Lexpert highlights the top insolvency and financial restructuring law firms in Ontario from our comprehensive yearly peer review. The complete list of the leading restructuring and insolvency lawyers and law firms from the province can be viewed on our practice area rankings lists.
Our survey covers the practice of restructuring and insolvency litigation, which includes acting for and advising lenders and other creditors, debtors, trustees, receivers and other participants in corporate insolvencies and debt enforcement, collection and recovery. The practice also involves bankruptcy, receivership or similar court-supervised insolvency proceedings or private enforcement remedies.
Most frequently recommended insolvency & financial restructuring law firms
Goodmans LLP
Year established: 1917
Number of lawyers: 15 (Corporate restructuring)
Number of ranked lawyers: 8
Partners: Chris Armstrong, Dan Dedic, Caroline Descours, Brian Empey, Joe Latham, Brendan O’Neill, Joseph Pasquariello, Gale Rubenstein, Jason Wadden, Bradley Wiffen
Toronto-based Goodmans LLP is recognized as one of Canada’s most innovative law firms, providing expert legal service in all aspects of business law. The firm’s business-related specialties include capital markets, mergers and acquisitions, restructuring, technology, real estate investment trust, tax and litigation. Goodmans caters to a wide range of Canadian and international businesses, from startups to multinational corporations. The law firm’s corporate restructuring group is one of the largest in the country and consists of lawyers who have acted for every major type of stakeholder in every type of restructuring. They represent a diverse client base that includes domestic and international debtors, court-appointed monitors, noteholders, industry regulators, governments, private equity firms, lenders, distressed purchasers and investor committees. The firm’s clients belong to a variety of sectors, including for example, oil and gas, mining, media, technology, retail, pharmaceutical and telecoms.
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Year established: 1862
Number of lawyers: 20+ (Insolvency and restructuring)
Number of ranked lawyers: 4
Partners: Mary Abbott, Joyce M. Bernasek, Martino F. Calvaruso, Alexander Cobb, Jacqueline Code, Jeremy Dacks, David Davachi, Michael De Lellis, Kathryn Esaw, Melanie Gaston, John Greonewegen, Jason Hanson, Michael Hart, Adam Hirsch, Shawn Irving, Paul Litner, John MacDonald, Lisa Mantello, Douglas Marshall, Kevin J. Morley, Ryan Nielsen, Shelley Obal, Nancy Roberts, Tracy Sandler, Jack Silverson
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP one of Canada’s largest full-service firms with offices in Toronto, Ottawa, Montréal, Calgary, Vancouver and New York in the US. It boasts a stable of more than 400 lawyers providing expert legal services to Canadian and international clients. The firm is recognized for its extensive expertise in business law and is consistently ranked as among Canada’s top law firms. It is well-versed in a wide range of industries, including agribusiness, clean tech, energy, fintech, food products, gaming, health, hospitality and leisure, infrastructure, life sciences, mining, real estate investment trusts, REIT, retail and venture capital. The law firm’s insolvency and restructuring team represents directors, senior executives, in-house counsel, credit and investment officers and fund managers and other professional advisors, court-appointed officers and regulators. It provides advice and leadership in distress situations, including mergers and acquisitions, securitizations and derivatives, credit matters, supply chain management, financial reporting and governance in business-critical situations.
Stikeman Elliott LLP
Year established: 1952
Number of lawyers: 20+ (Restructuring and insolvency)
Number of ranked lawyers: 4
Partners: David R. Byers, Mike Devereux, Marie Garneau, Peter E. Hamilton, Maria Konyukhova, Jennifer G. Legge, Daphne J. MacKenzie, Craig Mitchell, Daniel S. Murdoch, D'Arcy Nordick, Meaghan Obee Tower, Justin Parappally, Elizabeth Pillon, Dee Rajpal, Nancy Ramalho, Simon A. Romano, Alexander D. Rose, Ashley John Taylor, Courtney Wilson
Stikeman Elliott LLP specializes in business law and has clients in Canada and across the globe. The firm provides counsel and advise through its offices in Toronto, Ottawa, Montréal, Calgary and Vancouver, and international headquarters in New York, London and Sydney. Its primary practice areas include mergers and acquisitions, securities, litigation and dispute resolution, banking and finance, competition and foreign investment, tax, restructuring, energy, real estate, project development, pensions, and labour and employment. The firm’s restructuring and insolvency group has built a reputation as a leader in the sector by guiding many of the most noteworthy commercial restructurings in Canadian history to a successful conclusion. The team boasts extensive experience in handling the most complex insolvencies and corporate restructurings and has represented clients in both public and private insolvency and restructuring matters.
