Looking for an inexpensive Canadian lawyer
 

Have been fucked by a Canadian business "partner". As it wasn't a huge investment and the moron probably got no money left, I am looking for an inexpensive lawyer.

Canada is a big country with 10 provinces. You need to specify what province your 'partner' is in, since lawyers can only file claims in the province they are located in.

you sure??
how gay is that?

Canada covers a HUGE amount of space. Is not practical for a lawyer in BC to file in an Ontario court. The logistics involved in travelling would be a killer.

Thank you for that information. Actually his company is in Ontario.

Uhh..since when? :P

This link should help.

http://www.lawyerlocate.ca/

Since allways.
A lawyer can only practice in the province he/she is licensed in. ie. A lawyer in Ontario can only file claims in Ontario, not in Quebec, B.C., Manitoba etc. Secondly an Ontario court only has jurisdiction over matters occurring in Ontario. So if a defendant lives in B.C. and never did business in Ontario, the Ontario court would have no jurisdiction over the matter.

Before loosing good money after " bad money", get an accountant or investigator to see:
- if he has money or assets seizable ( his corp as it seems you did business with a corp)
- if not does he have personnal assets or assets of the said corp transfered to him/relative. You then have to break the corporate veil.

I am no lawyer but had my share of experiences with them.If "your ex partner" is broke, move on and dont loose money, energy and focus on it. Next time, you will get a good lawyer to cover your ass before the fact.

:2 cents:

There really is no such thing as an inexpensive lawyer. But if you really want to pursue it you should check out http://www.canlaw.com/
Tons of Canadian lawyers are listed there with their email address. You can send an email to several lawyers with some questions and check out their replies and fees before deciding.

Actually the corporation is still doing business ... so it's not broke. I have a minority stake in the corporation while my "partner" and president is unwilling to send me any information (P&L, balance sheets, ...) about the ongoing business. I also expect the company not making any profits because he is spending everything for "his matters".

Well ... probably you are right and I would better forget about the matter and move on.

Sounds like you may have a good case. How much money is at stake?

Sorry ... won't disclose here in public ... but the bigger guys in our biz are probably making that money in a day or two.

Spending money on a lawyer on something like this is usually a big waste of even more money. Does this guy have assets you can make a claim upon? Is this guy breaking the law in any way as he runs his business?

Usually best to do two things:

1. Put it down as a tax loss.

2. Use it as an important lesson for the future.

Actually I've learned two things:

1) Don't invest your money in a remote country where you can't visit the company easily and have no idea about the local jurisdiction.

2) Don't invest your money in a guy who starts smoking "the good stuff" at 3 pm every day.