Like many entrepreneurs, the path that brought me to sole practice was anything but direct. I learned very early in my legal career that Bay St. wasn’t the life for me. After parting ways with one of the country’s largest firms, I set out to figure out what I wanted to be when I grow up. In the meantime, my friends kept coming to me for legal advice for their businesses. While helping these entrepreneurs start and run their companies, I realized that I was actually enjoying the work.

A light went on.

My practice grew organically from there. I’m focused on helping socially, environmentally, and ethically responsible small businesses to grow and thrive. I believe in doing business the right way, with old-fashioned business values. Personal service, being on-time and under budget, making the law understandable, and taking a genuine interest in my clients’ growth are my hallmarks. After all, your success is my success. I genuinely enjoy bringing good people together, and I’ve helped several clients to grow their networks, and build off of each other’s strengths.

I’m not your typical lawyer. I’m an entrepreneur myself – both in my law practice, and as an owner of the Last Straw Distillery – an award winning micro-distillery in Vaughan – so I understand and empathize with the challenges that small businesses face. My job is to help you to manage your business and personal risks so that you can focus on what you do best – creating, building, and selling.

I studied law at the University of Ottawa, and am a member of the Law Society of Ontario. Before that, I graduated cum laude with a B.A. in Sociology from Laurentian University. I spent seventeen years as an infantry soldier and officer in the Canadian Army reserves, including a peacekeeping tour in Bosnia-Hercegovina in 2003. I served with the Grey & Simcoe Foresters, the Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa, and was the third generation of my family to serve with the 48th Highlanders of Canada.

I’m deeply into food – both as a home cook, and more importantly as a grower of food. I’m a student of permaculture, and have started an urban farming project in my neighbourhood to help feed the residents, and provide a surplus to food security causes in Toronto.

In my “spare” time I volunteer with Global Medic and GlobalFire, providing front-line relief in disaster areas all over the world. I teach law to business students at Humber College, and business to law students at the University of Ottawa. I read intensely, geek out over wine & whisky, play hockey and baseball, dive in warm tropical waters, volunteer as a mentor with the Humber Centre for Entrepreneurship, and sometimes sleep.