Robert Colson

Founding Partner

Email:

rcolson@cwllp.ca

Phone:

416-865-5301

Fax:

416 365-7702

Assistant:

Laurie Ormston

Email:

lormston@cwllp.ca

Phone:

416-365-9320 x104

Bob and his former law professor, Martin Teplitsky, Q.C. founded the firm formerly known as Teplitsky, Colson LLP where Bob practiced for more than forty years prior to establishing Colson Winterstein LLP with his partner, Michael Winterstein, and their  existing legal and support team.  He is one of the pioneers in Canadian employment litigation and is responsible for the landmark decision in 1997, Schumacher v. Toronto Dominion Bank a case that established several new legal principles and that resulted in the largest damage award for a wrongfully dismissed employee up until that time.  The trial decision was upheld by the Ontario Court of Appeal and leave sought by the bank to proceed with an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada was denied. The principles of law which the trial judge articulated in the Schumacher decision have stood the test of time and remain the law today, and the case is still frequently cited at both the trial and appellate level not only in Ontario, but across the country. 

At Colson, Winterstein, LLP Bob continues to practice as an employment lawyer and  commercial litigator. Clients seek Bob out specifically for his decades of employment law experience and his incisive approach to establishing dispute resolution and litigation strategies. He routinely resolves complex employment claims for senior executives and employees in senior roles in the financial services industry. He also acts in shareholder and partnership disputes, land-related litigation, breach of contract claims, oppression remedy cases and professional negligence claims, amongst others.  Bob is proud to say that his practice has been built almost exclusively from referrals from former clients who have not hesitated to refer others secure in the knowledge that they will receive expert advice and achieve an optimal outcome.

Bob has appeared before all levels of court and administrative tribunals in Ontario. He has also served as an arbitrator and mediator for the Government of Ontario in connection with disputes between teachers and school boards under collective agreements.

Over the years, Bob has actively served the legal profession. He taught at York University and the Ontario Bar Admission Course. He has been an instructor in the annual Osgoode Hall Law School Intensive Trial Advocacy Workshop and he has presented papers at continuing legal education events sponsored by the Law Society of Upper Canada, the Ontario Bar Association and the Advocates' Society.