final bench judges
KEYNOTE SPEAKER & JUDGE
The Honourable Thomas Cromwell was appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada on December 22, 2008. He had previously been appointed to the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal on August 27, 1997.
Justice Cromwell went to school in Kingston. He then attended Queen’s University, where he obtained a B. Mus. in 1973 and an LL.B. in 1976. He also obtained an A.R.C.T. diploma from the Royal Conservatory of Music in 1974 and attended Oxford University, where he earned a B.C.L. in 1977. He married Dr. Della M. M. Stanley of Sackville, New Brunswick on June 7, 1980. They have one child, Thomas.
Justice Cromwell practised law in Toronto and taught in the Faculty of Law of Dalhousie University. He worked as Executive Legal Officer to Chief Justice Antonio Lamer for three years, 1992-95. He has also held many other offices: Secretary, Board of Governors, National Judicial Institute, 1992-95; Vice-chair, Nova Scotia Labour Relations Board and Construction Industry Panel, 1991-92; labour arbitrator and adjudicator, 1984-97; President, Continuing Legal Education Society of Nova Scotia; President, Canadian Association of Law Teachers, 1988-89; President, Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice, 1999-2001; Chair of the Board, Canadian Forum on Civil Justice, 2007-8; Research Director, C.B.A. Court Reform Task Force, 1989-91; Chair, C.B.A. Interim Organizational Committee for the National Organization on Civil Justice Reform, 1996-97; and Commissioner, Law Reform Commission of Nova Scotia, 2002-7.
Justice Cromwell was an active member of the Canadian Judicial Council’s working committee that prepared the publication entitled Ethical Principles for Judges as well as the Council’s working committee on Jury Charges and Education Committee. He was also a faculty member of the programs for new federally and provincially appointed judges, the National Judicial Institute’s Intensive Evidence Program, and many other national and provincial continuing education programs, including the Effective Written Advocacy Program of the Advocates’ Society. He has authored or contributed to six books and numerous articles and served on the editorial boards for CRIMJI and the Canadian Journal of Administrative Law and Practice.
Justice Cromwell has received many awards: the C.B.A.’s Louis J. St. Laurent Award of Excellence, 1992; Her Majesty's Jubilee Medal, 2002; the Dalhousie Law Students Society and Dalhousie Law Alumni Association Award of Teaching Excellence, 1992; and the Dalhousie Law Students' Society Class of 1986 Class Ring. In 2009, he was elected an Honorary Fellow of Exeter College Oxford.
Photo of Justice Cromwell Copyright © SCC
Photo Credit: Philippe Landreville, photographer, Supreme Court of Canada Collection
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The Honourable Mr. Justice Michael J. Moldaver is a graduate of the University of Toronto, 1971, Gold Medallist. Called to the Bar of Ontario in 1973. Appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1985. Appointed to the Supreme Court of Ontario in April 1990 and then to the Ontario Court of Appeal December 1995. Lectured at the University of Toronto Law School from 1978 to 1995. Former co-chair of the Canadian Bar Association – Ontario Advocacy Symposium Committee; Director Advocates’ Society; Member of the Board of Governors – Advocate Society Institute; Council Member – University of Toronto Alumni Association; Co-chair, University of Toronto Academic Tribunal – Discipline Subsection.
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Toby Vigod has over 30 years experience in the field of environmental law and policy. She received her LL.B. from Queen’s University in 1977. She was called to the Ontario Bar in 1980 and joined the Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA) as Counsel. In 1986, she became Executive Director at CELA. From 1991 to 1993, Ms. Vigod served as a Commissioner with the Commission on Planning and Development Reform in Ontario.
From 1994 to 1996, she served as Assistant Deputy Minister, Policy, Planning and Legislation, British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks. From November 1996 until July 2000, Ms. Vigod was the Chair of the British Columbia Forest Appeals Commission and the Environmental Appeal Board.
From 2000 to 2004, Ms. Vigod was on an Executive Interchange with the Climate Change Secretariat, Government of Canada, Ottawa. From December 2004 until her retirement in June 2010, Ms. Vigod served as a Vice-Chair, Executive Vice-Chair, and Chair of the Ontario Environmental Review Tribunal.
