practical Guidance (2022)
  • Co-Author, "Domestic Violence as a Workplace Issue", LexisNexis Practical Guidance (2022)
  • Co-Author, "Employment Contracts" practice note, LexisNexis Practical Guidance (2022)
  • Co-Author, "Employment Agreement Drafting Checklist", LexisNexis Practical Guidance (2022)
  • Co-Author, “Consultancy Agreements Q&A: Canada”, Practical Law Global (2020) 
  • Co-Author, “Terms of Employment Q&A: Canada”, Practical Law Global (2020) 
  • Author of a factum and pleadings that were featured in Carswell's Practice Cases and Litigator precedent services (April 2019)

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