Best Lawyers in Canada for Alternative Dispute Resolution

Alex Kotkas is Managing Partner of the Alberta Region, with primary responsibility for leadership of the Firm’s Calgary and Tsuut’ina offices. As Regional Managing Partner, Alex manages the region's operations while developing and executing its strategic direction. His leadership focuses on cultivating a supportive environment that prioritizes exceptional client service, drives innovation, and nurtures outstanding talent. Alex is the founder and former leader of the Firm’s L...

Jeffrey Feiner is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Administrative and Public Law, Alternative Dispute Resolution, Professional Malpractice Law and Corporate and Commercial Litigation. Jeffrey, who practices law in Toronto, Ontario, has been recognized since 2024. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Jeffrey is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Chair of the Executive Board of the Firm, Karen is a litigation lawyer whose practice is focused on civil, construction, insurance and commercial litigation and arbitration. Karen assists clients with a variety of matters, including shareholder disputes, negligence claims and contractual disputes, and insurance litigation. Karen has a particular focus on construction-related litigation, acting for owners, contractors, sub-contractors, architects and engineers, in complex construction disputes...

Clare Burns is a senior trusts and estates litigator. She served as the Children's Lawyer for the Province of Ontario from 2003 to 2008 pursuant to an Order-in-Council appointment. As the Children's Lawyer, Clare's office was responsible to investigate, advocate, protect and represent persons under the age of 18 in proceedings before the courts and tribunals of Ontario. In this role, she supervised more than 11,000 cases including variations of trust, will challenges, passings of accounts, gu...

Paul carries a practice of complex disputes that demand subject-matter experience and understanding. He has expertise in contract disputes, infrastructure and construction disputes, health law, employment law, shareholder disputes, oppression claims, professional negligence, and product liability matters. Paul has appeared at all levels of court in Ontario, including as trial counsel in jury and non-jury matters, at the Federal Court and the Federal Court of Appeal, and in a range of administ...

Timothy St. John Ellam, KC is senior counsel in our Litigation and Dispute Resolution Group, working in Calgary and London. Tim is a distinguished international litigation and arbitration counsel with more than 35 years of domestic and international experience. He principally practices in the area of international arbitration in both Canada and London, UK with an emphasis on energy and intellectual property matters. Tim has appeared as senior counsel in numerous patent, licensing, copyright a...

Sharon Vogel has been recognized for her success at resolving and litigating disputes relating to large-scale infrastructure, industrial and commercial projects. Among the many professional acknowledgments she has received, Benchmark Litigation has named her Construction Lawyer of the Year (three times) and repeatedly one of the top women in litigation in the country, she is ranked Band 1 by Chambers Global , she was recognized as one of the 25 most influential lawyers in Canada by Canadian L...

Jeremy Devereux acts as an advocate and negotiator in a wide range of complex commercial and regulatory matters. His experience includes securities and financial services disputes, regulatory investigations and prosecutions, corporate and commercial litigation, class actions, employment law, estates litigation, mining law and administrative law. He has appeared as counsel before the Ontario courts, the Federal Court of Canada, and numerous tribunals and arbitration panels. Mr. Devereux freque...

Collin is a partner at the McKercher LLP Saskatoon office with experience in construction contracts, tendering, construction litigation and dispute resolution, security enforcement, and professional discipline. Collin’s practice and legal experience includes advice to and legal representation of provincial and national corporations, provincial and municipal governments, boards of education, financial institutions, and professionals in the areas of dispute resolution, construction, profe...

Ryan Savage is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Alternative Dispute Resolution, Labour and Employment Law and Sports Law. Ryan, who practices law in Winnipeg, Manitoba, has been recognized since 2024. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Ryan is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Environmental law is dynamic and as an experienced environmental and regulatory lawyer, Ron Kruhlak, K.C. enjoys the challenges of handling new environmental projects with novel issues. His focus is on resource development applications and commercial disputes. He has a knowledge base that covers a broad range of environmental matters, including energy, regulatory, and construction-related projects and conflicts. On the resource side, Ron assists with current and emerging issues in sectors inc...

For over 30 years, Zul Verjee has stood at the forefront of commercial litigation and insurance litigation in Alberta and across Canada. Zul is recognized as a leading litigation trial lawyer across Canada and North America. He has appeared at all levels of Court in Alberta, the Federal Court of Canada and conducted over 100 mediations and Judicial Dispute Resolution conferences. Zul’s practice spans the most complex disputes including commercial litigation, major personal injury and fa...

Susan Gunter, partner since 2002 at Dutton Brock LLP, holds an LLM in Civil Litigation (Osgoode), an LLB (UNB) and was called to the Ontario Bar in 1996. Susan is recognized in The Best Lawyers in Canada (Products Liability Law, Insurance Law, Personal Injury Litigation, Professional Malpractice Law and ADR) and in the Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as Most Frequently Recommended Personal Injury - Represents Defendants . Her litigation practice in defence of domestic and international corpo...

Jeff Cowan is recognized as one of Canada's leading public law litigators. He acts as counsel before administrative tribunals and the trial and appellate courts in many aspects of public law, including professional self-regulation and discipline, judicial review of government decision-making, freedom of information and privacy matters, municipal and provincial planning and environmental approvals, municipal assessment and taxation, health, education, alcohol and gaming, legislative drafting a...

Doug founded IMK in 1997 with the late Colin K. Irving. In the course of his career, he has acted as lead counsel in many complex cases, participated in trials covered by the media, advised clients on delicate issues and played key roles in crisis management to avoid or settle disputes. His career and his way of intervening in cases have earned him the respect of all the courts before which he has pleaded. He has acted for the Chief Justice of Quebec and the Canadian Judicial Council and has ...

Pierre Bienvenu, Ad. E. is a disputes lawyer with more than 35 years’ experience in international commercial arbitration, corporate and commercial litigation, and constitutional law. He has acted as counsel or served as arbitrator in international arbitrations involving disputes in energy, transportation, telecommunications, mergers and acquisitions, construction, pharmaceuticals, international distribution and joint ventures, and foreign investment. A former co-chair of the IBA’s...