Appointment specializes in employer representation and is an active member of various charities
The Law Foundation of Ontario has named Jack Braithwaite as the newest member of its board of trustees. He replaces Etienne Esguega.
Braithwaite is a bencher of the Law Society of Ontario in Sudbury and serves as counsel at Weaver Simmons LLP. He boasts extensive experience in wrongful dismissal and other employment-related litigation. He devotes his practice to employer representation in collective bargaining, human rights, workplace safety and insurance board matters, occupational health and safety prosecutions, and Ontario Labour Relation Board proceedings.
Braithwaite holds membership in the Canadian Bar Association, Ontario Bar Association, National Bar Association in the U.S., Advocates’ Society, Canadian Association of Black Lawyers, and Canadian Association of Counsel to Employers. He is also a former president of the Sudbury District Law Association.
Apart from his professional endeavours, Braithwaite sits on the board of directors of the Weengushk Film Institute and the Afro Heritage Association. He is also the founder and chair of the Michaëlle Jean Sudbury Afro-Heritage Fund. Braithwaite is a past member of the National Advocacy Council of the Canadian Diabetes Association, where he served as legal counsel.
“Jack’s commitment to advancing both the profession and access to justice is evident in his years of service to many legal associations and a diversity of charities,” said Linda Rothstein, chair of the Law Foundation of Ontario. “We’re pleased to welcome Jack to the board.”
Braithwaite is also a sought-after speaker and writer on employment law issues. He co-wrote the textbook Canadian Employment Law and was associate editor of the Dismissal and Employment Law Digest, a national publication for lawyers. He frequently gives presentations and seminars to various organizations and guests lectures at Western University, Osgoode Hall, and Laurentian University, where he taught sports and criminal law courses.
Braithwaite earned his BA and BSc at Concordia University, his MA at McGill University, and his LLB from the University of Alberta.
The Law Foundation of Ontario also thanked Esguega for bringing “important insights to the foundation’s grantmaking,” particularly to the legal needs of Indigenous people and people living in northern Ontario.
