Ontario

Firm overview

Paliare Roland Rosenberg Rothstein LLP is a litigation boutique with vast expertise and experience. They are routinely involved in high profile cases, from complex commercial litigation or class actions, professional discipline, labour disputes, and public inquiries to managing the most sensitive legal issues facing all businesses, individuals, labour unions, professional regulatory bodies, academic institutions and public interest organizations. Much of our work is referred from law firms in Ontario, across Canada, and internationally.

Main Areas of Practice:

Corporate Commercial Litigation: Paliare Roland has significant and diverse experience acting on virtually all aspects of corporate commercial litigation. They are regularly asked to act on high-stakes litigation of critical importance to clients, applying a strategic, practical, and singularly effective approach to resolving business disputes. They routinely represent public and private companies, partnerships, shareholders, directors, officers, boards, special committees and professional advisors, arguing in the appellate courts and before the Toronto Commercial List, arbitrators, and mediators.

Class Actions: Paliare Roland represents publicly and privately on leading cases. The team acts for defendants and plaintiffs, bringing versatility and unique insights, and have acted as counsel on class actions at tall stages of proceeding, from certification including all levels of appeal, mediations, examinations for discovery to completion of common issues trials. Their experience includes cases involving usurious interest rates, product liability, Competition Act violations, institutional abuse, auditor’s negligence, franchise disputes, foreign exchange charges, breach of trust, breach of contract, pensions issues, and others.

Aboriginal/Indigenous Law: Paliare Roland has argued many cases at the forefront of Aboriginal/Indigenous law in Canada. They represent a range of First Nations (status and non-status) and Métis clients, providing advice and representation on rights under s.35 of the Constitution Act, 1982, the duty to consult, the scope of federal jurisdiction over Indigenous peoples, the recognition of Indigenous legal systems, the impact of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and related matters. They have helped to shape the interpretation and application of the framework for Aboriginal/Indigenous law and the exercise of government powers, including the reach of government programming.

Infrastructure and P3: Paliare Roland brings a depth of experience to the complexities of construction and infrastructure projects, including those involving public-private partnerships (P3). They regularly advise and act for private and public stakeholders on disputes in these critical projects, approaching disputes with deep subject matter expertise, and an understanding of the complex and distinct legal issues which arise, with a view to innovative and practical resolutions.

Healthcare: Paliare Roland has a long history of representing and advising health regulators in connection with complaints, investigations, and discipline proceedings, including as lead discipline counsel for the College of Nurses of Ontario. The team regularly appears before the statutory committees of several health regulators including the College of Chiropractors of Ontario; the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario; the Ontario College of Pharmacists; the College of Opticians of Ontario; the College of Psychologists and Behavioural Analysts of Ontario; the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario; the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers; and the College of Kinesiologists of Ontario. The team also advises regulators, facilities, corporations, and professionals regarding all aspects of health law, including hospital privileges disputes, privacy, employment, workplace investigations, professional negligence, Board governance, public and internal policies, and professional misconduct investigations and discipline, and acts as appellate counsel on health-related judicial reviews and appeals and acts on infrastructure disputes respecting healthcare facilities

Administrative and Public Law: Paliare Roland is widely viewed as a leader in the areas of public and administrative law and have significant experience with matters involving wide range of provincial and federal administrative tribunals and court proceedings arising therefrom. They have acted both before and on behalf of such tribunals in administrative hearings and in judicial review proceedings, administrative appeals, and constitutional challenges. The team has appeared before all levels of court, including the Supreme Court of Canada, and have argued some of Canada’s leading public and administrative law cases, and has long associations with several public interest organizations and various specialised legal aid clinics.

Bankruptcy & Insolvency Litigation: Paliare Roland regularly acts in bankruptcy and insolvency matters nationally and locally. Their practice is independent of major financial institutions, permitting us to act as counsel to a full range of insolvency stakeholders, including union and employee groups, tort claimants, court appointed officers, debtors, bondholders and governments.

Appeals and Judicial Review: Paliare Roland has argued some of the most important, influential appellate cases in Canadian legal history. In both public and private law, they have been involved in a vast range of prominent, precedent-setting appeals and judicial reviews. They are respected for their deep expertise and experience in judicial review applications and appeals, and are frequently retained by trial and administrative counsel, regulatory bodies, unions and others to help advance or protect these clients’ interests before the courts on review.

