NADIA ZAMAN

I am passionate about Employment Law – it is the perfect nexus between business, law, and people. It is an exciting area of practice given its breadth and given that the law is constantly evolving. I enjoy representing both employers and employees in all aspects of the employment relationship. In particular, I enjoy advocating on behalf of employees and positively impacting their working lives as well as providing proactive, strategic advice to employers to ensure they are complying with the law and minimizing liability. There is nothing more fulfilling for me than building strong relationships with my clients through empathy and understanding, helping them navigate through complex workplace problems, and obtaining the best results possible. This is what motivates me to be a trusted advisor and a relentless advocate.

I obtained my Juris Doctor degree from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law. My legal career began on Bay Street, at the largest national full-service law firm. Since being called to the Ontario bar in June 2016, I have focused my practice exclusively on Canadian Employment Law.

I regularly speak and write about Employment Law and am committed to educating others about their rights and obligations, so they are able to make informed decisions. I have been invited to provide media commentary on TV, radio and print, by platforms such as CBC, Global News, CTV News and Radio Canada International, regarding hot button employment law issues. I have also been invited to speak about The Fundamentals of Employment Law on behalf of the Ontario Bar Association. I am a member of the Ontario Bar Association’s Labour and Employment Law Section and was elected to serve on the Executive Committee for two consecutive years.

Advocacy began for me at the age of 14. I was the youngest speaker invited to a conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka to advocate on environmental rights. A few years later, I assisted in establishing the Child Abuse Network at the Police Hospital in Accra, Ghana. Being committed to advancing human rights, I was heavily involved with UNICEF at the University of Toronto as the Co-Director of the Youth Engagement Program. I taught students with learning disabilities about human rights and developed the curriculum to be used across community centres in Toronto. As a law student, I developed written accommodation policies to promote mental health awareness as Equity Officer; guided prospective students as Student Ambassador; critically analyzed the law as Senior Editor of the Journal of Law & Equality; and advocated for low-income clients at the Downtown Legal Services Clinic. I deeply value community service.

Prior to law school, I graduated Summa Cum Laude from Trinity College, University of Toronto with a double major in Criminology and Ethics, Society & Law. I served as the President of the Ethics, Society & Law Students’ Association. I am the recipient of the Brian Morgan Scholarship in Law and the Magdalena Gryc Award.

I enjoy drawing, food photography (with my phone!), and spending quality time with family and friends. I am also a social media enthusiast. You can follow me on Twitter @empLAWment and on Instagram @emplawment_on, and connect with me on LinkedIn!