22 Adelaide St W, Suite 3400, Bay Adelaide Centre, East Tower, Toronto, ON
Year called to bar: 1966 (ON)
Senior counsel in the Toronto office of BLG. Member of Arbitration Place, Toronto. Sat on the Court of Appeal for Ontario from 1998 to 2012. Served as the Associate Chief Justice of Ontario from 2001 until he retired at the end of 2012. While on the bench, Mr. O’Connor wrote numerous judgments dealing with a wide variety of issues including public, criminal, commercial, securities, and insurance law. Also conducted two successful public inquiries: the Walkerton Inquiry (2000–2002) and the Maher Arar Inquiry (2004–2006). Prior to his appointment at the Court of Appeal, Mr. O’Connor was senior counsel at Borden & Elliot (a predecessor firm of BLG) for 18 years. His practice focused on commercial and public law litigation. He is an Officer of the Order of Canada and is appointed to the Order of Ontario. Chair of Pro Bono Canada. Member of the Board of Directors of the Innocence Canada Foundation. Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. Obtained LLB from Osgoode Hall Law School in 1964 and called to the Ontario Bar in 1966. Appointed King’s Counsel in 1980. He is the recipient of several honorary doctorates and awards.