Labour Law: Paliare Roland provides strategic advice and representation to trade unions and their members across the public and private sectors. Grievance mediation and arbitration is a core part of their labour practice and have experience assisting clients to secure material advancements through collective bargaining and interest arbitration, and regularly advance the interests of unions and their members through the civil courts, including Charter litigation. They also advise unions regarding all aspects of their labour relations, including employment standards, human rights, workers’ compensation, health and safety, pensions, pay equity, the duty of fair representation, and strike or picketing injunctions.

Employment Law: Paliare Roland provides advice and advocacy relating to all areas of the employment relationship for both employees and employers. Their work covers all aspects of the employment relationship, including contracts, workplace investigations, constructive dismissal, termination with and without cause, non-competition or non-solicitation agreements, shareholder disputes with an employment element, issues related to the Ontario Human Rights Code, and more.

Professional Discipline & Regulation: Paliare Roland represents regulators and a wide range of professionals in connection with complaints, investigations and discipline proceedings. Several team members also act as prosecutors in disciplinary and fitness-to-practise hearings for several professional regulatory agencies, primarily in the health sector.

Firm overview

Thornton Grout Finnigan LLP (“TGF”) focuses its practice in two areas: (i) commercial litigation; and (ii) insolvency and restructuring. Representative mandates reflect the breadth and depth of the team, and the creativity involved in resolving some of the most complex legal issues in Canada.

TGF is a mix of senior restructuring and litigation lawyers with a full range of experience gained by years of practice, both inside and outside full-service law firms, combined with talented and energetic younger lawyers who thrive in the entrepreneurial environment of a specialty firm.

Representative Mandates:

• Counsel to the first publicly-funded university in Canada to be restructured pursuant to an insolvency statute 
• Counsel to PricewaterhouseCoopers Inc. as Receiver and Manager of Bridging Financial Inc. and its Funds
• Litigation counsel to the constructors of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT, an $8+ billion project, one of the largest infrastructure projects in Canada’s history
• Counsel for Grant Thornton Limited as Trustee in bankruptcy of AP Private Equity Limited and Aiden Pleterski, a 23-year-old self-proclaimed crypto king who was, along with his company, adjudged bankrupt following the obtaining of a Mareva Order.
• Counsel to BDO Canada Limited as court-appointed monitor in the CCAA restructuring of Eve & Co Incorporated, Natural Medco Ltd., and Eve & Co International Holdings Ltd.
• Lawyers for FTI Consulting Canada Inc. as court-appointed monitor in the CCAA proceedings of the Just Energy Group
• Counsel to A. Farbers & Partners Inc. as court-appointed receiver of Pure Global Cannabis Inc. and its related entities
• Counsel to Ernst & Young Inc, as court-appointed Monitor of the Country Fresh Foods Group
• Counsel to Ernst & Young Inc., as court-appointed Monitor in the restructuring of the Carillion Group in Canada
• Counsel to debtor company AgMedica and its subsidiaries, the first licensed cannabis producer to file for CCAA protection in Ontario
• Counsel to Alvarez & Marsal Canada Inc., as court-appointed Monitor of Lydian International Inc. and its subsidiaries, including as foreign representative for recognition proceedings in Jersey, Channel Islands
• Counsel to Ernst & Young Inc., as Monitor of JTI Macdonald Corp. in its CCAA proceeding
• Court appointed litigation counsel to the Litigation Trustee of Cash Store Financial in pursuing nine figure damage claims against Cash Store’s professional advisors
• Counsel to Grant Thornton Limited as court appointed Receiver of the Comsale Group of Companies in a Canadian receivership proceeding with foreign recognition in the US and Malaysia
• Counsel to the Province of British Columbia in the CCAA proceedings of Purdue Pharma L.P.
• Counsel to BDO Canada Limited as court appointed Receiver of Unique Broadband Systems Ltd. in Canadian receivership and Chapter 11 foreign recognition proceedings
• Represented the court-appointed Monitor in a CCAA and Chapter 11 proceeding of Pacific Exploration and Production Corporation in the first Canada / US / Columbia cross-border insolvency proceeding, restructuring $5 billion in creditors’ claims
• Counsel to the court-appointed Monitor in the dual plenary proceedings under Chapter 11 and the CCAA of Performance Sports Group Ltd. and its affiliates, including a US$575 million sale transaction
• Canadian counsel to Square Two Financial Corporation and 17 affiliates in a CCAA and Chapter 11 restructuring of US$400 million of debt involving a stock sale in Canada and an asset sale in the US
• Canadian insolvency counsel to the Trustees of Nortel Networks UK Pension Plan and the UK Pension Protection Fund – the largest single creditor in the global insolvency proceedings of the Nortel Networks group of companies, allocating US$7.3 billion in sale proceeds among 40 insolvency estates in 19 countries
• Retained to resolve what had been described by the judiciary as “the longest running legal saga in Canadian history” and successfully ended the litigation through a creative application of the restructuring provisions of the CCAA
• Counsel to the court-appointed Monitor in the restructuring of the Canadian Abitibi- Bowater entities
• Counsel to Fraser Papers Inc. and its Canadian and US affliates in a restructuring pursuant to the CCAA and Chapter 11 Restructuring counsel to Hollinger Inc. in the windup of Hollinger and its subsidiaries
• Litigation counsel to the court-appointed Chief Restructuring Officer and Litigation Trustee of Hollinger Inc.
• Counsel to the court-appointed Monitor in the restructuring of Stelco
• Represented GE Capital Aviation Services, Inc., a principal stakeholder and the largest creditor in the CCAA restructuring proceedings of Air Canada, Canada’s largest airline
• Counsel for the court-appointed Receiver of the Portus group of companies, recovering over 95% of the more than $800 million of investors’ money
• Counsel to the Agent and lead lender in a syndicate of lenders to Allen-Vanguard Corporation, a publicly traded international military defence corporation, during its restructuring pursuant to the CCAA and its recapitalisation as a private entity
• Counsel to the Insolvency Institute of Canada as intervener on an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada in Re Indalex
• Counsel to a syndicate of European lenders in connection with a $75M breach of contract claim against a major North American air carrier
• Counsel to a committee of contesting bondholders in the proposed privatisation of BCE Inc., involving the world’s largest leveraged buyout with an enterprise value of $52 billion, including an appeal at the Supreme Court of Canada
• Represented the former principal of Lakeport Brewing Corp. in the successful defence of a $50 million officer and director liability case
• Represented the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) before a major municipal judicial inquiry
• Counsel to the court-appointed Receiver in the Norshield hedge fund scandal involving the tracing and attempted recovery of over $400 million in investor funds in several jurisdictions
• Counsel to United States Steel Corporation as the DIP lender and largest creditor in the CCAA proceedings of US Steel Canada Inc.
• Counsel to a significant landlord in various retail restructuring proceedings including Target, Sears Canada Inc. and BCBG
  
