Direct Phone: 403.693.4342
Fax: 403.508.4349
Email: jtorrens@mlt.com
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Labour & Employment Law
Administrative Law
Immigration

Jean Torrens has extensive experience acting for management in drafting personnel policies and employment contracts, conducting collective bargaining and collective agreement administration, advising on discipline and terminations, and defending wrongful dismissal claims, human rights and labour board complaints, and grievance arbitrations. She also assists companies to respond to serious occupational health and safety incidents.

Jean has appeared as counsel before Courts, arbitration boards, federal and provincial labour relations boards, human rights tribunals and occupational and safety tribunals.

Jean is a regular presenter at conferences and seminars on drug and alcohol testing, duty to accommodate issues, collective bargaining trends, violence and harassment in the workplace, and workplace safety. She was a sessional lecturer in Civil Procedure at the College of Law, University of Saskatchewan for three years.

• Admitted to the Alberta Bar (2007)
• Admitted to the Saskatchewan Bar (1995)
• LL.B. (Great Distinction, Saskatchewan, 1994)
• B.A. (Great Distinction, Saskatchewan, 1990)

• Lexis-Nexis / Martindale-Hubbell - "CV Peer Review Rated" ( high legal ability and ethical standards)

• Represented mining company in OH&S hearing and appeals.
• Represented several companies, including industrial, retail, oil and gas, and transportation, in wrongful dismissal trials and appeals.
• Represented several medium to large-sized businesses in grievance arbitrations and human rights complaints.
• Conducted collective bargaining on behalf of large mineral production company and several non-profit corporations.
  

• “Accommodating Family Status and Marital Status”, HRAC Legal Conference (2010).
• “Practical Strategies for Drafting Termination Documents”, Business Immigration Conference (Canadian Institute, 2009).
• “New Frontiers in Accommodation Requests”, Duty to Accommodate Conference (Insight, 2009).
• “Wrongful Dismissal and Constructive Dismissal”, Employment Law Conference (Lorman, 2009).
• “Terminations in a Slowing Economy”, HRAC Legal Conference (2009).
• “New Boundaries in Workplace Privacy”, Centre for Labour Management Development, Annual Alberta Labour Law Review (2008).
• “Long Term Absences: New Directives from Arbitrators and Courts”, Centre for Labour Management Development, Annual Alberta Labour Law Review (2008).
• “2008 Alberta Labour Relations Board Update”, Centre for Labour Management Development, Annual Alberta Labour Law Review (2008).
• “Drug and Alcohol Testing in the Workplace”, HRAC Legal Conference (2008).
  

• Canadian Bar Association, Labour and Employment (AB South) - Chair
• Human Resource Association of Calgary - Director; Legal Affairs Committee Member
• Canadian Bar Association, Administrative and Labour Law (SK North) - Former Chair
• Saskatoon Bar Association - Former President