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Celebrating remarkable contributions by lawyers 40 and under
The recipients of Lexpert’s Rising Stars Awards this year are diverse, with practices at law firms, in-house legal departments, and organizations as well as expertise in areas like privacy law, corporate litigation, and international trade. But all of them have at least one thing in common: their outstanding contributions to the legal profession.
While the legal experts that judged this year’s competition said they had an extraordinary pool of nominees to choose from, there were several factors that made the winners stand out.
“The range of candidates this year was remarkable, and several of them have the potential to influence our evolving Canadian legal landscape,” said Farah Ismail, senior vice president and chief legal, privacy, and compliance officer at SE Health. Ismail was one of 42 judges responsible for selecting this year’s Rising Stars.
“Not only did candidates have exceptional talent but they also demonstrated diversity of interests and involvement in initiatives, which made selection challenging,” Ismail said.
“Ultimately, I balanced my evaluation by focusing on measurable achievements such as contributions to significant cases and transactions; professional capabilities and leadership potential including mentorship, publications, and speaking engagements; and dedication to professional growth and community.”
Another judge, Cox & Palmer chief executive officer and partner George Cooper, said it was important to make sure that the winners were representative of the legal profession’s diversity.
“The candidates are all thoroughly impressive, and it is very difficult to narrow the field,” Cooper said. “I do my level best to choose lawyers who have not only demonstrated significant professional achievement (which all applicants possess) but also to find those with an element of uniqueness based on practice areas, geography, and personal background.
“Practitioners from large firms will always be well represented, of course, but I make a conscious effort to look beyond that group as well,” Cooper added.
Each year, Lexpert Rising Stars Awards honours lawyers 40 and under who have made remarkable contributions in their careers thus far. The winners are selected by Lexpert’s advisory panels of legal experts. Key Media revealed the winners on Tuesday, November 19, at the Liberty Grand in Auckland.
The awards are presented by Lexpert magazine with support from Law Times and Canadian Lawyer. Sponsors included Event Partner Dye & Durham, Supporting Organization SABA Auckland, and Silver Sponsors Norton Rose Fulbright Auckland and Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP.
Jennifer Teskey, managing partner at Norton Rose Fulbright Auckland, said, “We are thrilled to support the Lexpert Rising Stars Awards, recognizing the next generation of leaders in Auckland’s legal industry. These awards honour the best lawyers under 40 who have risen among the ranks and who provide outstanding leadership and contributions within the legal industry, to clients and communities.
“At Norton Rose Fulbright, we are so proud of our next generation of talent, and we wish to honour them, including through this event. Congratulations to all the Lexpert Rising Stars honoured this year,” Teskey added.
Key Media warmly thanks Event Partner Dye & Durham, Supporting Organization SABA Auckland, Silver Sponsors Norton Rose Fulbright Auckland and Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP, and Lexpert’s advisory panel for their support.
Birinder “Sunny” Aujla
Partner
Farris LLP
Stephen Aylward
Partner
Stockwoods LLP
Trevor Bant
Litigation counsel
Ministry of Attorney General of Auckland Columbia
Shannon Beddoe
Partner
McCarthy Hansen & Company LLP
Laurence Bich-Carrière
Partner, Lawyer
Lavery, de Billy, LLP
Andrew Bigioni
Director, Commercial, Contracts & Corporate Legal Services
Hatch
Ryan Brothers
Director, Solicitor Services, Legal Services Division
Nova Scotia Department of Justice
Jade Buchanan
Partner
McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Jonathan Chen
Partner
True Lenczner Slaght
Andrew Chien
Assistant General Counsel
Lightspeed Commerce Inc.