Thornton Grout Finnigan LLP
Year established: 1998
Number of lawyers: 13 (Restructuring)
Number of ranked lawyers: 8
Partners: Rebecca L. Kennedy, D.J. Miller, Grant B. Moffat, Robert I. Thornton, Leanne M. Williams
Thornton Grout Finnigan LLP (TGF) is a Toronto-based boutique firm specializing in commercial litigation and insolvency and restructuring. The law firm consists of a mix of senior litigation and restructuring lawyers with a full range of experience gained by years of practice, both inside and outside major full service law firms, and talented and energetic younger lawyers who thrive in the entrepreneurial environment of a specialty firm. TGF’s clients include financial institutions, regulatory agencies, publicly traded and private companies and officers and directors. The firm’s restructuring group has been involved in almost every major insolvency proceeding within this jurisdiction over the last 25 years, covering virtually every business sector.
Consistently recommended insolvency & financial restructuring law firms
Bennett Jones LLP
Year established: 1989 (Toronto)
Number of lawyers: 10+ (Restructuring and insolvency)
Number of ranked lawyers: 3
Partners: Thomas A. Bauer, Preet K. Bell, Gavin H. Finlayson, Mark S. Laugesen, Raj S. Sahni, Marvin Yontef, Sean Zweig, Kevin J. Zych
Bennett Jones LLP is one of Canada’s leading business law firms with a manpower pool of more than 400 lawyers and business advisors in its offices in Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver. It also has international headquarters in New York and Beijing. The firm specializes in complex cross-border and international transactions and litigation. It advises foreign businesses and investors on Canadian ventures and investments, and connects Canadian businesses and investors with opportunities across the globe. The law firm’s restructuring and insolvency group covers the entire range of the practice, regularly acting for creditors, both individually and through formal and informal committees, debtors, “new money” investors acquirors and assets of insolvent entities and court officers. The team also represents foreign bondholders and banks, insurance companies and other international lenders in Canadian restructurings.
Read more about Bennett Jones LLP on IP protection in agribusiness and cannabis sectors
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Year established: 1856
Number of lawyers: 18 (Restructuring and insolvency)
Number of ranked lawyers: 5
Partners: Chris Burr, Milly Chow, Silvana M. D'Alimonte, Pamela L. J. Huff, Daniel Kofman, David C. Kruse, Alexis Levine, Auriol Marasco, Michael Matheson, Linc Rogers, Craig C. Thorburn
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP (Blakes) is one of Canada’s top business law firms, providing legal advice to leading businesses both domestically and overseas. It offers a full spectrum of capabilities in virtually all aspects of business law. Blakes handles transactions of all sizes and levels of complexity, whether an issue is local or multi-jurisdictional, or practice-area specific or interdisciplinary. The firm has offices in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa and Montréal, and international headquarters in New York, London and Beijing. The firm’s restructuring and insolvency group is recognized as one of Canada’s leading domestic and cross-border restructuring practices. The team collaborates with its colleagues in financial services, capital markets, competition, antitrust and foreign investment, employment and labour, commercial real estate, tax, environmental and intellectual property groups to provide top-quality coordinated service and effective solutions to the unique and complex challenges their clients face.
Read more about Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP on cannabis sector litigation
Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP
Year established: 1888
Number of lawyers: 18 (Restructuring and insolvency)
Number of ranked lawyers: 4
Partners: Joseph J. Bellissimo, John Birch, Jane Dietrich, Jonathan Fleisher, Lara Jackson, Ryan Jacobs, Shayne Kukulowicz, Natalie E. Levine, Alison R. Manzer, Marc Mercier, Charles Newman, Charles (Chuck) Rich, Monique Sassi, Michael Wunder
Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP is a full-service business law firm with offices in Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver. Its clients range from startups to multinational corporations and come from various industries. The firm’s restructuring and insolvency group advises on all aspects of the practice, including reorganizations and security enforcement and creditors’ remedies. The team has represented Canadian and international financial institutions and investors, commercial and financial organizations, creditors’ committees, receivers, monitors, trustees, public and private companies, debtors and purchasers in restructurings and insolvencies in domestically and around the world.
Read more about Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP on stakeholder engagement
Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP
Year established: 1961
Number of lawyers: 7
Number of ranked lawyers: 4
Partners: Michael Disney, Natasha MacParland, Natalie Renner, Robin B. Schwill
Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP (Davies) is a full-service business law firm specializing in high-stakes and complex matters. Its clients include leading businesses and financial institutions in North America and abroad. Davies has offices in Toronto, Montréal and New York. The firm advises clients in a range of practice areas, including capital markets and securities, commercial real estate, competition and foreign investment, corporate governance, dispute resolution, finance, white-collar defence, mergers and acquisitions, pensions and executive compensation, private equity and tax. Davies’ financial insolvency and restructuring group helps creditors, debtors, shareholders, investors, monitors, trustees and receivers navigate all the challenges and complexities of a restructuring or insolvency. The team has a global perspective and a multi-jurisdictional reach, working regularly with insolvency practitioners and courts internationally, particularly in the US and the UK.
