HEENAN BLAIKIE’S NEW HIRES
Heenan Blaikie LLP has welcomed 18 new partners to its offices across the country, including seven in Toronto.
In Toronto, Bob Tarantino and Hilary Goldstein become partners in the firm’s entertainment law group.
They are joined by Catherine Bate, who becomes a partner in the marketing and advertising law group, and Jeremy Warning of the labour and employment law group.
Brad Elberg, a commercial and constitutional lawyer; Paola Turner, a securities and corporate lawyer; and Julian Worsley, who practises intellectual property law, were also named new partners.
In addition to the Toronto promotions, the firm took on seven new partners in Montreal. It also took on new partners at its Quebec City, Calgary, Ottawa, and Vancouver offices.
EDWARDH JOINS SGM
High-profile defence lawyer Marlys Edwardh has joined Sack Goldblatt Mitchell LLP.
The firm announced last week that Jessica Orkin, who has worked with Edwardh for a number of years, had made the move as well.
Besides criminal law, Edwardh also practises constitutional and regulatory law in additional to her work as an advocate for civil liberties and human rights.
TORONTO LAWYER DISBARRED
Toronto lawyer Marcia Alexia Barrett has had her licence revoked for her part in a mortgage fraud scheme.
Law Society of Upper Canada proceedings found her guilty of misconduct for “participating or knowingly assisting” in fraudulent conduct by clients in relation to transactions on nine properties.
A panel found she had failed to disclose material facts to lender clients and that she continued to act for more than one party in a transaction when she knew a conflicting interest was likely.
According to the LSUC, Barrett paid out more than $70,000 to a third party with no legitimate interest in one transaction. Barrett was also ordered to pay the law society $143,000 in costs as well as a further $28,000 to its compensation fund.
DAVIS EXPANDS JAPAN OFFICE
Davis LLP has boosted its Tokyo presence with the addition of seven Japanese lawyers to the firm’s office there.
Hiroaki Takahashi, one of Japan’s leading commercial lawyers, heads the group of new hires, who will focus their practice on domestic and international finance.
“The addition of the Takahashi group and the ability to give leading-edge advice on Japanese domestic law matters will dramatically enhance our effectiveness in advising not just our Canadian or Japanese clients but any corporation wishing to do business in and with Japan,” said Robert Seidel, Davis’ national managing partner.
Davis has had a Tokyo office since 1997, and the firm’s relationship with Japan goes back even further. The firm successfully defended Japanese-Canadians who were interned during the Second World War or who received deportation orders following its conclusion. Since then, it has acted for a number of Japanese corporations in cross-border transactions.
Takahashi, who graduated from Harvard University as well as the University of Tokyo, has had previous stints at New York firms Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP and Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP.
MILLAR, CAMPBELL HONOURED
The Toronto Lawyers Association will recognize Ontario Superior Court Justice Colin Campbell and former Law Society of Upper Canada treasurer Derry Millar at its Awards of Distinction for 2011.
The awards honour outstanding contributions to law and the legal profession and will be held on Feb. 10.
Millar, a partner at WeirFoulds LLP, was first elected as a bencher of the law society in 1995 and served as treasurer from 2008 to 2010. He was also chairman of the LSUC’s finance committee and its interjurisdictional mobility committee. He was lead commission counsel for the Ipperwash Inquiry and is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.
Campbell was appointed to the bench in 1998 following a career in commercial litigation and competition law.
He led the task force on the discovery process in Ontario that resulted in the development of guidelines for e-discovery and sits on the advisory board of the Sedona Conference.
MILLER THOMSON CHAIR RE-ELECTED
Gerald Courage has been elected by acclaim as the chairman of Miller Thomson LLP for a second three-year term.
“This renewed mandate comes at a time when Miller Thomson is poised to enter what we see as the next phase in the firm’s evolution,” Courage said. “We have achieved a clear, national consensus on who we are, where we want to go, and what our clients want most from us - added experience, added clarity, added value.”
It has been a busy year for Miller Thomson, which announced its merger with Balfour Moss LLP in December to become the only national firm with a presence in Saskatchewan. There was also a national brand launch designed to communicate the firm’s approach to the practices of business law and litigation.
“We are continuing to pursue leadership opportunities in Canada and abroad,” said Courage, who was first elected chairman in 2008.