  

Firm overview

Stockwoods LLP is one of Canada’s most experienced and highly-regarded boutique litigation firms. Our lawyers are routinely ranked among Canada’s very best commercial, regulatory and criminal litigators. Because of our broad strength and expertise across the litigation spectrum, our firm advises and represents clients who face complex litigation exposure in different areas of the law.

Stockwoods’ high quality of judgment and advocacy, and its reputation for efficiency, has repeatedly been recognized by our peers – a major part of our practice comes from referrals from other leading lawyers in Canada and abroad. We are often engaged in cross- border and multi-jurisdictional matters.

Our clients include private and public companies, and their directors and officers; public agencies, regulatory bodies across a variety of industries (including energy regulation, professional regulation, policing, health and securities regulation); governmental bodies ranging, including government departments, municipalities and First Nations. Our lawyers have also acted as commission counsel and for parties at public inquiries.

Class Actions:

• Acting for TD Bank in defence of the FX conspiracy and SSA Bonds conspiracy class actions; for Bell Canada Inc. in defence of a class proceeding concerning inmate access to telephone services; for Apotex Inc. and certain natural health retailers and suppliers in a pharmaceutical liability class action.
• Defending the City of Windsor and Town of Tecumseh in class actions seeking to recover allegedly unconstitutional lottery licensing fees over a period in excess of 20 years.
• Acting for corporations and senior executives in secondary market securities class actions concerning the cannabis sector, the solar energy industry, and management of a major REIT, and in competition class actions in the tech and financial industries.
• Acting as Court Monitor and Court Counsel in relation to the administration of Canada’s largest class action settlement in the Indian Residential Schools matter, as well as the pan-Canadian settlements relating to blood tainted by Hepatitis C and the provincial settlement involving the contamination of the public water supply in Walkerton, Ontario.
• Acting for the Law Foundation of Ontario and the Class Proceedings Fund in matters arising from their public mandate to fund class actions litigation in Ontario, and as amicus curiae in a significant appeal concerning counsel fee approval.

