DelZotto, Zorzi LLP | Barristers & Solicitors
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About

DelZotto, Zorzi LLP has been recognized as one of Canada’s top 5 commercial real estate boutique law firms. Founded in 1962 by Elvio DelZotto, Q.C., DelZotto, Zorzi LLP provides top-tier services in each of our core practice areas – real estate and land development, litigation and condominium law, and corporate and commercial law.

 

At DelZotto, Zorzi LLP, our clients’ satisfaction is our number one priority. We pride ourselves in service and responsiveness to our clients by providing innovative and cost-effective solutions to their critical legal and business needs.

 

With extensive experience in their respective practice areas, we are confident that our team will be able to assist you in meeting your legal objectives.

Expertise

REAL ESTATE & LAND DEVELOPMENT

Condominium Development

  • Development, registration and sale of residential, mixed-use and multi-phased condominiums, including industrial and office condominiums
  • Condominium conversions from residential apartments or retail/office to residential
  • “Freehold” or “lot line” condominiums, as well as leasehold condominiums, vacant land condominiums and common element condominiums

Financing & Development

  • Commercial loan transactions including acquisition, construction and/or development financing
  • Collateral mortgage financing
  • Joint venture/partnership agreements and co-tenancies
  • Land acquisition, severance applications, and first applications under the Land Titles Act, R.S.O. 1990
  • Acting for subdividers and builders for in-fill and subdivision housing development and sales
  • Commercial leasing
  • Purchase and sale of commercial real estate, including office and apartment buildings

LITIGATION & CONDOMINIUM LAW

Commerical Leasing/Landlord & Tenant

  • Drafting and negotiation of commercial leases
  • Asset protection and securitization
  • Equipment leasing
  • Commercial lease enforcement and compliance actions
  • Advice regarding commercial lease terminations, evictions and distress sales
  • Commercial lease related litigation, including actions on behalf of landlords for the recovery of rental arrears
  • Commercial lease review and interpretation opinions
  • Advice to residential landlord and tenants with respect to the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006
  • Drafting of notices and applications under the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006 and the representation of landlords and tenants before the Landlord and Tenant Board
  • Reviews and appeals of Landlord and Tenant Board decisions

Condominium Law

  • Full support in enforcing and interpreting the Condominium Act, 1998, S.O. 1998
  • Drafting by-laws and rules, and all necessary condominium documentation
  • Providing legal opinions and advising on all aspects of condominium law
  • Providing general and specific advice to not only enforce the rights of unit owners and condominium corporations, but also to seek a resolution to certain issues and problems before litigious proceedings are necessary
  • Providing advice with respect to the calling and conducting of board meetings and annual and special general meetings of the owners, and attending and chairing meetings
  • Reviewing all contracts, leases, licenses and employment contracts that a condominium corporation may encounter
  • Providing advice and representation in fulfilling statutory duties to ensure compliance with the Condominium Act, 1998, S.O. 1998 and the declaration, by-laws and rules
  • Preparation of all necessary Notices of Liens and Certificates of Lien to secure and enforce payment of common expense arrears and, if necessary, to institute Power of Sale proceedings to recover arrears
  • All aspects of condominium-related litigation and alternate dispute resolution representation before arbitrators, mediators, courts and tribunals
  • Provide mediation and arbitration services to settle disputes under the Condominium Act, 1998, S.O. 1998, including acting in the role of mediator and arbitrator

Construction Law

  • Construction lien actions (representation of both the plaintiff/lien claimant and the defendant/statutory owner)
  • Advice on compliance with the provisions of the Construction Lien Act, R.S.O. 1990, including holdback and trust obligation compliance
  • Construction Lien Act, R.S.O. 1990 breach of trust actions
  • Assisting clients with the Ontario New Home Warranties Plan Act, R.S.O. 1990 process, including preparation for conciliations, the compilation and presentation of expert opinions, settlement negotiations with Tarion, builders and home owners and License Appeal Tribunal appeals
  • Condominium performance audit based disputes
  • Construction related deficiency litigation, representing condominium corporations, home owners, builders, contractors and suppliers
  • Ontario Building Code related claims
  • Labour and material payment bond claims
  • Negotiation and drafting of limitation period suspension agreements
  • Assistance with construction contract drafting, including construction management contracts

Employment Law

Employment-Related Litigation Services:

