Wade has dedicated his legal career to ensuring that the voices of marginalized members of our communities are heard. The law is an instrument of social change and when the law does not protect those who need it the most, the law needs to change. Wade passionately advocates for his clients and his practice is dedicated to human rights, union-side labour law and employment law.

Wade currently serves as the Chair of the Ontario Bar Association’s Constitutional, Civil Liberties and Human Rights Section and sits on the executive of the Canadian Bar Association’s Constitutional and Human Rights Section. He is First Vice-President of the Board of Directors of ARCH Disability Law Centre and a Director on St. Joseph’s Villa Foundation’s Board of Directors.

In 2013, Wade was appointed to, and currently sits on, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario’s Practice Advisory Committee as one of three applicant-side representatives advising the Associate Chair on procedural issues.
 
Wade obtained law degrees from the University of Toronto (Juris Doctor) and Cornell University (Masters of Law). He placed within the top three students in his program at Cornell University and graduated with high honours. During his academic studies, Wade interned with Guido Raimondi at the International Labour Organization in Geneva, Switzerland. Justice Raimondi is currently the President of the European Court of Human Rights. While studying at Cornell, Wade traveled to Buenos Aires, Argentina where he took part in a human rights fact-finding mission focusing on the causes, consequences and conditions of women in prison. Wade worked closely with the United Nations Special Rapporteur for violence against women and this study resulted in the publication of a comprehensive report calling for reform in Argentina. Following law school, Wade worked for Justice Robert Sharpe at the Ontario Court of Appeal and Professor Stephen Waddams at the University of Toronto. Wade joined Ross & McBride LLP in 2010.
 
Wade believes that the law is only one of many tools to enhance the voices of the most marginalized. In 2016, Wade accepted a position as Acting Director of Policy and General Counsel to CARP, where he was able to focus on reform through policy, lobbying and media. CARP is a seniors’ advocacy non-profit with approximately 300,000 members across Canada. While at CARP Wade continued to fight for seniors – focusing on elder abuse, the elimination of mandatory retirement and poverty. He lobbied all levels of government, frequently appeared in local and national media on behalf of CARP’s members, and drafted and implemented CARP’s policies on elder abuse, financial security, healthcare reform and investor protection. He appeared before and made submissions to committees of the House of Commons and Senate in Ottawa. Wade’s service to CARP ended in 2017, when he became a partner at Ross & McBride LLP.
 
Wade provides representation to unions in grievances, policy grievances and collective bargaining. He has taught courses on labour history, government regulation of workplaces and workplace issues for McMaster University in the UNIFOR Certificate Program – a program designed for union members in the automotive manufacturing sector.

Wade provides basic and advanced training seminars to employers of all sizes in the areas of human rights and employment.

Wade routinely conducts workplace investigations into allegations of harassment and discrimination. He has been retained by small and large employers, law firms acting on behalf of their clients, and boards of directors. He is known for providing timely and cost effective services in a fair and transparent manner. Investigations typically conclude with a comprehensive written report that not only includes findings of facts, but recommendations moving forward.
 
Wade is heavily involved in our local community, sitting on a number of boards of directors and committees. He has been recognized for his commitment to the community and legal profession by being awarded the Ontario Volunteer Service Award, the Top 40 under Forty Achievement Award and being nominated for two years in a row in the area of human rights for the Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers in Canada. Wade has been recognized by the Hamilton Spectator readers for the past three years as the top lawyer (platinum award winner) in the area of employment and human rights law in the City of Hamilton in the Spectator’s Readers’ Choice Awards.

---

Blog & Social Media
Wade maintains and regularly updates a blog dedicated to human rights issues. To visit Wade’s blog, go to www.ontariohumanrights.net or click here. You can receive regular email updates each time Wade publishes a new blog post by signing up to at the left-hand side of his blog under Follow Blog via Email.

 

Organizations and Activities

Committees

• Ontario Bar Association – Chair of the Constitutional, Civil Liberties & Human Rights Section Executive
• Canadian Bar Association – Executive Member on the Constitutional and Human Rights Section
• Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario – Applicant-side Representative to the Tribunal’s Practice Advisory Committee

  ---

  Board of Directors (Current)

• ARCH Disability Law Centre  - Member of the Board of Directors
• St. Joseph’s Villa Foundation – Member of the Board of Directors

Board of Directors (Former)

• United Way of Burlington and Greater Hamilton – Former Member of the Board of Directors
• Volunteer Hamilton – Former Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors
• Opening Hearts  - Former Member of the Board of Directors
• Grimsby Affordable Housing Partnership – Former Member of the Board of Directors

Conferences and Lectures

30 October 2018
Law Society of Ontario – 19^th Annual Employment Law Summit
Employment Law and the Modern Workplace with Ranjan Agarwal, Bennet Jones LLP
 
25 October 2018
Lancaster House – Toronto Health and Safety Conference
Conference Co-Chair with Sara Mojtehedzadeh, Toronto Star and Diana Laranja, Filion Wakely Thorup Angeletti LLP
 
21 September 2018
Ryerson University – Diversity@Work 2018 Conference
Legal Perspectives on Inclusion & Diversity with Michael Richards, DLA Piper
 
06 September 2018
Human Resources Professionals Association (HPRA) – LegalEase Breakfast Speaker
Human Rights Update 2018 & Privilege over Workplace Investigations
 
31 May 2018
Ontario Bar Association – Annual Update on Human Rights
Trends and Statistics in Judicial Reviews of Human Rights Decisions – When will the Court Intervene?
 
05 April 2018
Lancaster House – Human Rights and Accommodation Conference
Accommodating Chronic and Episodic Disabilities with Dale Hewat, Veronica Kenny and Wendy Porch
 
12 October 2017
Hamilton Law Association – Corporate Commercial Law Seminar
Employee and Independent Contractors
 
29 May 2017
Ontario Bar Association - Annual Update on Human Rights
Service Animals, Record of Offences and Gender Identity

05 April 2017
Lancaster House - Human Rights and Accommodation Conference
Major Caselaw and Legislative Update with Kim Bernhardt, Sheri Price and Laura Williams
 
23 February 2017
Ryerson University – Diversity@Work 2017 Conference
Legal Perspectives on Diversity with Leslie Frattolin

02 November 2016
Ontario Bar Association – What’s New in Damages at the HRTO?
Making Sense of Developing Issues in Damages with David Baker, Natasha Persaud and Debra McKenna

20 October 2016
HRPA: 2016 Law Conference
Human Rights Panel with Susan Ursel, Andrew Pinto and Jodi Martin

20 October 2016
McMaster University Pre-Law Society Career Night

19 February 2016
Ryerson University – Diversity@Work 2016 Conference
Legal Perspectives on Diversity & Inclusion in the Workplace with Mike Richards

16 November 2015
McMaster University Human Rights Networking Breakfast
Human Rights in Ontario

13 November 2015
CHCH TV’s Square Off Program
Police Brutality at the G20 Summit

02 October 2015
Ontario Bar Association – 14^th Annual Charter Conference
A Constitutional Right to Strike with Professor Brian Langille, Robin Basu and Adrienne Telford

01 October 2015
Boys and Girls Club of Hamilton: Justice Career Symposium
A Career as a Lawyer

05 June 2015
Law Society of Upper Canada – Six-Minute Employment Lawyer
Frustration of Contract and Undue Hardship