These were the top intellectual property lawyers in Ontario based on the results of our comprehensive 2020 peer survey. Click the link for the current complete list of Ontario’s best intellectual property (IP) lawyers.
The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) defines intellectual property as one’s legal rights resulting from intellectual activity in the industrial, scientific, literary and artistic fields. Intellectual property law deals with the rules for securing and enforcing these legal rights.
In our survey, intellectual property law involves the provision of advice and representation in all matters relating to origination, exploitation and protection of inventions, patents, trademarks, copyright, moral rights, industrial designs, brand names, trade secrets and data.
Andrew E. Bernstein
Law firm: Torys LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1999
City: Toronto
Andrew E. Bernstein is a partner at full-service business law firm Torys LLP. He specializes in business law disputes, which includes intellectual property, commercial and public law matters. A significant portion of his practice involves patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets. Bernstein boasts extensive experience in class actions, licensing, contracts and tort actions. He has acted for both public and private sector clients in administrative hearings, judicial reviews and charter matters. Bernstein frequently advises and defends traditional and new media clients on defamation and free expression issues. He is also an experienced appellate lawyer, and has appeared in Divisional Court, the Ontario and Federal Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada. Bernstein writes and speaks regularly on topics related to his practice.
Read more about Torys LLP on cannabis sector regulation
Andrew Brodkin
Law firm: Goodmans LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1995
City: Toronto
Andrew Brodkin is a partner and a member of the executive committee at Goodmans LLP, a full-service firm specializing in business law. He also heads the firm’s litigation group. Brodkin devotes his practice to intellectual property litigation, which includes patent, trademark and copyright disputes, and the complex assessments of damages flowing from the infringement of such rights. He advises clients regarding the development, acquisition, sale and protection of IP and technology assets, including patents, trademarks, trade dress, copyright, industrial designs, rights of personality, confidential information and trade secrets. Brodkin appears regularly before the Federal Court of Canada, Federal Court of Appeal, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, and the Ontario Court of Appeal. He has also appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada.
May M. Cheng
Law firm: Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1993 (ON); 1997 (BC)
City: Toronto
May M. Cheng is a certified specialist in intellectual property law (trademark and copyright) and a partner at Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, a full-service business law firm with offices across Canada and in the US. She boasts 25 years of experience in advising clients on all aspects of IP protection and enforcement, including branding strategy, acquisition, licensing and anti-counterfeiting. She is also regularly involved in a wide variety of IP infringement cases and complex licensing deals.
Dino P. Clarizio
Law firm: Goodmans LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1991
City: Toronto
Dino P. Clarizio is a registered patent agent in both Canada and the US, and a registered trademark agent in Canada. He also serves as a partner at Goodmans LLP. His practice focuses on all types of intellectual property litigation, particularly patent litigation and patent prosecution. The latter practice is focused on patenting in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. Clarizio has appeared in the trial and appellate levels of the Federal Court and Supreme Court of Canada in cases involving pharmaceutical products, construction toys and washing machine agitators. He advises clients on pre-litigation issues such as providing freedom-to-operate, infringement and validity opinions. His cases involved issues that include anticipation, obviousness, utility, infringement, the doctrine of functionality in trademark law, survey evidence and copyright infringement.
Anthony (Tony) Creber
Law firm: Gowling WLG
Year called to the Bar: 1981
City: Ottawa
Anthony Creber is a senior partner at Gowling WLG, where is also past head of its IP litigation practice group. He specializes in chemical, biotech and pharmaceutical patent litigation. Creber also devotes his practice to trademark litigation, regulatory issues and advising on intellectual property life cycle matters. He regularly appears in both the trial and appellate levels of the Federal Court. Creber has also represented clients in the Supreme Court of Canada on patent matters, including questions of patentability of life forms, patent licensing and the infringement of biotech patents. His firm operates internationally and boasts a roster of more than 1,400 lawyers and legal professionals.
