STRATEGIC LITIGATION, Exceptional Advocacy
At GFW, our team helps clients with their business disputes and challenges, through negotiation, litigation, and alternative dispute resolution, to achieve client-focused solutions.
Who We Are
Gionet Fairley Wood LLP is a Barrie-based law firm that offers guidance on commercial disputes, construction law, employment issues, estate litigation, real estate property disputes, and other business-related matters across Ontario. Founded in 2024, the firm is built on years of experience, with partners Eric Gionet and Scott Fairley having practiced together in Simcoe County for over 20 years. Andrew Wood joined them in 2018, and together, they have been providing premium legal services to business and construction clients, supported by their dedicated team of associates, clerks, and assistants.
Why Choose GFW Law to Represent You?
With years of combined experience, our team understands the full spectrum of challenges our clients face, offering a practical, results-oriented approach to every case. We are committed to honest communication and managing client expectations to reduce stress while delivering cost-effective solutions. Our lawyers bring a wealth of trial experience and work collaboratively to ensure the best outcomes for our clients.
We prioritize giving clients direct access to lawyer time, not just clerks, ensuring personal attention and clear communication throughout the process. Whether working with property, employment, or construction clients, we appreciate the importance of your priorities and provide tailored solutions to get you the resolution you are looking for.
What We Do
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Business relationships and transactions can be challenging and could require negotiation, dispute resolution, or court proceedings to be resolved. Our lawyers understand the legal issues and work with our clients to pursue strategies that suit their desired business outcomes. Negotiating and advocating for clients must take into account the nature of their business, their business relationships, and issues such as the urgency with which a resolution must be achieved. Our lawyers review the facts, the law, and the available processes with business clients to ensure that retaining GFW is a means to an end for real-world business disputes.
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GFW lawyers provide legal advice to owners, general contractors, mortgage lenders, engineers, architects, other consultants, subcontractors, suppliers, and surety (bonding) companies involving all aspects of construction projects. GFW lawyers have a wealth of experience assisting all types of clients in the construction industry, as well as teaching seminars to construction organizations and clients, and consulting throughout recent changes to the Construction Act and its related regulations. Construction liens and construction law can be technical, both from the legal standpoint and in relation to the design means and methods of construction issues that arise. GFW lawyers’ experience, and depth of involvement in these cases, make them trusted advisors to the firm’s construction clients.
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GFW’s team has experience in assisting clients in navigating through issues relating to debt collection, security enforcement, mortgage remedies, and insolvencies and restructurings. GFW lawyers pursue available remedies with a view to collecting their clients’ outstanding accounts as efficiently as possible.
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GFW’s lawyers have significant experience handling disputes arising from real estate and real estate transactions, including those following an Agreement of Purchase and Sale. GFW lawyers also have a depth of experience dealing with complex title issues, rights of way and easements, and cottage access disputes. We also have experience resolving title and ownership issues that are unique to waterfront properties throughout Simcoe County, Muskoka, and the surrounding area, including arguing those issues before tribunals, trial courts, and the Ontario Court of Appeal.
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Our lawyers provide advice and representation to employers and employees in non-union work environments, in relation to employment contracts, management of employment issues, as well as parties' rights and obligations through termination and layoffs.
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Dealing with the administration of an estate can be a daunting task, particularly if it becomes contentious. GFW’s lawyers can assist you with a wide range of disputes that arise before and after the death of a loved one.
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Our team has extensive experience handling these business issues through negotiation, mediation and arbitration, and court proceedings. Small and mid-sized businesses are generally carried on in the form of partnerships, or corporations with shares held by the people who are involved in the day-to-day operations. For various reasons, partners and shareholders can arrive at a crossroads that causes them to decide to end their business relationship. Each situation is different based on whether there is a partnership agreement or shareholder agreement. Each situation is also different based on the nature of the business and its principles, the issues that have caused the convergence at the crossroads, and the personalities that are involved. GFW’s lawyers have knowledge of the applicable legal concepts and work with our clients to tailor those concepts to the particular business client and the desired outcome. GFW’s lawyers, with an understating of the law and business issues, are well suited to pursue negotiation towards a business outcome. In these difficult separations of business interests, a negotiated business resolution is generally the best outcome. However, these negotiations take place in the context of litigation or arbitration being available for those issues that cannot be successfully negotiated. GFW’s lawyers have experience pursuing resolutions through the courts and arbitrations through to trial or arbitration hearings, keeping in mind that a negotiated resolution may be achieved at any stage.
Learn More About Our Shareholder and Partnership Disputes Services
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Our lawyers have experience advising commercial landlords and tenants with respect to their rights and obligations under commercial leases, relating to the condition of leased property, payment and collection of rent, termination, abandonment, and distraining assets. Commercial lease disputes can be varied, relating to non-payment of rent, which party is responsible for certain expenses or improvements, calculation of additional rent, and the suitability of the premises for ongoing business. Commercial leases often include arbitration clauses, which obligate the parties to have disputes resolved or determined by mediation and arbitration. GFW lawyers are experienced in pursuing these issues through the mediation and arbitration process, and through courts, where that process is available. GFW lawyers have experience designing and implementing efficient arbitration processes and procedures to have issues resolved or determined as promptly as possible. GFW lawyers recognize that a business premise is among the most important aspects of a business and the disruption of that physical space can have devastating business consequences. Our lawyers work with our leasing clients to resolve any such issues promptly and ensure that arbitration processes are efficient and pursued with a view to minimizing business disruption and distraction.
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Business disputes can arise relating to various forms of contracts, whether written or oral. These issues can arise in the context of a multitude of commercial relationships, whether arising from an Agreement of Purchase and Sale for a residential property to the purchase and sale of a business. The types of contracts that exist are widely varied, whether in oral or written form. In essence, business disputes arise between parties who each agreed to perform obligations for each other’s benefit, and those obligations have allegedly not been met. GFW’s lawyers have many years of experience, which has exposed them to countless types of contracts, and the issues that can arise between parties to those agreements. This experience positions GFW’s lawyers well to help our clients with the particular issues relating to their contractual disputes.
Learn More About Our Contractual and Property Disputes Services
Our Vision
At Gionet Fairley Wood LLP our vision is to be the trusted legal partner for businesses and individuals in our community and beyond, recognized for our commitment to excellence and deep understanding of local dynamics. We aim to deliver top-tier expertise with a personalized approach, staying true to our values. By maintaining a reputation for integrity and practical advocacy, we aspire to empower our clients to view litigation as a strategic investment, confident that they have a dedicated advocate in their corner.