Writing Reference Letters in Ontario: What Employers Can Safely Say

A former employee asks for a reference letter, and most employers want to help — it's a small courtesy, and refusing outright can feel unnecessarily harsh. But a reference letter is also a written statement about a real person that a stranger will rely on to make a hiring decision, and that combination creates more legal exposure than most employers expect.

This article walks through where that risk actually comes from and how to write (or decline to write) a reference without inviting a claim.

Why Reference Letters Carry Legal Risk

Two different legal theories can turn a reference letter into a problem, and they pull in opposite directions:

• Say something too negative and inaccurate, and the former employee may have a claim against you.
• Say something too positive and misleading, and the new employer who relied on it may have a claim against you.

A reference letter sits at the intersection of both risks, which is exactly why so many employers default to saying almost nothing at all.

Defamation: What "Qualified Privilege" Does and Doesn't Protect

A false statement that damages someone's reputation can support a defamation claim. Reference letters get some protection from a long-standing doctrine called qualified privilege — a good-faith, honestly held statement made to someone with a legitimate interest in receiving it (like a prospective employer checking references) is generally protected, even if it turns out to be wrong.

That protection has real limits, though. Qualified privilege can be defeated where a statement is made with malice, or goes well beyond what the legitimate purpose actually required — for example, volunteering unrelated, damaging personal opinions that have nothing to do with job performance. Stick to what's true, relevant, and necessary, and the protection generally holds; wander outside that, and it may not.

Negligent Misrepresentation: The Overly Positive Reference

The opposite mistake is less discussed but just as real. If a reference letter substantially overstates a former employee's skills, reliability, or suitability — and a new employer hires them based on that letter for a role where the gap turns out to matter (a safety-sensitive position, for instance) — the new employer may have a claim that the reference was a negligent misrepresentation.

This risk tends to arise when an employer writes an inflated reference simply to help someone move on, rather than because the letter accurately reflects their actual performance.

What Not to Mention

Some categories of information create risk regardless of whether they're true, because raising them can look like — or actually be — retaliatory or discriminatory:

• Medical information, disability accommodations, or leave history
• Pregnancy, parental leave, or family status
• Whether the employee raised a workplace complaint or human rights concern
• Speculation about character or personal life that has nothing to do with job performance
• Unverified rumours or secondhand accounts of workplace conduct

If it isn't job-performance-related and directly observed, it generally doesn't belong in a reference letter.

The "Neutral Reference" Policy Many Employers Adopt

Many organizations manage this risk with a standing policy: confirm only the employee's job title, dates of employment, and sometimes final salary, and decline to comment on performance, conduct, or rehire eligibility for anyone. This is a common risk-management choice, not a legal requirement — but it has a real practical benefit: applying it consistently to every departing employee removes the appearance of singling anyone out for a harsher (or unusually glowing) reference.

A Safer Approach to Writing References

• [ ] Stick to facts you personally observed — not secondhand accounts or assumptions
• [ ] Keep the letter tied to job performance and job-relevant conduct
• [ ] Avoid the categories listed above entirely, even if they seem relevant to you
• [ ] Don't inflate the letter beyond what you actually believe to be true
• [ ] Get the former employee's request in writing, and keep a copy of what you send
• [ ] If in doubt about a specific sentence, leave it out rather than guess

Frequently asked questions