  • Wrongful dismissal actions
  • Constructive dismissal actions
  • Restrictive covenant related actions, including breach of non-solicitation and non-competition provisions
  • Breach of confidentiality
  • Breach of fiduciary duties
  • Employment Standards Act, 2000, S.O. 2000 complaints
  • Human Rights Code complaints
  • Negotiation of termination/severance packages

Workplace Management Services:

  • Employment contracts
  • Workplace policies
  • Return or refusal to work issues
  • Disability or attendance management issues
  • Human rights and employment standards compliance
  • Employee discipline issues
  • Termination/severance packages
  • Implications for employees on the sale of a business

Litigation & Dispute Resolution

  • General commercial/business disputes
  • Breach of contract cases
  • Professional negligence actions
  • Condominium litigation, including common expenses liens and powers of sale,
    by-law enforcement and court applications under the Condominium Act, 1998, S.O. 1998
  • Construction liens and trust claims
  • Construction-related litigation, including all manner of construction-related deficiency claims
  • Performance audit and Tarion warranty based disputes or claims, including License Appeal Tribunal appeals
  • Mortgage enforcement, with respect to both mortgages and condominium common expense liens
  • Commercial lease disputes
  • Debt collection and enforcement
  • Aborted real estate transactions, default proceedings, post-closing litigation and deficiency issues
  • Property/boundary disputes
  • Injunctions
  • Jurisdictional disputes
  • Landlord and Tenant disputes, including Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006 and Landlord and Tenant Board matters
  • Mediation, arbitration and alternative dispute resolution services
  • Wrongful dismissal, constructive dismissal and employment-related matters

Corporate & Commercial

Cyber Law & Intellectual Property

  • Domain name purchase agreements
  • Trademark registrations
  • Website protection
  • Software code protection
  • Software licensing
  • E-commerce transactions

Entrepreneur Services

  • Incorporation and organization
  • Commercial transactions and contract preparation
  • General business law
  • Partnerships
  • Joint ventures and other commercial arrangements
  • Business purchases and sales
  • Shareholder agreements and disputes
  • Mergers and acquisitions
  • Leasing transactions
  • Lease negotiation and review
  • Business reorganizations
  • Construction contracts
  • Distribution and licensing agreements
  • Employee, independent consultant and management agreements

Financing & Re-Financing

  • Debt and equity financing
  • Equipment leasing
  • Secured lending
  • Asset protection
  • Advice on government financing programs
  • Bankruptcy and insolvency matters

Insolvency & Restructuring

  • Bankruptcy and receivership
  • Proposals and reorganizations
  • Enforcement of secured creditor’s claims

Wills & Estates

  • Will and power of attorney preparation
  • Estate and probate planning
  • Tax planning
  • Family trusts
  • Estate administration

Lawyers

ELVIO DELZOTTO

Founder/Senior Partner

Mr. DelZotto is the founder and senior partner of the law firm DelZotto, Zorzi LLP. He is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1962. Mr. DelZotto was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1985 and has devoted his energies to a variety of endeavours, including the following:

  • V.P. of a variety of Canadian Italian Business and Professional Association (1964-1966)
  • Board of Governors Fund Raising Chairman for Villa Colombo (1991)
  • Council Member of the Ontario Arts Council (1985-1989)
  • Advisory Board for Multilingual Television (1988)
  • Founding President of the National Congress Italian Canadians Foundation (1987)
  • President of the Liberal Party of Canada (Ontario) (1988-1990)
  • Co-Chair Justice Frank Iacobucci Dinner – Fund Raising – Italian Studies of University of Toronto (1991)
  • Director – Ontario Institute for Studies in Education – University of Toronto (1991) and Trustee of the Law Foundation of Ontario (1998)
  • Bencher for the Law Society of Upper Canada (1995-1999) and Vice-Chairman of Finance and Art Committee, Member of Legal Aid Committee and served on the task force dealing with Competency, Governance Restructuring, Information Technology, Transition Planning and Members Fees
  • Supporter of numerous charitable causes

Harry Herskowitz

Senior Partner/Real Estate & Land Development

Mr. Herskowitz is a senior partner at DelZotto, Zorzi LLP and head of the real estate department. Mr. Herskowitz is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1979. Mr. Herskowitz’s practice is devoted to real estate, mortgage lending and commercial transactions, with particular emphasis on land development and condominium law. Mr. Herskowitz is a former vice-chair of the Real Property Section of the Ontario Bar Association. He had been a seminar leader and lecturer of the Real Estate Section of the Bar Admission Course and he taught real property law at Osgoode Hall Law School. Mr. Herskowitz was also a contributing author to Carswell’s Condominium Law and Administration, 2nd Edition, and was a member of the editorial board of The Condominium Law Letter.