Douglas N. Deeth
Law firm: Deeth Williams Wall LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1976
City: Toronto
Douglas N. Deeth is a partner at Deeth Williams Wall LLP a Toronto-based firm specializing in intellectual property and technology law. His practice combines extensive litigation experience with expertise in business development areas, including product acquisition and licensing, particularly in the pharmaceutical area. He also boasts extensive experience in many litigation-related areas, including misappropriation of know-how and trade secrets and IP license audits. Deeth advises clients on clearance, protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights, and appears before the Federal Court and Ontario courts. Deeth is a registered patent and trademark agent and has served as a director for several start-up pharma companies. He has lectured on IP issues at several universities and spoken at national and international meetings on current IP issues.
Ronald E. Dimock
Law firm: Gowling WLG
Year called to the Bar: 1976
City: Toronto
Ronald E. Dimock is a partner at Gowling WLG’s Toronto office and is recognized as a leading intellectual property litigator, mediator and arbitrator. He has appeared as counsel in many of Canada's landmark patent, trademark and copyright cases over the course of his 40-year career. Dimock is a certified by the Law Society of Ontario as a specialist in civil litigation and intellectual property (patent, trademark and copyright) law. He is also a sought-after speaker and has written on a range of topics on intellectual property. For more than 20 years, Dimock taught a master's-level IP course at York University’s Osgoode Hall Law School. He also previously taught courses at Queen’s University and McGill University. Dimock is a professional engineer.
Read more about Gowling WLG on stakeholder engagement
Mark Evans
Law firm: Smart & Biggar
Year called to the Bar: 1986
City: Toronto
Mark Evans is a managing partner at Smart & Biggar’s Toronto office, and is recognized as a leading trademark lawyer and litigator. He has significant experience in all aspects of trademark law, including trademark and trade-dress litigation, brand selection and clearance, trademark prosecution, oppositions and cancellations, and licensing and merchandising. Evans has been successful in numerous high-profile and precedent-setting cases. He is a registered patent and trademark agent and has written extensively on IP law. Evans is also a frequent speaker and has taught trademark law at Osgoode Hall Law School. His firm specializes in intellectual property and boasts more than 100 lawyers and legal professionals in five offices across Canada.
Read more about Smart & Biggar on IP protection in the agribusiness and cannabis sectors
Gunars A. Gaikis
Law firm: Smart & Biggar
Year called to the Bar: 1983
City: Toronto
Gunars A. Gaikis serves an of counsel at Smart & Biggar. He has over 30 years of experience in intellectual property law. Gaikis boasts extensive experience in the procurement, litigation and enforcement of pharmaceutical and biotechnology patent rights and strategic advising. He has appeared as lead counsel in many precedent-setting IP cases before the Ontario, Federal and Supreme Courts. Gaikis is a licensed pharmacist and a registered patent and trademark agent.
Steven Garland
Law firm: Smart & Biggar
Year called to the Bar: 1992
City: Ottawa
Steven Garland is a managing partner at Smart & Biggar’s Ottawa office. He boasts over 25 years of trial and appellate experience in intellectual property litigation. Garland has appeared as counsel before the Supreme Court of Canada, the Federal Court and the Federal Court of Appeal. He has also appeared before the appellate and trial courts in the provinces of Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta and Nova Scotia, and the Patent Appeal Board and the Trademarks Opposition Board. Garland acts on behalf of innovator pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies in respect of patent-related matters, including patent infringement actions and proceedings under the Patented Medicines (Notice of Compliance) Regulations. He is an adjunct professor at University of Ottawa Law School, where he teaches patent law. Garland is also a registered patent and trademark agent.
L.A. Kelly Gill
Law firm: Gowling WLG
Year called to the Bar: 1993
City: Toronto
L.A. Kelly Gill is a partner at Gowling WLG. He devotes his practice to intellectual property litigation, particularly in the areas of trademarks and unfair competition. Gill is the former leader of the firm’s trademarks and intellectual property litigation groups. He has appeared before all levels of court in Canada and served as counsel on two of the Supreme Court of Canada’s most important trademark and copyright decisions. Gill is an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall Law School and has also authored numerous publications.