Ms. Vigod has taught environmental law at the Faculties of Law, Queen’s University and University of Toronto; Osgoode Hall Law School; and the School of Public Administration, Queen’s University. She has written extensively in the areas of environmental, planning and natural resources law and policy.
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Madam Justice van Rensburg is a graduate of the University of Toronto (B.A.), Queen’s University (LL.B.) and Cambridge University (LL.M.). After clerking for the Honourable Justice McIntyre at the Supreme Court of Canada, she joined Smith Lyons as a litigation associate, eventually becoming a partner in that firm. She became a partner in Gowlings with the merger of the two firms in 2001. In November 2006, she was appointed a judge of the Ontario Superior Court, Central West Region, with chambers in Brampton. As a lawyer, Justice van Rensburg practised in the areas of civil litigation and environmental law, having been certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada as a specialist in each.
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Justice Armstrong has a B.A. degree from Carleton University and an M.A. degree from the University of Toronto. Justice Armstrong received his LL.B. degree from the University of Toronto in 1965. He was called to the Bar in 1967. He was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1978. He received an Honorary LL.D. degree from the Law Society of Upper Canada in 2002.
Justice Armstrong practised general litigation with Kimber, Dubin for five years and then with Torys for 30 years. He was a partner of both firms. He was appointed to the Court of Appeal for Ontario in January 2002.
Justice Armstrong is an active member of a number of legal organizations. He is a former Director of the Advocates’ Society and a former Regent of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He was a Bencher of the Law Society of Upper Canada. He was Chair of the Ontario Legal Aid Plan from 1997 to 1999. He was Treasurer of the Law Society of Upper Canada from 1999 to 2001. He is the Chair and President of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Legal Studies which sponsors the Cambridge Lectures and the Strasbourg Lectures. Justice Armstrong has been a regular participant in a number of CLE programmes on behalf of the Law Society and other organizations including the Advocates’ Society, the Canadian Bar Association, the American Bar Association and the Australian Bar Association.
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preliminary and semi-final bench judges
Ian A. Blue, Q.C. is a senior counsel and advisor who handles complex businesslaw, administrative-law, energy and environmental-law, and constitutional-law matters for private sector, governmental and MUSH (municipal, university, school and hospital) clients. He appears before all levels of courts in Ontario, Alberta and Nova Scotia and before both levels of the Federal Court. He also has appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada. In addition, he appears before the National Energy Board, the Ontario Energy Board, the New Brunswick Energy and Utilities Board and before numerous arbitration panels and other regulatory bodies.
Mr. Blue has been credited with having made a significant contribution to the legal profession as a Bar Admission Course Instructor, a convenor of numerous Continuing Legal Education Programs on Administrative Law and Practice, Head of the Practice Skills Program of the Bar Admission Course, a Bencher of the Law Society of Upper Canada and as a past Chair of the Administrative Law and Environmental Law Sub-Section of the Ontario Bar Association.
Mr. Blue is also a prolific legal writer and speaker on practice and legal topics and is a contributor to various lawyers’ publications.
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Photo and Bio coming soon...
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Mr. Coop is a partner with the Environmental Law Group at Osler Hoskin & Harcourt LLP. His practice focuses upon environmental and regulatory litigation, including civil litigation, administrative hearings, judicial review applications and the defence of prosecutions. Within those areas, he specializes in regulatory and government relations, and strategies to avoid litigation. His clients currently include a wide variety of privately and publicly held corporations (petrochemical, agricultural, manufacturing, energy-producing, retail), public utilities, and industrial associations.
Before returning to private practice in 2008, Mr. Coop enjoyed a 20 year career with the Ontario government representing various ministries of the Crown in environmentally related litigation, both on the civil and quasi-criminal side. His clients included the Ontario ministries of Environment, Energy, Natural Resources, Health and Long-Term Care, and Municipal Affairs and Housing, Finance and the Attorney General.
Mr. Coop is a contributing author to "Government Liability, Law and Practice" (Canada Law Book).