Mr. Herskowitz has written numerous articles and presented papers on land development issues, mortgage matters, and condominium law, for the Canadian Bar Association, the Law Society of Upper Canada, and Insight Educational Services. Mr. Herskowitz also co-authored a book on the Condominium Act 1998, entitled Condominiums in Ontario: A Practical Analysis of the New Legislation, published jointly by the Law Society of Upper Canada and the Ontario Bar Association. Mr. Herskowitz was the chairman of the board of Tarion Warranty Corporation (formerly known as the Ontario New Home Warranty Program) from 2009 to 2014 inclusive, and he is currently a member of the ADR Institute of Ontario.

Mr. Herskowitz has been the recipient of the “Presidential Award of Merit” in 2005 from BILD (formerly known as the Greater Toronto Home Builder’s Association), the Ontario Bar Association’s “Award of Excellence in Real Property Law” for 2007, and the award/designation of “Fellow of the Canadian Condominium Institute” in 2008. In 2017, Mr. Herskowitz was inducted into BILD’s prestigious Hall of Fame and was the recipient of the Ontario Home Builders’ Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award for his outstanding leadership and service to the residential construction industry. Further, Mr. Herskowitz is listed in the:

  • Canadian Legal Directory published by LEXPERT, as a leading practitioner in the area of property development and condominium law, and has also been named in The Best Lawyers in Canada, from 2008 to 2016 inclusive, in his practice areas; and
  • Guide to Leading Lawyers in Canada, as a leading practitioner in the areas of property development, compiled by LEXPERT and The American Lawyer, from 2010 to 2016 inclusive.

MICHAELE DELZOTTO

Senior Partner

Michaele is a senior partner at DelZotto, Zorzi LLP. She is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario (B.A.) and earned her law degree from the University of Ottawa. She was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1991.

EDWARD P. MICHELI

Corporate & Commercial

Ed is the senior corporate lawyer at DelZotto, Zorzi LLP. His practice involves all aspects of business law with emphasis on corporate planning and reorganizations, acquisitions, financings, joint ventures and other commercial arrangements. He acts for a wide variety of clients both domestic and international and has successfully negotiated and documented numerous complex loan and security transactions, debt restructuring transactions, and commercial joint venture arrangements, both domestic and international.

Ed is a member of the Canadian Bar Association’s Business Law Section and the Canadian Italian Business and Professional Association of Toronto and has been a seminar instructor in the Business Law Section of the Ontario Bar Admission Course and a speaker at a number of conferences and seminars related to business law issues. Ed obtained his law degree in 1978 and was called to the Ontario Bar in 1980.

STEVEN B. WEISS

Corporate & Commercial

Steven has been associated with DelZotto, Zorzi LLP since 1985, where he practices in the corporate commercial, leasing and wills and estates areas. He represents clients in corporate reorganization files, business purchase and sales, secured transactions, contract drafting and negotiations, commercial lease drafting and negotiations, and estate and probate planning matters.

Steven received a B.A. from Maimonides College, an LL.B. from Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1985. He has written papers and presented seminars to lawyers, clients and business groups concerning various areas of the law, including leasing, privacy law matters and the “Y2K Problem”. Steven was an instructor for many years for the Bar Admission Course, Law Society of Upper Canada, where he has taught in the corporate, practice skills and interviewing sections. He has been involved in community affairs for many years and has served as chairman and committee member for various charity fundraising events.

LORI R. TANEL

Real Estate & Land Development

Lori is a member of our real estate department. She graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1989. She articled and joined the firm of DelZotto, Zorzi LLP. Lori has been a special lecturer at Humber College’s property manager certificate program recognized by the Association of Condominium Manager’s of Ontario.

Lori’s practice is devoted to residential, rural and commercial real estate, land development with a special emphasis on condominium law. She has represented receivers and court appointed trustees in the marketing, condominiumization and sale of distress properties both within and outside the greater Metropolitan Toronto area. She has been involved in representing clients in all facets of real estate law, including conducting repair work on registered condominium declarations, attending before land division committees, drafting and negotiation of complex easement and cost sharing arrangements, participating in the acquisition of large asset purchase transaction involving real estate holdings across Canada and the U.S. Lori has also been involved in the negotiating and the settlement of a law suit involving municipalities and public transit commission.

Lori is also a licenced thoroughbred horse owner/breeder in Ontario and U.S. since 1990 and has a special interest in equine law.