Commercial/Civil Litigation:

• Acting for a leading global investment organization in commercial litigation arising out of an attempt to establish a new Canadian bank.
• Acting for a former senior official of the Saudi government in complex worldwide Mareva proceedings.
• Acting as litigation counsel to senior officers, directors and special committees of boards of directors in internal investigations.
• Acting both for corporations and boards of directors, and for dissident shareholder groups, in disputes related to contested proxy fights.
• Acting for the Monitor in the Carillion Inc. CCAA proceeding.
• Acting for a major financial services firm in a series of actions relating to the establishment of a bank.
• Acting for a wind farm owner in an action asserting manipulation of a ROFR process in the energy industry.
• Acting for an institutional mortgage investor in a power of sale action relating to a development property.
• Acting for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in litigation supporting its journalists, and in defence of defamations and other claims against it.

Criminal and Quasi-Criminal Litigation:

• Acting for a former Member of Parliament charged with breach of trust.
• Acting for the former Chairman and CEO of CannTrust charged with insider trading, securities fraud, and making materially misleading statements.
• Acting for corporate clients in workplace safety prosecutions involving fatalities under the Canada Labour Code and Occupational Health and Safety Act.
• Acting for clients in relation to all allegations of criminal wrongdoing, including white-collar crime, cross-border prosecutions, sexual offences, cyber/tech crimes, fraud offences, serious violent offences, drug offences, and national security matters.
• Advising and acting in relation to matters involving searches of sensitive environments (e.g., law offices, media) and the intersection between privacy and electronic surveillance.

Intellectual Property Litigation:

• Acting for a major software-as-a-service provider in the packaging and logistics industry in cross-boarder proceedings enforcing its intellectual property and licensing terms against a major US firm.
• Representing rights-holders in various trade-mark, copyright and patent disputes.
• Acting for the Weir Group PLC on numerous patent disputes concerning key technology used in the oil production sector.

Public & Administrative Law:

• Representing the Government of Canada in the Public Order Emergency Commission.
• Representing a long-term care home in connection with the Government of Ontario’s public inquiry into the COVID-19 pandemic .
• Acting for the Privacy Commissioner in a significant action against Facebook Inc arising from the Cambridge Analytica data breach.
• Acting for the family of Soleiman Faqiri on a high-profile Coroner’s inquest arising out of Soleiman’s killing at an Ontario correctional centre.
• Representing a senior federal government official in an examination by the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner.
• Acting as counsel to parties and interveners in dozens of public law matters at the Supreme Court of Canada and the provincial courts of appeal, including the landmark 2019 Vavilov decision.
• Regularly representing public agencies in administrative litigation and judicial review applications/appeals.

Securities Litigation & Enforcement:

• Acting for underwriters, banks, issuers and senior executives in significant complex OSC investigation, enforcement and settlement proceedings.
• Acting for CI Financial Ltd. in proceedings before the Ontario Securities Commission, brought to overturn a TSX decision refusing to enforce CI’s shareholder rights’ plan.
• Acting for OSC Staff in various high-profile matters including the fraud prosecutions of Weizhen Tang, the self-styled “Chinese Warren Buffett”, and previously of hedge fund manager Sextant Capital Management Inc.

Firm overview

Founded in February of 2021, Ross Nasseri LLP is one of Canada’s best litigation boutiques. The firm is based in Toronto and boasts a team of 18 litigators, including eight partners. The firm has been recognized as a premier boutique by Benchmark Litigation, Chambers, Best Lawyers, Lexpert, and the Globe and Mail, which ranked Ross Nasseri LLP second in the country in Dispute Resolution. Ross Nasseri’s partners are known for their cunning instincts, strategic acumen, and track records of taking difficult cases to trial and appeal.

Our practice is focused on civil, corporate/commercial, regulatory litigation, and class proceedings (including those in the insurance and product liability sectors). We litigate contract disputes, construction cases, estates disputes, professional liability cases, regulatory and administrative proceedings, shareholder disputes, oppression proceedings, and economic torts.

Our clients include regulated professionals, entrepreneurs, and corporations including publicly trade companies like Element Fleet Corporation and industry leading businesses like Douglas Barwick, Questrade, Mercedes Benz Canada, Torstar Corporation, and Grascan Construction Ltd.

We frequently appear before Toronto’s specialized Commercial and Estates Lists and in the Court of Appeal for Ontario. We are also regular attendees at Ontario’s tribunals and discipline committees. We frequently defend professionals in proceedings before their regulators; these mandates include defending health professionals (such as physicians, dentists, naturopaths, and pharmacists), lawyers, and mortgage and real estate professionals. We have extensive experience appearing before the Financial Services Tribunal, the Law Society of Ontario, the Mutual Fund Dealers Association, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada, the Real Estate Council of Ontario, and the colleges that fall under the Regulated Health Professionals Act.