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Rosalind is a partner with Fasken Martineau and has been named in Lexpert's The 2011 Guide to the 500 Leading Lawyers in Canada. Rosalind is also listed in the 2011 Best Lawyers in Canada publication for environmental law, in Lexpert as most frequently recommended in the area of environmental law, in Who's Who Legal in environmental law and in the PLC Cross-border Environment Handbook. Rosalind is also on the roster of mediators/arbitrators of the Canadian Centre for Environmental Arbitration and Mediation and is certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada as a specialist in environmental law.
Rosalind has extensive experience advising on all environmental regulatory issues including exposure to environmental liability, brownfields redevelopment, decommissioning and remediation of contaminated lands, certificates of approval, reporting requirements, various aspects of due diligence, and director and officer liability. Rosalind defends environmental charges, litigates contaminated land disputes and other environmental matters, and is involved in appeals and environmental assessment proceedings before the Environmental Review Tribunal. She has also lectured at Canadian universities, including the University of Toronto, Osgoode Hall Law School and the University of Western Ontario.
Rosalind has written numerous articles on a wide range of environmental and health and safety issues. She is a regular contributor to Solid Waste Magazine and has spoken on various environmental and health and safety issues at numerous conferences.
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David Estrin is recognized as Canada’s senior environmental law practitioner and one of Canada’s most experienced environmental law specialists.
His environmental law career has uniquely combined litigation, policy and strategic advice, teaching and writing. A Gowlings senior partner, for over 30 years Mr. Estrin has advised corporations, government agencies, financial institutions, Aboriginal communities and law firms in Canada and the United States in all facets of environmental matters. His current practice is intensively focussed on environmental assessment approval issues for major infrastructure projects, including international bridges, pipelines, major electrical generation and transmission facilities and freeways.
Mr. Estrin has been counsel in most of the major hearings under Ontario’s Environmental Assessment Act and in all levels of court in Ontario, Alberta and at the federal level. Many of his cases established important precedents, in matters ranging from proper application of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act to administrative, constitutional and Aboriginal law issues.
David is the founding editor of the Canadian Environmental Law Reports and author of several authoritative texts on Canadian environmental law, including Business Guide to Environmental Law (Carswell), which provides unique and continuously updated insights into Canadian (and comparative U.S.) environmental law developments affecting the business community. His other books include: Handle with Caution: Liability in the Production and Disposal of Dangerous Substances (Carswell), and Environment on Trial – A Handbook of Ontario Environmental Law.
Mr. Estrin is a founding director and was first general counsel for the Canadian Environmental Law Association. He has established courses and extensively lectured at law, environmental studies and engineering faculties as well as for business.
In 2006 the Canadian Bar Association honoured his achievements in the development of Canadian environmental law practice by establishing the David Estrin Prize for the best scholarly essay in environmental, energy or resources law by a Canadian law student.
For 2011-12 he is Senior Vice-Chair of the International Bar Association Environment, Health and Safety Committee.
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Jamie Flagal is counsel with Legal Services Branch, Ministry of Environment. He graduated from the joint Masters Environmental Studies/Bachelors of Law program at Osgoode Hall Law School/York University and was called to the Bar in 1994. During his articles, he clerked with the Court of Appeal for Ontario. He joined MOE’s Legal Services Branch in 1994 and in 2000 worked with the Office of Legislative Counsel. Between 1997 and 1999, Jamie earned a Masters in Law in Alternative Dispute Resolution from Osgoode Hall Law School. He has taught courses at various post secondary schools and has also served as an instructor in public law at the Bar Admission Course.
When Jamie first joined MOE’s Legal Services Branch, he practiced litigation, representing the Ministry of Environment before various tribunals including the Ontario Municipal Board, the Environmental Appeal and Assessment Boards, Divisional Court and the Court of Appeal. Between 1998 and 2000 Jamie’ practice shifted to legislative development and since then he has worked on a number of legislative initiatives including, the Environmental Enforcement Statute Law Amendment Act, 1998, the Brownfields Statute Law Amendment Act, 2001 and its regulations, the Safe Drinking Water Act, 2002 and its regulations, the Sustainable Water and Sewage Systems Act, 2002, the Environmental Enforcement Statute Law Amendment Act, 2005 (commonly referred to as Bill 133) and the Clean Water Act, 2006, the Safeguarding and Sustaining Ontario’s Water Act, 2007, the Lake Simcoe Protection Act, 2008, and most recently, the Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act, 2010.