Gowling WLG
Year established: 1887
Number of lawyers: 30+ (Restructuring, bankruptcy and insolvency)
Number of ranked lawyers: 5
Partners: Neil S. Abbott, Christopher N. Alam, Jonathan Behar, Kelby Carter, Harold Chataway, David F.W. Cohen, Benoit N. Duchesne, Robert Charles Dunford, Louis A. Frapporti, Jacqueline Armstrong Gates, Virginie Gauthier, Dom Glavota, Michael Herman, Amanda Jackson, Jeffrey Kukla, Lisa A. MacDonnell, Frances K. Macklin, R. Ian Mitchell, Terry T. Moffatt, Haddon Murray, Leila J. Burden Nixon, Mia Laister Pack, Clifton P. Prophet, Susan D. Rosen, Timothy N. Ross, Lorne W. Segal, James J. Shanks, E. Patrick Shea, Leigh Ann Sheather, Usman M. Sheikh, Thomas L. Subic, Lilly A. Wong
Gowling WLG is an international full-service business law firm that boasts a network of more than 1,400 legal professionals in 19 cities worldwide. The firm serves clients in key sectors, including energy, financial services, life sciences, natural resources, infrastructure, real estate and technology. It has logged more than 9,400 pro bono hours and has been repeatedly recognized as a top employer committed to diversity, inclusion and innovation. Gowling’s Canada-based restructuring, bankruptcy and insolvency group specializes in complex, high-profile and confidential restructurings and advisory work. The team represents creditors, debtors, receivers, trustees, monitors, acquirers, suppliers, customers and other restructuring professionals and stakeholders. Its experience spans a broad range of industries, including aquaculture, agriculture, automotive, aviation, banking and finance, biotech, cannabis, construction and development, energy, infrastructure, food and beverage, franchising, health care, hospitality, housing, income trust, life sciences, manufacturing, media, mining and natural resources, publishing, recreational products, retail, real estate, technology, telecom, and transportation and logistics.
Read more about Gowling WLG on cannabis sector regulation
McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Year established: 1855
Number of lawyers: 8 (Bankruptcy and restructuring)
Number of ranked lawyers: 4
Partners: Barbara J. Boake, Marc J. MacMullin, James D. Gage, Geoff R. Hall, Heather L. Meredith
McCarthy Tétrault LLP is one of Canada’s leading full-service law firms, offering expert legal services to clients in Canada and around the world. The firm delivers integrated business, litigation, tax, real property, and labour and employment offerings through its offices in Canada’s major commercial centres, New York in the US and in London, UK. The firm boasts one of the largest bankruptcy and restructuring groups in the country, with extensive experience in all areas of the practice. The team represents debtors, major financial institutions and other capital providers, large corporate creditors and court-appointed monitors, receivers and trustees. It has served as counsel to leading corporations and institutions on matters involving diverse industries, including agricultural, automotive, health law, hospitality, manufacturing, professional services, retail, service, sports and recreation. The group also provides advice on structured finance and securitizations and helps executives acting as directors manage their personal risk, both statutory liability and risk of claims against them.
Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP
Year established: 2012 (Canada)
Number of lawyers: 10+ (Bankruptcy, financial restructuring and insolvency)
Number of ranked lawyers: 4
Partners: Evan Cobb, Robert Frank, Karen Galpern, Alan B. Merskey, Orestes Pasparakis, C. Nicole Sigouin, Jennifer Stam, Ruth I. Wahl
Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP is an international full-service business law firm with more than 3,700 lawyers and legal staff based in North and Latin America, Europe, Asia, Australia, Middle East and Africa. It has offices in more than 50 cities worldwide, including Toronto, London, Houston, New York, Mexico City, Hong Kong, Sydney and Johannesburg. The firm serves the world’s largest corporations and financial institutions. It boasts extensive experience in key industries, including finance, energy, infrastructure, and mining, transportation, technology, life sciences and healthcare. The firm’s bankruptcy, financial restructuring and insolvency practice lies in our multidisciplinary experience and international reach boasts multidisciplinary experience and international reach. Its bankruptcy lawyers handle some of the most complex and sensitive domestic and cross-border assignments across the globe. They have an impressive record of achieving successful outcomes in bankruptcy proceedings throughout the world and are active in all areas of financial restructurings and insolvencies in matters ranging from the largest multi-national mega-cases to significant regional businesses.
Torys LLP
Year established: 1941
Number of lawyers: 10+ (Corporate restructuring and advisory)
Number of ranked lawyers: 4
Partners: Amanda C. Balasubramanian, David Bish, Sheila R. Block, Scott A. Bomhof, David A. Dell, Tony DeMarinis, Andrew Gray, Patricia D.S. Jackson, Jeremy Opolsky, Sylvie Rodrigue, Adam Slavens
Torys LLP is an international business law firm with offices in Toronto, Montréal, Halifax, Calgary and New York. It advises clients on a wide range of transactions, including banking and debt finance, board advisory and governance, capital markets, competition and foreign investment, consumer protection, corporate restructuring, intellectual property, litigation and dispute resolution, mergers and acquisitions, private equity and tax. The firm’s corporate restructuring and advisory group guides senior management, boards of directors or special board committees through strategic and legal alternatives for resolving or pre-empting financial challenges. The team also provides context-specific counsel on individual and corporate duties, responsibilities and potential liabilities. It is also experienced in representing noteholders and lenders at all levels of the debt structure.