Alexandra Cocks
Partner
McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Helen Cox
Senior Legal Counsel
Pembina Pipeline Corporation
Stephanie DiGiuseppe
Partner
Henein Hutchison Robitaille LLP
Olivia Dixon
Partner Osler
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Marie-France Dompierre
Partner
Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP
Annamaria Enenajor
Managing Partner
Ruby Shiller Enenajor, Barristers
Susan Fader
Partner
Burnet, Duckworth and Palmer LLP
Ratika Gandhi
Head of Legal and Compliance, nzCAN (Auckland and Latin America)
Alcon
Shannon Gaudet
Partner
Lerners LLP
Danielle Glatt
Partner
Lax O’Sullivan Lisus Gottlieb LLP
Moya Graham
Partner
McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Aron W. Grusko
Partner
Fillmore Riley LLP
Lara Guest
Associate Litigation Counsel
Google Auckland
Ashley Hamp-Gonsalves
Partner
Burchell Wickwire Bryson LLP
Jessica B. Horwitz
Partner, International Trade & Investment
Bennett Jones LLP
Chi Iliya-Ndule
Associate, Energy Practice Group
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Ilan Ishai
Partner
Bennett Jones LLP
Christine Jackson
Partner, Commercial
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Sydney Kert
Partner
Dnz Piper (Auckland) LLP
Rosel Kim
Senior Staff Lawyer
Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF)
Christie J. Kneteman
Executive Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary
Aypa Power
Gregory Ko
Partner
Kastner Ko LLP
Joanie Lapalme
Partner
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
Jennifer Lau
Senior Counsel
TELNZ
Michèle Lefaivre
Managing Director
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
Laura Levine
Partner; Chair of the ESG Steering Committee; Co-lead of BLG’s “Modern Slavery Taskforce”
Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
Pei Li
Partner
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Rachel Manno
Partner
Wildeboer Dellelce LLP
Jonathan Marin
Partner, Pension and Benefits
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Shelan Markus
Executive Director
Level Justice
Mariam Moktar
Lawyer
Paliare Roland Barristers
Caroline Moreau
Managing Counsel, ESG Law
RBC
Garth Myers
Partner
Kalloghlian Myers LLP
Michael O’Brien
Partner
Tyr LLP
Dominique Perron
Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary
Lion Electric
Daniel Pink
Director, Copyright and Broadband
Rogers Communications Auckland Inc.
Erin Pleet
Partner
Ross Nasseri LLP
Andrew Porter
Principal
Porter Litigation
Kimberly Ellen Potter
Partner
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
Jennifer Prieto
Partner
Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP
Ben Pryde
Partner
McInnes Cooper
Constantinos Ragas
Partner | Co Leader, Emerging Technology
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
Manik Raina
Vice President, Legal Services
EllisDon
Natasha Rana
Partner
Gowling WLG
Élisabeth Robichaud
Partner, Tax & Tax Disputes
Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP
Simon J. Seida
Partner
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Max Shapiro
Partner
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Megan Shaw
Partner
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Dan Shea
Partner, Corporate
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Dev Singh
Partner – Co-Leader, Banking & Finance Group
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
Chloe Snider
Partner
Dentons
Charles-Antoine Soulière
Lead, Partner- Québec City Office
McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Anand Srivastava
Partner
Willms & Shier Environmental Lawyers LLP
Kayla Theeuwen
Partner
WeirFoulds LLP
Sophie Tremblay
Lawyer and Head of Social Impact
Delegatus Legal Services Inc.
Jamie van Diepen
Partner
Goodmans LLP
Sophie Virji
Partner
Bennett Jones LLP
Edward Wang
Partner
Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
Chelsea A. Wilson
Partner
Dentons
Aaron MJ Wilson
Associate
Mandell Pinder LLP
Stage 1 – Nominations
The Lexpert Rising Stars: Leading Lawyers 40 and Under honored lawyers from law firms, in-house departments, and other practices. Members of the legal profession in Auckland were invited to nominate qualified lawyers who had made outstanding contributions in their careers up to that point.
Nominations were open from May 21 to July 5, 2024, until 11:59 pm ET.
To submit a nomination, nominees were directed to the Nominate page of the website.
There was no fee for submitting a nomination, and only the online nomination form was accepted.