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Mr. Lax was born in Quebec City, Quebec in 1944, graduated from McGill University (B.A.) 1965 and from University of Toronto (LLB) 1968. He was appointed a Queen’s Counsel in 1981 and received the Law Society Medal, 2008. A founding partner of Lax O’Sullivan Scott Lisus, Mr. Lax is a past President of the Advocates’ Society, former chairman of the Environmental Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association and is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers. Mr. Lax is an arbitrator on the Commercial Panel of Arbitrators and Mediators of the International Centre for Dispute Resolution and an arbitrator/mediator of the American Dispute Resolution Centre and of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.
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Paul is principal at Manning Environmental Law. He has practiced environmental law form more than twenty years in the UK and in Canada. During that time he has dealt with most areas of environmental law for a diverse range of clients.
Paul is an Environmental Law Specialist, Certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada. He holds a Masters degree in Environmental Law and obtained a U.K. accreditation as an expert in Planning Law.
Paul’s practice focuses on environmental, aboriginal, energy and planning law. He appears regularly as counsel in Tribunals and the Courts. He has a special interest in renewable energy and climate change regulation and holds a Certificate in Carbon Finance from the University of Toronto
Paul is on the Executive Committee of the National Environmental, Energy and Resources Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association.
He speaks and writes regularly on environmental issues.
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Photo and Bio coming soon...
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Ramani Nadarajah is counsel with the Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA). She holds an LL.B. (1987) and an LL.M. (2007) from Osgoode Hall Law School. Prior to joining CELA in 1994, Ramani was a prosecutor with the Ontario Ministry of Environment. She has appeared before the courts and administrative tribunals on cases involving contaminated sites, waste, air pollution, pesticides, water-takings and environmental land use planning. She was co-counsel for five hundred residents at both phases of the Walkerton Inquiry.
Ramani has served on federal and provincial government advisory bodies on a range of issues including environmental penalties, brownfields and modernizing environmental approvals. Ramani is a co-editor of Carswell’s Canadian Environmental Law Reports and has published articles in law journals on environmental law and policy issues, with a focus on regulatory compliance and enforcement.
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Isabelle O’Connor is counsel with the Legal Services Branch of the Ministry of the Environment. She was called to the Bar in 1991 and has practised exclusively in the area of environmental law since 1993. She has appeared before numerous tribunals and levels of Court, including the Court of Appeal for Ontario. In addition to her work as a litigator Isabelle has been involved in the drafting of environmental legislation. Some of the initiatives she has worked on include the Greenbelt Act, 2005, the Modernization of Approvals (Bill 68) and regulations under the Environmental Protection Act.
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Harry Poch has been an environmental lawyer since 1979. Many of his cases involve brownfields, land-use, governmental and natural resources restrictions, in the context of toxic tort litigation, prosecutions, orders, and environmental assessment and appeal hearings. He has appeared or made submissions to all levels of Court, and before federal, provincial and municipal environmental tribunals.
Prior to becoming a lawyer he was employed by Ontario's Ministry of the Environment as a scientist on the international Great Lakes clean-up team.
He is a past Chair of the Canadian Bar Association’s National and Ontario Environmental Law Sections, a former Editor of the Canadian Environmental Law Reports, and authored the textbook "Corporate and Municipal Environmental Law".
Mr. Poch is a past Chair of The Law Society of Upper Canada’s Environmental Lawyer Certification Committee, and is one of the approximately thirty lawyers in Ontario who are now certified as Specialists in Environmental Law.
His clientele includes multinational corporations, lenders, insurers, land owners, developers, landlords, property managers, municipalities, governmental agencies, other lawyers, and environmental consultants.
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Graham Rempe, a solicitor with the Legal Services Division of the City of Toronto, graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School in 1984, and was admitted to the Ontario Bar in 1986. He was certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada as a specialist in environmental law in 1997. Graham practices exclusively in the areas of environmental and municipal law. He was formerly in house counsel to Ontario’s Environmental Compensation Corporation and has been with Metro, then the amalgamated City, since 1989. He has appeared as counsel before various courts and administrative tribunals on a broad range of issues such as the certification of environmental class actions, and the jurisdiction for municipal pesticide by-laws. Graham is a former President, former Chair, and is a current Director of the Canadian Environmental Law Association. He has made presentations and addresses at various conferences on environmental and municipal law and has written numerous articles related to municipal environmental law.
