HRPA Meeting Details

David acts as counsel to management with respect to all aspects of Canadian employment and labour law. This includes advising, representing and litigating on behalf of clients with respect to: employment law; labour relations; wrongful dismissal; employment standards; human rights; workplace policies and procedures; employment contracts; performance management; and workplace safety and insurance matters.
David strives to assist employers to develop and articulate clear policies that protect the employer’s interests. He also works with his firm’s clients to develop practical and workable responses to employment issues such as performance management, employee discipline and workplace harassment.
David has lectured at the Law Society of Upper Canada and Ryerson University on Employment and Labour Law.
Free time in the summer is spent with his family at his cottage. In the winter David coaches his son’s hockey team.
He graduated from Queens Law School in 1984 and was called to the bar of the Law Society of Upper Canada in 1986. He is also a member of the Canadian Bar Association and the Ontario Bar Association.

Melissa Ragogna is an Associate Lawyer at Turner, A Human Resources Law Firm™. She previously gained valuable litigation experience at a leading litigation boutique firm in Toronto. Melissa’s practice involves all facets of management-side labour and employment law, including: employee relations; Ontario’s Employment Standards Act 2000 and Human Rights Code compliance; drafting and reviewing employment contracts and termination letters; workplace Health and Safety; conducting and advising on workplace investigations; policy development and implementation; workplace privacy; Workplace Safety and Insurance Board matters; Employment Insurance; and wrongful and constructive dismissal claims. Melissa was called to the Ontario Bar in 2016. She is a member of the Law Society of Ontario, the Ontario Bar Association, the Canadian Bar Association, and the Toronto Lawyer’s Association. In her spare time, Melissa enjoys outdoor activities, crafting, and spending time with her family as a new mom.

Twenty-Two years ago Stuart Knight did something courageous, daring and uncommon. He listened to his heart. It told him that too many people were not living up to their potential, and he decided to do something about it. At the ripe age of 24, with no money or experience, he wrote an inspiring theatre show for teenagers. Within a short amount of time it was picked up by Coca Cola and toured nationally for three years. From there he decided to become the first Canadian ever to write and star in a musical that he produced in his own loft. No small feat considering he couldn’t play an instrument. It became the longest running play of its kind, and A-list influencers lined up to witness sold out shows in a theatre Stuart not only built, but also lived in. During that time, some of the world’s biggest business leaders recognized Stuart as a visionary who could help their organization reach new levels of success. Since then Stuart has been flown around the world, speaking in places such as Sydney, Malta, Edinburgh, Mumbai, New York, Frankfurt and Las Vegas helping Fortune 500 companies learn what it takes to be the best. As Stuart Knight’s success flourished, he wanted to do something that would help raise thousands of dollars for charities around the world and decided to create the Top Ten Event, which is now one of Canada’s biggest speaking extravaganzas. The event has quickly grown into one of Canada’s must see events, garnering over 30 million media impressions and has starred such names as Jim Cuddy, Deepa Mehta, Mary Walsh, Steven Page and two time Oscar Award Winner Jane Fonda. On top of all of this, Stuart Knight is an award winning entrepreneur, a critically acclaimed author of two books, an expert panellist on numerous television shows, the host of a hit radio show, has a sought after podcast and has over twelve thousand people from around the world tuning in each week to watch his thought provoking videos online. As a disrupter, thought leader and maverick, Stuart Knight has inspired over one million people reach greater success, find deeper joy and to ultimately boycott what they thought.

As Compliance Works' CLO, Gayle oversees all legal research and content development, as well as internal legal matters. Gayle has developed employment law content for Compliance Works, which provides plain language summaries of employment law obligations across the country. Gayle has approximately 20 years of experience working in the legal industry. This includes both practicing law as a corporate commercial litigator and leading knowledge management initiatives at national and regional law firms. Gayle is also a legal researcher and developer and provider of legal education programs. She regularly presents to lawyers on a variety of legal topics, including employment standards, wrongful dismissal, human rights, human resource policies and legal compliance. She has extensive knowledge of legislation, including both the legislative process and the interpretation of legislation. Gayle has also presented to not-for-profit boards of directors and is a mentor and assessor with the Law Practice Program at Toronto Metropolitan University, working with candidates to develop and hone their legal skills.