Ellen Joan Bessner

Ellen Bessner is an experienced, tough-minded commercial litigator, known for her determination and common sense advice. After 25 years of practice on Bay Street at prominent Canadian law firms, Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP and Gowling WLG, Ellen joined Babin Bessner Spry LLP in 2014, where she is a leader in commercial and securities litigation, employment litigation, insurance defence, directors’ and officers’ liability, professional negligence, class actions, and regulatory matters. She is regularly retained to advise boards of directors and senior officers on compliance issues.

Ellen has acted as counsel before every level of the Ontario courts and in many arbitrations and regulatory proceedings, including before the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRAO), Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO, formerly the MFDA and IIROC), and the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC).

Ellen is the author of the bestselling book Advisor at Risk: a roadmap to protecting your business and has recently written the sequel Communication Risk: how to bridge the client-advisor gap to protect and grow your business. Her books are leading risk management tools for professionals in the financial services industry. She is an expert speaker in the area of risk and writes on the subject in the national, business and industry press.

Ellen is a gifted public speaker and frequently delivers her popular and effective training programs across Canada to a range of professionals, including C-suite teams, boards of directors, management teams, and regulated professionals (accountants, financial and investment advisors, lawyers, planners, and portfolio managers). These programs cover a range of liability, ethics, and compliance issues, and they are designed to help reduce litigation and regulatory risk.

In 2016, Ellen was appointed to the OSC’s Seniors Expert Advisory Committee and sits on the board of Embark Student Corp.