Lawyers for Midwives

As trusted midwifery lawyers, we represent midwives in Ontario in regulatory, litigation, clinical and risk issues, including those with the College of Midwives of Ontario (the “CMO”), the Human Rights Tribunal and the Information and Privacy Commissioner. We help midwives navigate the legal landscape governing the practice of midwifery in Ontario, including under the Midwifery Act, 1991.

If you have a complaint, investigation or disciplinary matter before the CMO, it is important to get legal advice from a midwife complaint lawyer or midwife discipline lawyer to evaluate your risk and help you manage your response. This is especially important because many forms of remediation ordered by the CMO remain on a midwife’s public register indefinitely. We are midwife defence lawyers who assist on all types of CMO matters, including clinical issues, billing issues, communication issues, recordkeeping issues and boundary violations/sexual assault allegations.

We work with insurance companies covering Ontario midwives and also represent midwives directly who do not have coverage for regulatory matters. We typically offer our clients the choice of an hourly rate or flat fee for these regulatory matters, especially for midwifery complaints. We represent midwives across the province of Ontario, including in Toronto and the GTA, Ottawa, Hamilton, Kitchener, London, Brampton, Barrie, Kingston and Thunder Bay.

Legal Services for Midwives

  • Responding on behalf of midwives to CMO patient complaints before the Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee (“ICRC”) of the CMO;

  • Facilitating proactive courses or Specific Continuing Education or Remediation Programs (“SCERP”) for midwives ordered by the CMO;

  • Responding for midwives to CMO section 75 investigations before the ICRC;

  • Responding to disciplinary matters and allegations of professional misconduct for midwives before the Discipline Committee of the CMO;

  • Responding to registration issues for midwives before the Registration Committee of the CMO or guiding midwives on their application for licensure in other provinces/countries;

  • Defending allegations for midwifery students on testing irregularity and cheating on the Canadian Midwifery Registration Exam (the “CMRE”);

  • Responding to appeals and judicial reviews for midwives before the Health Professions Appeal and Review Board (“HPARB”), the Divisional Court of Ontario or the Court of Appeal for Ontario;

  • Responding to complaints made against midwives to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario regarding discrimination and human rights violations;

  • Responding to complaints against midwives before the Information and Privacy Commissioner;

  • Responding on behalf of midwives to CMO Fitness to Practice matters;

  • Assisting midwives in managing a challenging patient, including harassment and assault, and terminating the midwife-patient relationship;

  • Navigating clinical issues for midwives, including privacy breaches, midwifery malpractice allegations, recordkeeping issues and patient demands;

  • Navigating billing issues for midwives, including insurance company inquiries and audits;

  • Navigating compliance for midwives with CMO Standards of Practice;

  • Assisting midwives in responding to the annual CMO report regarding past criminal and regulatory issues; and

  • Representing midwives in workplace investigations.

Need help with any of the above? We are midwifery attorneys, so don’t hesitate to contact John McIntyre for a free consultation at john@mcintyre-szabo.com or through the website here.