Sana Halwani
Law firm: Lenczner Slaght Royce Smith Griffin LLP
Year called to the Bar: 2005
City: Toronto
Sana Halwani is a partner at Lenczner Slaght Royce Smith Griffin LLP, a Toronto-based litigation specialist. She devotes her practice to intellectual property litigation. Halwani is registered in both the US and Canada as a patent agent and is a Canadian trademark agent. In patent matters, she has extensive experience in the life sciences, technology, energy and gaming industries. In copyright, trademark and trade secret matters, Halwani has represented diverse clients, including software companies, art galleries, fashion designers and media companies. She regularly provides strategic patent and regulatory advice. She is also well-versed in large cross-border disputes. Halwani has represented clients at all levels of the Ontario and Federal courts, including the Supreme Court of Canada.
Dominique T. Hussey
Law firm: Bennett Jones LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1999 (ON); 2003 (New York)
City: Toronto
Dominique T. Hussey co-leads the innovation, technology and branding practice, heads the intellectual property litigation group and serves as lead director of the partnership board at Bennett Jones LLP. She is also the firm’s vice-chair and managing partner at the Toronto office. Her practice involves all aspects of IP litigation and dispute resolution, including patent, trademark, copyright, contracts and trade secrets, with an emphasis on regulated products and life sciences. She also has extensive experience litigating under the Patented Medicines (Notice of Compliance) Regulations. In addition to counseling and managing significant trademark portfolios, Hussey advises clients on advertising, marketing, packaging, labelling and regulatory matters, most often pertaining to food, drugs, legal cannabis, cosmetics and medical devices. She also offers her expertise to assist clients in navigating IP aspects of mergers and acquisitions and reorganization in a variety of regulated and retail industries. Hussey regularly writes, speaks and teaches on written and oral advocacy, litigation and intellectual property topics.
R. Scott Jolliffe
Law firm: Gowling WLG
Year called to the Bar: 1978
City: Toronto
R. Scott Jolliffe is a litigator and considered as a leading trial and appellate lawyer in the intellectual property field. He is a partner at Gowling WLG. His areas of specialization include patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret litigation. Jolliffe also practises in the area of licensing and commercial management of intellectual property, technology transfer and food and drug regulation. He boasts extensive experience working with international businesses operating in Canada and Canadian companies in their operations abroad, particularly in the aerospace, transportation, resource, manufacturing and life sciences sectors. Jolliffe serves as a mediator in intellectual property and technology-related disputes and is accredited in this field by several Canadian and international organizations.
Philip Lapin
Law firm: Smart & Biggar
Year called to the Bar: 1995
City: Ottawa
Philip Lapin is considered as a leading trademark lawyer. He is a partner in Smart & Biggar's Ottawa office and chair of the firm’s trademark operations group. With more than 20 years of experience, Lapin manages trademark portfolios and provides strategic advice for many Canadian and multinational corporations. He has handled the clearance, prosecution and registration of thousands of trademarks. Lapin boasts expertise in trademark opposition and cancellation proceedings before the Trademarks Office. He is also a frequent speaker and author on a wide variety of trademark-related topics. Lapin is a registered patent and trademark agent.
Nathaniel Lipkus
Law firm: Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Year called to the Bar: 2007 (ON); 2008 (New York)
City: Toronto
Nathaniel Lipkus is an intellectual property litigator and a partner at Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP. His practice focuses on contentious legal issues confronting innovation-intensive industries, with an emphasis on patent and regulatory issues facing pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Lipkus is a registered patent and trademark agent. He has represented numerous companies in the life sciences, technology, energy and gaming industries in patent proceedings across Canada and pro hac vice in the US. Lipkus has also litigated trademark, copyright, trade secret and other commercial matters. He has also advocated on behalf of life sciences clients before numerous regulatory agencies in Canada, and on intellectual property, regulatory approval, pricing and reimbursement and antitrust matters in the US.
