Littler
4 lawyers · City of Toronto
One of 2,345 law firms listed in Toronto, and one of 478 handling Employment & Labour Law.
About Littler
Littler is a labor and employment law firm that represents employers exclusively. It was founded in 1942 in the San Francisco Bay Area by Robert Littler, then the Pacific Coast director of the National War Labor Board, and Thomas Coakley, a former California deputy attorney general. Arthur Mendelson joined the practice in 1944. The firm has since grown into an international network that operates as Littler Global, with offices in a number of countries. It opened its first Canadian office in Toronto in 2015, at Scotia Plaza, 40 King Street West, in the city's Financial District.
The Toronto office grew quickly starting in 2024, adding several partners from established Canadian employment and labour law firms, including three from Sherrard Kuzz and one from Ogletree Deakins, along with additional associates, including one from Filion Wakely Thorup Angeletti. Littler later opened an office in Montreal in 2025 and has announced plans for one in Vancouver in 2026. The Toronto team advises employers on employment contracts, hiring and termination, employment standards compliance, workplace investigations, human rights matters, and restructuring, along with union side labour relations work such as collective bargaining and grievance arbitration. Its work also includes advising multinational companies on entering the Canadian market and adapting their policies to Canadian law.
Practice areas
Milestones & recognition
- Littler was founded in 1942 in the San Francisco Bay Area by Robert Littler and Thomas Coakley, joined by Arthur Mendelson in 1944, and has practiced labor and employment law on behalf of employers since.
- Littler opened its first Canadian office in Toronto in 2015.
- In 2024 the Toronto office added multiple partners from established Canadian employment and labour law firms, including three from Sherrard Kuzz and one from Ogletree Deakins, along with several associates, including one from Filion Wakely Thorup Angeletti.
- Three of the Toronto office's lawyers were named to the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in Canada in labour and employment law.
- Littler opened an office in Montreal in 2025 and has announced plans to open one in Vancouver in 2026.
In the community
- The Toronto office's managing partner is an adjunct lecturer at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law and serves on the Human Resources Committee of UJA Federation of Greater Ontario.
- The Toronto office's managing partner has also served on St. Michael's Hospital's Young Leaders committee.
Good to know
Wheelchair accessibleLawyers 4
This firm’s lawyers at a glance
- Called to the bar
- 2000 · median 26 years in practice 1 of 4 lawyers
- Law schools
- University of New Brunswick, University of Ottawa, University of Toronto, University of Windsor 4 of 4 lawyers
Who handles what
The neighbourhood
Littler's Toronto office is in Scotia Plaza at 40 King Street West, in the heart of the city's Financial District. Completed in 1988, the 68 storey tower was built as the global headquarters of Scotiabank and is Canada's third tallest skyscraper. Its lower floors incorporate part of a Beaux Arts era bank building dating to the late 1940s and early 1950s, and the tower connects directly into Toronto's underground PATH network, so people working there can reach much of the surrounding Financial District without going outside.
The office is a Canadian outpost of a firm headquartered in the United States rather than a Toronto founded practice, and its address at Scotia Plaza places it among the banks, law firms, and other professional services companies clustered in this stretch of downtown Toronto.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Littler represent employees or employers?
- Littler represents employers only. The firm describes its practice as focused exclusively on representing management in labor and employment law, and its Toronto office follows that same employer only focus.
- Can Littler's Toronto office help a company that's expanding into Canada from another country?
- Yes. One of the office's partners focuses on advising multinational companies entering the Canadian market, including compliance, risk management, and adapting company policies to Canadian and provincial law.
- Does the Toronto office handle unionized workplaces in Ontario?
- Yes. The office handles union side labour relations matters, including collective bargaining and grievance arbitration.
- What kind of day to day employment matters does the Toronto office advise on?
- The office advises employers on employment contracts, hiring and termination, employment standards compliance, policy development, workplace investigations, human rights matters, and restructuring or downsizing.
- When did Littler open in Toronto, and where is the office located?
- Littler opened its Toronto office, its first in Canada, in 2015. It's at Scotia Plaza, 40 King Street West, Suite 1900, in Toronto's Financial District.
- Has Littler expanded beyond Toronto in Canada?
- Yes. Littler opened an office in Montreal in 2025 and has announced plans to open one in Vancouver in 2026, extending its Canadian network into Quebec and British Columbia.
Where to find them
Scotia Plaza, 40 King Street West, Suite 1900, Toronto, Ontario M5H 3Y2
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Employment & Labour LawListing compiled from the firm’s public website in August 2026. Verify licence status in the Law Society of Ontario directory ↗