Sonya Szabo, Canadian Business Lawyer
Sonya’s Story
A Business Lawyer Built for the Way You Work
Sonya Szabo is a business lawyer for creative and service-based businesses across Canada, and she gets calls every week from business owners who open with the same line: "I should have dealt with this a year ago." She just nods and says, "Okay, let's sort it out." That's usually the moment they realize they've found the right lawyer.
Sonya has helped Canadian entrepreneurs build, protect, and grow their businesses, working specifically with the kinds of businesses that get overlooked by traditional corporate law firms: photographers, designers, agency owners, coaches, hospitality businesses, makers, and creative studios at every stage of growth.
Built on Both Sides of the Table
She thinks like a business owner because she is one and has been for decades. She bootstrapped and scaled an award-winning restaurant. She ran an event planning company. She learned most of what she knows about business the expensive way, through bad contracts, worse bookkeeping, late-night Googling that didn't help, and completely ignoring it when it felt overwhelming. That experience is the foundation of everything she does at Zābo Law, and it's why her clients consistently say she's unlike any lawyer they've worked with before.
A Practice Born From What She Watched Others Lose
She has watched friends and neighbours lose businesses they spent years building because the legal side wasn't in place when something went wrong. A bad partnership. A contract that didn't hold. A brand someone else filed for. Improper CRA filings. All these things could have been avoided with access to a knowledgeable, honest and friendly lawyer.
Deep Roots in Canadian Business Law
Sonya has a bachelor's degree in business, earned her JD from Queen’s Law in Kingston, and is a member of the Law Society of Ontario, with certificates in intellectual property, negotiation, and entertainment law.
Sonya is the mom of three young adults and a proud mother-in-law to two daughters-in-law, and has been married to Rick for more than 25 years. When she’s not strategizing for her clients, you’ll find her crafting a plant-based recipe for dinner, taking nature walks, or planning the next big trip. She designed her practice the same way she helps her clients design theirs: built to last, but flexible enough to actually live your life while you run it.
She is based in Prince Edward County, Ontario, and works with clients across Canada entirely remotely.
The Loophole
Every week, Sonya publishes The Loophole, a free newsletter for Canadian business owners who want to understand the legal side of what they've built without hiring a lawyer every time they have a question. Each issue breaks down one legal concept in plain language, with real examples and no jargon, because the best time to understand a contract clause is before you need to dispute it.
Helping Canadian Entrepreneurs Build Something Worth Protecting
Starting Right, From Day One. With hundreds of business formations behind her, Sonya guides Canadian entrepreneurs through incorporation, sole proprietorships, and partnerships, ensuring they start with the right structure for their goals and remain compliant with the CRA and their provincial registry from day one.
Staying Legally Sound. Sonya helps business owners maintain good standing with the federal and provincial governments by handling corporate filings, annual documentation, and ongoing governance, so founders can focus on running their business rather than chasing paperwork.
Fractional General Counsel. Acting as outside general counsel, Sonya anticipates legal issues before they become costly problems, offering guidance grounded in both the law and the practical realities of running a small Canadian business.
Contracts That Actually Protect You. Sonya drafts, reviews, and negotiates the contracts that hold a business together — client agreements, service contracts, independent contractor agreements, NDAs, and more — built for the Canadian legal context, not copied from an American template someone found online.
Intellectual Property Foundations. From trademark registration with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office to licensing agreements and IP clauses in contracts, Sonya helps founders protect what they've built before someone else uses it without permission.
Legal Business Brain
Legal Business Brain is Sonya's membership-based legal education platform for Canadian entrepreneurs, with access to contract templates, legal training, and a monthly Q&A built specifically for the Canadian context. It's for business owners who want a working understanding of their legal situation, not just a lawyer they call in a crisis.
Work with Zābo Law
Zābo Law offers flat-fee legal services for creative and service-based businesses across Canada, covering business incorporation, client contracts, employment and contractor agreements, intellectual property and trademark registration, contract review, and ongoing legal support. There are no hourly rates, no surprise invoices, and no minimum retainers. You know the cost before the work begins.
What Zābo Law Does Differently
Zābo Law Clients
Our clients share a common trait: they're building businesses designed to last, and they understand that strong legal foundations are essential to long-term success.
We work with established owner-operators across Ontario in:
Retail and consumer products
Hospitality and food service
Healthcare and professional clinics
Professional services and consulting
Trades and contracting
Manufacturing and distribution
…and more