Robert A. MacDonald
Law firm: Gowling WLG
Year called to the Bar: 1983
City: Ottawa
Robert A. MacDonald is a partner and trademark agent at Gowling WLG’s Ottawa office, where he also serves as co-leader its intellectual property group. He is certified by the Law Society of Ontario as a specialist in intellectual property law (trademarks). MacDonald boasts over 35 years of experience in all areas of trademark practice, including prosecution, licensing, oppositions and litigation in the Federal Court of Canada. He specializes in assisting clients with clearing, protecting and enforcing their brands in the Canadian market. MacDonald is also active in various legal organizations and is frequently called upon to speak on trademark law.
Harry B. Radomski
Law firm: Goodmans LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1978
City: Toronto
Harry B. Radomski is a counsel, executive committee member and intellectual property litigation group head at Goodmans LLP. He devotes his practice to IP litigation, including patent, trademark and copyright disputes, and the complex assessments of damages flowing from the infringement of such rights. Radomski regularly appears before all levels of courts and has appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada on leading patent, trademark and damages issues. He also teaches the LLM Health Law IP course at Osgoode Hall Law School.
Andrew M. Shaughnessy
Law firm: Torys LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1993
City: Toronto
Andrew M. Shaughnessy is a partner at Torys LLP. He specializes in intellectual property litigation and dispute resolution and Federal Court practice. Shaughnessy has represented a wide variety of clients in complex patent and trademark infringement and related litigation. He has also been an advocate before the Supreme Court of Canada, the Federal Court of Canada, Federal Court of Appeal, Ontario Superior Court of Justice, Court of Appeal for Ontario and specialized tribunals such as the Trademarks Opposition Board. Shaughnessy is a well-known IP and advocacy speaker, instructor and author. He is also an adjunct lecturer at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law.
Christopher C. Van Barr
Law firm: Gowling WLG
Year called to the Bar: 1996
City: Ottawa
Christopher C. Van Barr is recognized as a leading intellectual property litigator. He has accumulated considerable first-chair experience in complex patent litigation, as well as in trademark and copyright litigation. Van Barr is also an expert in trade secret litigation. He advises clients on strategic management of intellectual property, including patent life cycle management. Van Barr also acts on behalf of leading national and international pharmaceutical, medical device, aerospace, software, manufacturing and information technology clients. He has served as an adjunct professor of patent law for eight years at the University of Ottawa and was chair of the Canadian Bar Association’s court practice committee for several years. Van Barr has been a registered patent agent since 2000. He is a sought-after speaker in his area of expertise.
Peter R. Wilcox
Law firm: Belmore Neidrauer LLP
Year called to the Bar: 1994
City: Toronto
Peter R. Wilcox is a partner at Belmore Neidrauer LLP, a Toronto-based intellectual property law firm. He has 25 years of experience litigating complex intellectual property cases. Wilcox boasts extensive experience litigating complex patent infringement and validity actions and applications on behalf of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. He has represented clients in the Federal Court, the Federal Court of Appeal, the Ontario Courts and the Supreme Court of Canada. Wilcox has also represented clients in the oil and gas and medical device industries, and has experience in copyright, trade secret and trademark litigation. Wilcox is a registered Canadian patent agent and trademark agent.
Matthew Zischka
Law firm: Smart & Biggar
Year called to the Bar: 1995
City: Toronto
Matthew Zischka is a partner at Smart & Biggar. He is also an engineer and registered patent and trademark agent. Zischka focuses on advising global and Canadian companies in traditional and emerging technology industries. For over 20 years, he has helped clients commercialize and protect their intellectual property, providing legal opinions and counselling on intellectual property strategy, transactions, licensing, assertions of patent infringement and contract interpretation. Zischka is frequently called to solve complex patent issues and prepare and prosecute patent applications. He has special expertise in advising public and private companies in the electrical, software, electronics, cloud, mobile, mechanical and medical device fields, and in emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, cryptography and fintech. Zischka is a frequent speaker on issues of Canadian patent law.