There’s no substitute for experience. Our ability to act for clients facing litigation on multiple fronts is our strength.
Precedent Setting Cases
We act on remarkable cases in every area of our litigation practice. From complex and high-stakes commercial disputes, class actions and securities regulation matters to urgent injunctions and evidence preservation measures; from sports regulation & enforcement to white-collar criminal and regulatory defence. Sometimes our clients come to us with fascinating, urgent problems to manage and fix. And sometimes our strategic insight unlocks an elegant, novel solution to a problem that seems ordinary. Here are some of the places we set precedent.
Supreme Court Advocacy: Counsel before the Supreme Court of Canada in the successful appeal of the Hamlet of Clyde River. Counsel for the appellant in R. v. Sharma (conditional sentences for Indigenous accused). Counsel for the Canadian Public Health Association in the Insite appeal (operation of needle exchange program in Lower East Side Vancouver), and for Canadian Journalists for Free Expression in the Whatcott case (hate speech). Counsel for the B.C. Civil Liberties Association in R v. Marakah and R v. Jones (seizure of text messages), Google v. Equustek (global injunctions against internet intermediaries), World Bank Group v. Wallace (evidence in foreign corruption prosecutions), and Frank v. Canada (right of non-resident Canadians to vote in federal elections). Counsel for the Criminal Lawyers’ Association in Alberta v. University of Calgary (solicitor-client privilege and production demands). Counsel for various arts associations in Access Copyright v. Minister of Education (Alta.) (“fair use” of copyrighted material for educational purposes).
Commissions of Inquiry and Coroner’s Inquests: Counsel for the Government of Canada in the Public Order Emergency Commission. Counsel for a policing organization at the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG). Commission Counsel to the Walkerton, Arar and Air India inquiries. Counsel for parties with standing before the Mississauga Judicial Inquiry; Inquiry into Paediatric Forensic Pathology (Goudge Inquiry), the SARS review and the Seven Fallen Feathers Inquest in Thunder Bay.
Criminal and Regulatory Matters: Successfully defended the former Chair of CannTrust in insider trading and securities fraud prosecution following an investigation by the OSC Joint Serious Offences Team. Successfully defended hundreds of Uber partners in regulatory prosecutions in Toronto surrounding jurisdictions, obtaining the withdrawals of hundreds of charges after winning motions on disclosure and unreasonable delay. Successfully defended ORNGE air ambulance in relation to charges under the Canada Labour Code and Reliance Construction in relation charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Counsel for the Chief of the Toronto Police Service and designated to prosecute all TPS discipline matters arising out of the 2010 G20 Summit in Toronto.
Securities enforcement: We have a broad range of experience in securities regulation matters. This includes acting for respondents in major prosecutions including YBM Magnex, Biovail and Coventree Capital; and as counsel to Staff in prosecutions of Paramount Equity Financial Corporation, Sextant Capital Management Inc., MRS Sciences, Northern Securities Inc. and others. Acting as counsel for CI Financial in litigation before the Ontario Securities Commission in a groundbreaking case concerning the validity and effects of a shareholder rights plan. This is in addition to our numerous confidential mandates representing individuals who are the targets of OSC investigations.
Class Actions: We have represented defendants in a variety of class proceedings. This includes: Fareau et al v Bell Canada et al (a Consumer Protection Action claim relating to the price of telephone services provided to inmates); Mancinelli v Royal Bank of Canada (representing a financial institution in a proceeding dealing with allegations of price fixing of foreign exchange rates); Locking v McCowan (where we represented the former CEO of real estate investment trust against allegations of breach of fiduciary duty); ALS Society v. City of Windsor (defence of class action for bingo licensing fees); Timminco Inc. (securities/class actions); Bear Lake Gold (securities/class actions); Atlas Cold Storage (securities/class actions); Bancroft-Snell v. VISA Canada (appointed amicus curiae on issue regarding approval of counsel fees in multi-jurisdictional class actions).
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Individual Recognition
Paul Le Vay
Benchmark Litigation "Top 50 Trial Lawyers in Canada" (2024) Lexpert/ALM "Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada" (2024) LEXPERT ranked in Commercial Litigation, Securities Litigation Named in Best Lawyers for Corporate-Commercial Litigation and Securities Law Chambers ranked 2012 Inductee, American College of Trial Lawyers 2014 Inductee, International Academy of Trial Lawyers
Brian Gover
Benchmark Litigation "Top 50 Trial Lawyers in Canada" (2024) Lexpert/ALM "Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada" (2024) Chambers ranked LEXPERT ranked in Public Law Named in Best Lawyers for Administrative & Public Law and Criminal Defence 2008 Inductee, American College of Trial Lawyers 2011 Inductee, International Academy of Trial Lawyers
Brendan van Niejenhuis
LEXPERT Rising Star, 2011 LEXPERT U.S./Canada Cross-Border Litigators to Watch, 2012 Precedent Setter, Precedent Magazine (2011) Chambers Ranked Named in Best Lawyers for Administrative & Public Law
Luisa Ritacca
Chambers Ranked LEXPERT Rising Star, 2014
Gerald Chan
Benchmark Litigation "Top 50 Trial Lawyers in Canada" (2024) Benchmark Litigation "40 & Under Hotlist" (2017) Best Lawyers in Canada, Administrative and Public Law (2017) Benchmark "Future Star" (2017) Lexpert "Litigator to Watch" (2014) Precedent Magazine, Precedent Setter (2012)
Nader R. Hasan
Benchmark Litigation "Top 50 Trial Lawyers in Canada" (2024) Best Lawyers in Canada, Appellate Practice (2017) Benchmark Litigation "40 & Under Hotlist" (2017) New York Bar Association, Empire State Counsel Award, pro bono representation
Andrea Gonsalves
Lexpert Rising Star (2019) Precedent Magazine, Precedent Setter (2014) Benchmark Litigation "40 & Under Hotlist" (2017)-(2023) Benchmark "Litigation Star" (2017)-(2024)
Edward (Ted) Marrocco
Benchmark Litigation "Top 50 Trial Lawyers in Canada" (2024) Benchmark "Litigation Star" (2024) Lexpert "Consistently Recommended" Litigation - Corporate Commercial (2024) Benchmark Litigation "40 & Under Hotlist" (2020) Benchmark Litigation "Future Star" (2019)-(2022) Best Lawyers Administrative & Public Law (2020-2024) Best Lawyers Corporate and Commercial Litigation (2021-2024)
Justin Safayeni, Q.Arb
Precedent Magazine, Precedent Setter (2017) Benchmark Litigation "40 & Under Hotlist" (2019)-(2021) Benchmark, "Litigation Star" (2021)
Carlo Di Carlo
Lexpert/ALM "Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada" (2024) Benchmark Litigation "40 & Under Hotlist" (2023)
