Canadian Lawyer

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C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5 33 Total lawyers: 150 Office: Toronto Core practice areas: Corporate finance; corporate/commercial; municipal and land use; planning; real estate; energy and infra- structure; tax; financial services Key clients: Enbridge Inc.; Independent Electricity System Oper- ator; RBC; Allied Properties REIT; TD Bank Group; Concord Adex Developments Notable mandates: Counsel to Infrastructure Ontario and Metro- linx on the East Rail Maintenance Facility Project, an $860-mil- lion design-build-finance-maintain P3 project; counsel to Allied Properties REIT on a $150-million securities offering; counsel to National RV Communities LLC on a US$800-mil- lion refinancing of its North America-wide recreational-based real estate portfolio; counsel to Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro with respect to its $500-million general rates application, a detailed review of its cost of service, capital structure, rates of return, and other relevant matters for the purposes of setting rates; counsel to Crestpoint Real Estate Investments Ltd. Part- nership on the purchase of an international portfolio of indus- trial properties for $731 million. Star alumni: Founding partner John Black Aird, who was appointed an officer of the Order of Canada, a senator, and Ontario's 23rd lieutenant governor; David Miller, former Toronto mayor and president and CEO of World Wildlife Fund Canada; former Canadian minister of External Affairs Barbara McDougall; Tim Hortons Inc. vice president and assistant gen- eral counsel Meredith Michetti, and Gilbert S. Bennett, CEO, director, and/or chairman of many Canadian public and private companies, including Canadair Ltd., Canadian Tire, de Havil- land Inc., Air Nova Inc., Algoma Steel Inc., Eldorado Nuclear Ltd., and Enbridge Inc. Affiliations: Interlaw Ltd. Firm history: Aird & Berlis LLP opened for business in 1919. In 1974, a merger of firms created Aird Zimmerman & Berlis, a name later shortened to Aird & Berlis. The Toronto-based firm has a strong national and international practice, representing cli- ents in the U.S., U.K., Europe, and elsewhere. One satisfied client who participated in the survey wrote the firm had "great exper- tise, outstanding customer service, [and] genuinely nice lawyers." The firm, says former managing partner Eldon Bennett, offers the same sophistication of service as large law firms and can usu- ally deliver them in a more cost-effective way for clients. "Being a mid-market firm, I think we have a cost structure that's more competitive than [what] some other firms have, than some of our competitors have." While the firm has been mulling the idea of opening a second office, Bennett says it decided against it after concluding "it's a way to make less money." Total lawyers: 126 Lawyers by office: 76 in London; 50 in Toronto Core practice areas: Plaintiff personal injury; medical negligence defence; insurance defence; commercial litigation; appellate advo- cacy; business law Key clients: CMPA; CCLA; Frank Cowan Insurance; Deloitte; AICA; McKay-Cocker Construction; Verspeeten Cartage Ltd.; Trudell Medical Group Notable mandates: Represented physicians involved in providing care to Ashley Smith during the 2013 coroner's inquest; acted for Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne in a defamation action against Ontario Progressive Conservative party leader Tim Hudak and energy critic Lisa MacLeod; in Wise v. Iran, acted for a Cana- dian victim of a suicide bombing (executed by individuals who received material support from Iran) who sought leave to inter- vene in ongoing proceedings commenced by United States plain- tiffs in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice seeking orders rec- ognizing the enforceability in Ontario of judgments they obtained from a U.S. court against Iran totaling about $370 million; in Khadr v. Edmonton Institution, acted as lead counsel for an inter- vener, the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, to argue that in interpreting Omar Khadr's sentence for the purpose of enforcing it in Canada, Correctional Services Canada was obliged to con- sider Khadr's right to liberty and principles of fundamental justice; acted for a physician in a malpractice claim in Moore v. Getahun, a precedent-setting case about restrictions on communication between counsel and experts in preparation of expert reports. Star alumni: Nathalie Des Rosiers, dean of common law at Uni- versity of Ottawa's Faculty of Law; former Superior Court justices John Kennedy and Thomas Granger; Ontario Superior Court jus- tices Ian Leach, Margaret McSorley, Mary Anne Sanderson, and Michael Varpio; Ontario Court of Appeal Justice Bradley Miller; David Shore, television writer for House, NYPD Blue, Family Law, and Due South; Bryce Rudyk, senior legal adviser to Alliance of Small Island States in United Nations negotiations relating to climate change treaties and adjunct law professor at New York University School of Law; Amy Archer, senior adviser to the gov- ernment house leader at the Ontario government. Affiliations: n/a Firm history: Lerner & Lerner was established by the firm's found- ers, Mayer Lerner and Samuel Lerner, in 1929. Since that time, the firm has progressively grown to more than 125 lawyers and 400 support staff. Now known as Lerners LLP, the firm provides strong legal expertise in many areas of practice, with a particular strength in all areas of litigation and dispute resolution. "Lerners truly has a regional model, with offices in different locations, lawyers operating throughout Ontario, and deep exper- tise in areas of law," one survey respondent said. The firm, accord- ing to partner Graham Porter, is actively considering looking at ways to expand, including opening new offices. The firm says it prides itself in "seeing women not only remain in the practice of law, but advance to positions of authority in our firm and the legal community as a whole." Partner Maia Bent is president of the Ontario Trial Lawyers Association, a position pre- viously held by few women. AIRD & BERLIS LLP AIRDBERLIS.COM 3 LERNERS LLP LERNERS.CA 2 TOP 10 ONTARIO REGIONAL FIRMS

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