RICHARD P. HOFFMAN

Litigation & Condominium Law

Richard has been a member of DelZotto, Zorzi LLP since 1992, practicing in the area of condominium law. He has represented condominium corporations and unit owners through all stages of the litigation process and at all levels of Ontario Courts (Superior Court of Justice, Divisional Court and Court of Appeal). He is well experienced in handling all types of condominium litigation, from applications to enforcing compliance with declarations, by-laws or rules, to handling multi-million dollar claims for budget misrepresentation. He has also advised condominium corporations of various sizes on all facets of condominium law.

Richard is presently a member of the Canadian Condominium Institute and regularly lectures on contract and agency law in the condominium context at Humber College, as well, he is a regular contributor to various condominium magazines and has contributed to the condominium section of the Toronto Star.

Robert Calderwood

Litigation & Dispute Resolution

Robert is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1997. Robert also has an undergraduate degree in political science from Queen’s University. Robert has been practicing civil litigation since his call to the Bar.

Robert’s practice has a particular emphasis on construction, condominium and real estate related litigation, employment law and commercial lease disputes. Robert also litigates all manner of business related disputes and provides advice to clients on debt collection/enforcement and landlord/tenant matters.

Robert believes in the efficient and practical resolution of client disputes, with the goal of at all times maximizing client profit or minimizing client liability, net of legal costs.

In addition to litigating employment disputes, Robert also regularly advises employer clients on workplace management issues, including human rights matters, employment contracts, workplace policies, employment standards and severance/termination packages.

ALEXANDER A. FOUNDOS

Real Estate & Land Development

Alexander is an associate in our real estate department. He practices in the areas of land development and commercial real estate, with an emphasis on land acquisitions and dispositions, condominium development, and construction financing.

Alexander represents a variety of condominium developers and builders, and has acted on numerous prominent condominium developments and land acquisitions across the GTA and southern Ontario. In addition to his land acquisition and development work, Alexander has extensive experience in negotiating and drafting complex construction and development agreements, including tie-back and crane swing agreements, limiting distance agreements, and reciprocal/cost-sharing and easement agreements.

Prior to attending law school, Alexander graduated from York University with a B.A. (Hons.) in economics and political science. He attended law school at the University of Windsor and completed a semester at the University of Amsterdam in the International Law Program before graduating in 2002. He was called to the Bar of Ontario in 2003.

GIULIO LAVECCHIA

Real Estate & Land Development

Giulio joined DelZotto, Zorzi LLP in 2018 as a member of the real estate and land development group. Giulio’s practice is primarily devoted to real estate and land development with a particular emphasis on land acquisitions and dispositions, real property financing, and subdivision and condominium development.

Giulio obtained his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Windsor and was called to the Ontario Bar in 2013. Prior to his legal studies, Giulio obtained his Honours Bachelor of Science, with Distinction, from the University of Toronto.

SABRINA ADAMSKI

Litigation & Dispute Resolution

Sabrina joined DelZotto, Zorzi LLP as a lawyer in 2013, after completing her articles with the firm. Sabrina’s practice focuses on litigation, primarily in the areas of real estate, employment, landlord/tenant, condominium and commercial law.

Prior to joining the firm, Sabrina attended the University of Toronto, graduating with an Hon.B.Sc. in 2007 and a J.D. in 2011, after which she spent a year in Tokyo, Japan, working as a legal editor at a large law firm.

AMY CRYSTAL

Real Estate & Land Development

Amy joined DelZotto, Zorzi LLP in 2016 as a member of our real estate department after completing her articles with the firm. Amy received her Juris Doctor from Osgoode Hall Law School, where she was the recipient of the Harold J. Rubenstein Prize for high academic achievement and was also recognized for her cumulative academic standing within the top ten percent of her class.

Prior to attending law school, Amy obtained an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree (with Distinction) from the University of Western Ontario, where she was the recipient of the UWO In-Course Scholarship Year IV and the William Ferguson Tamblyn Scholarship for the highest degree of academic excellence in English.

Since joining DelZotto, Zorzi LLP, she has co-authored numerous papers with Harry Herskowitz for the Law Society of Ontario’s Six-Minute Real Estate Lawyer program. Amy is also a contributing writer for Del Condominium Life Magazine, and volunteers as an editor for the Mind Over Matter magazine published by Women’s Brain Health Initiative, which is distributed twice a year across Canada through the Globe and Mail and the Toronto Star.

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