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Dianne is one of the world’s top 25 environmental lawyers, according to Best of the Best, 2008. She is listed as one of Canada’s best environmental lawyers in Best Lawyers in Canada and consistently in Lexpert’s Guide to the 500 Leading Lawyers in Canada.
Dianne is the only practitioner with a Ph.D. in environmental law, and is Canada’s leading author on environmental law. She is a proud recipient of the Ontario Bar Association Distinguished Service Award, as well as a highly acclaimed public speaker.
As one of Canada’s first Certified Specialists in Environmental Law, coupled with her 34 years of practical experience, Dianne is the managing partner of Saxe Law Office - a boutique environmental law firm in Toronto with a focus on brownfields, due diligence, compliance, enforcement, renewable energy approvals, source protection, environmental assessment, ISO 14000, approvals and climate change.
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Jacquelyn is an associate with Willms & Shier Environmental Lawyers LLP. Her practice is focused on civil and regulatory litigation and aboriginal law dealing with environmental issues.
Jacquelyn’s civil litigation experience includes representing clients in environmental, corporate/commercial and administrative law cases. Jacquelyn advises clients on contaminated land remediation during civil litigation and real estate matters. She also advises both private sector and First Nations clients on aboriginal issues. Jacquelyn has appeared before administrative tribunals, the Ontario Provincial Court, Ontario Superior Court of Justice and the Ontario Court of Appeal.
Jacquelyn has completed two Masters Degrees: a Master of Studies in Environmental Law from Vermont Law School, with a focus on International Environmental Law and Sustainable Development; and a Master of Science degree in Geology from St. Francis Xavier University. With her background in Earth Sciences, Jacquelyn works effectively with technical consultants.
Prior to becoming a lawyer, Jacquelyn worked as an exploration field geologist for a resource exploration company, a remedial action plan technician for the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, an environmental consulting technician for an environmental consulting firm, and a field and research geologist for the Geological Survey of Canada.
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Barry Weintraub is a partner in the Toronto litigation firm Rueter Scargall Bennett LLP, where he practises environmental and commercial litigation. He has more than 20 years experience litigating various aspects of environmental law, including civil litigation of liability for cleanups of historical contamination, the defence of environmental prosecutions, investigations, administrative tribunal proceedings and solicitor’s negligence actions involving environmental matters.
Barry was called to the Ontario Bar in 1989, and previously practiced with Stikeman Elliott, Genest Murray and Heenan Blaikie. He is currently the Past Chair of the Environmental Law Section of the Ontario Bar Association. He has been an adjunct professor at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law and has written and spoken on a broad range of environmental and litigation issues.
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John Willms is the senior partner of Willms & Shier Environmental Lawyers LLP and an Environmental Law Specialist, Certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada. He has practised environmental law, land use planning law and municipal law since his call in 1974. John has also done extensive institutional strengthening work in developing nations, drafting new environmental, resource and planning legislation and helping to develop appropriate administrative structures.
As environmental counsel to multi-facility industrial clients, John gives advice and negotiates with regulators on a wide range of approval, compliance and due diligence matters. He is an expert in legal aspects of Brownfields development and contaminated sites, industrial processes, chemicals storage and handling, waste management and air emissions. He is especially skilled at reviewing technical reports and in working with working with the consultants who write them.
John is an experienced counsel before environmental tribunals. He has acted on environmental assessment matters for a range of proponents and intervenors. John also has extensive institutional strengthening experience helping to develop environmental and natural resource law and administrative frameworks in a number of developing countries.
John has also been counsel on several judicial review applications challenging government decisions. His practice involves frequent opinion-writing for both public and private-sector clients. Much of his work involves advising or challenging government officials on administrative decisions, whether regarding approvals or orders.
John has lectured at universities, and was a part-time faculty member of the University of Guelph for more than ten years. He speaks regularly at professional conferences.
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