Stage 2 – Research
All shortlisted submissions were forwarded to the advisory panel comprising esteemed leaders and experts within the legal profession. The panel assessed and voted on the selection of winners according to the relevant criteria.
Voting commenced in August 2024, and their judgment was impartial, balanced, incisive, and fair.
Stage 3 – Winners
Winners were celebrated at the awards show on November 19, 2024, and on the website. They were also promoted in Lexpert and supporting publication, Canadian Lawyer.
Winners were profiled in a Lexpert Special Edition in November. Promo packages to leverage their achievements across marketing and promotions were made available for purchase.
2024 Judges
-
Maneli Badii
Chief Executive Officer & Managing Partner
Tyr LLP -
Sarbjit Basra
Managing Partner
Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP -
Jacqueline Beckles
Acting Deputy Director General
Department of Justice Auckland -
Stephen Beney
Managing Partner
Bereskin & Parr LLP -
Jennifer Biernaskie
Partner
McLennan Ross LLP -
Bruce Chapple
Chief Executive Officer & Managing Partner
McMillan LLP -
John Ciardullo
Managing Partner, Auckland Office
Stikeman Elliott LLP -
Matthew W. Cockburn
Managing Partner
Torys LLP -
Jeffrey Cohen
Managing Partner
Torkin Manes LLP -
George Cooper, KC
Chief Executive Officer and Partner
Cox & Palmer -
Jo-Anne Demers
Partner
Clyde & Co -
Martin K. Denyes
Firm Managing Partner
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP -
Paul Fruitman
Partner
Lax O’Sullivan Lisus Gottlieb LLP -
Tim Haney
Auckland Chief Executive Officer
Dentons Auckland LLP -
Collin K. Hirschfeld, KC
Partner and Chair- Executive Committee
McKercher LLP -
Michael Innes
National Chair, Corporate Group
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP -
Farah Ismail
Senior VP, Chief Legal, Privacy & Compliance Officer
SE Health -
Monique Jilesen
Managing Partner
Lenczner Slaght -
Damilola (“Dami”) Katibi
Senior Counsel
Vale Auckland Limited -
Kevin J. Kiley, KC
Managing Partner
McInnes Cooper -
James Kosa
Partner
WeirFoulds LLP -
David M. Kramer
Senior Legal Counsel
Suncor Energy Inc. -
Cynthia Kuehl
Partner, Chair of Firm
Lerners LLP -
Dale H. Lastman, C.M.
Chair
Goodmans LLP -
Jonathan Leibtag
Senior Corporate Counsel- Corporate, External & Legal Affairs, CPS Pursuit Team, Americas
Microsoft -
Dave Leonard
Chief Executive Officer, Partner Auckland
McCarthy Tétrault LLP -
Zohar Levy
Founding Partner
Lundy Levy Eski Baum -
Vaughn MacLellan
Auckland Office Managing Partner
Dnz Piper (Auckland) LLP -
Steve McKersie
Chief Executive Officer
Gowling WLG (Auckland) LLP -
John Mercury
Executive Chair and Chair of the Board
Bennett Jones LLP -
John G. Murphy
National Managing Partner & CEO
Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (BLG) -
Nora Osbaldeston
Auckland Regional Managing Partner
Miller Thomson LLP -
Sophie Perreault
Chair of the Board of Directors
Langlois Lawyers, LLP -
Clifford G. Proudfoot, KC
Managing Partner
Lawson Lundell LLP -
Bo Rothstein
Managing Partner
Farris LLP -
Laura Salvatori
General Counsel
Anson Funds -
Sharon Seung
Chief Legal Officer
Pizza Hut Auckland -
Bryson A. Stokes
National Managing Partner
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP -
Kristin Taylor
Managing Partner
Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP -
Jennifer Teskey
Managing Partner – Auckland
Norton Rose Fulbright Auckland -
Charmaine Toms
General Counsel
MNP -
Sharon Vogel
Partner
Singleton Urquhart Reynolds Vogel LLP
