Since 2002, Richard Vachon has been a member of the Quebec Bar Association and has served as a full-time attorney in the Montréal area, primarily focusing his attention on commercial litigation, employment law and securities litigation. Vachon has been listed with Best Lawyers since 2016 and received the honor of Provincial Litigation Star from Benchmark Canada that same year. Currently, Vachon is working at Woods LLP and is being recognized as the 2022 Montréal “Lawyer of the Year” for Defamation and Media Law by Best Lawyers.
“I was fortunate to be involved rather quickly in my career in high-profile cases, which may explain this distinction. We are lucky to be trusted by clients with interesting and complex commercial disputes that often involve strategic issues related to their goodwill and reputation. My first major case in this field was for Québecor Inc., Québecor Média Inc., Vidéotron ltée and Pierre Karl Péladeau in a libel suit against the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Sylvain Lafrance and Robert Rabinovitch. I led this case alongside the founder of our firm, James A. Woods.”
In addition to representing his clients in both commercial and professional disputes, Vachon also has garnered a sizeable amount of experience representing a variety of Canadian politicians.
“I highly value the protection of all of my clients’ reputation and it has been an honor for me to allow them to obtain peace of mind in their private, business and professional lives. It is difficult to pinpoint one case in particular, but representing Québecor Inc., Mr. Péladeau, Saputo Inc., Mr. Saputo and many former politicians and current businesses has provided me with a great opportunity to advocate on their behalf and learn about their businesses.”
“It’s an area in which you can have a personal positive impact on a company or an individual by rectifying a damaged reputation. In cases like these, emotions are often run high, and you have to be willing to listen and be patient with clients that are often deeply hurt. Also, access to justice may be an issue for certain clients because of the delta between the costs of litigating these files and the relatively low damage awards seen in this field.”
