Michael C. Smith

Matthew is originally from Nova Scotia and attended St. Mary’s University for his undergraduate degree where he was the recipient of academic and athletic scholarships. Matthew later obtained his LLB from Schulich School Law at Dalhousie University. Matthew spent the first 15 years of his career working at a large downtown Toronto law firm working exclusively for insurance companies. Matthew has appeared at all levels of Court in Ontario and has extensive experience relating to complex ...

Melissa is a partner in our commercial leasing department and has dedicated her career to representing commercial landlords and tenants in a variety of commercial leasing matters. She has expertise in managing commercial lease transactions for all types of properties, including office, retail, industrial and mixed-use. Melissa's practice includes the interpretation of commercial leases and the coordination of major projects, including multi-location deals and due diligence on acquisitions. He...

Ron Lebi is the firm’s Director of Research and Legal Education and is an experienced labour lawyer and administrative law practitioner. He is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to Bar in 1984. Prior to joining Koskie Minsky, Ron acted for many years as Senior Solicitor at the Ontario Labour Relations Board. In that capacity, he provided legal counsel and policy advice to adjudicators and staff on a wide range of issues related to more than a dozen statutes administere...

Adrienne is a partner in the litigation department, with a practice that focuses on all aspects of franchise litigation and dispute resolution. She is widely recognized by her peers as a leading practitioner of Canadian franchise law. Adrienne is a trusted advisor to her clients. She provides legal and strategic advice to franchise businesses in all sectors, including the hotel, restaurant, retail cannabis, and grocery sectors, and is well-known for providing practical and business-oriented l...

Rachel is a Partner in Minden Gross LLP's Litigation Group whose practice focuses on banking and commercial litigation. Rachel is a hard-nosed litigator who is not afraid to challenge or take on anyone. She is strong, meticulous, probing, and never loses sight of her clients’ goals. Rachel is skilled at quickly sizing up any situation and assessing her opponent to determine the best course of action. She takes the time to understand her clients’ goals and reasons behind the litigi...

Sabrina A. Lucenti is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Insurance Law. Sabrina A., who practices law in Barrie, Ontario, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Sabrina A. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Jonathan Lancaster’s litigation practice is focused on corporate commercial litigation, commercial real estate litigation, lease arbitrations, banking law, product liability litigation, professional negligence and estate litigation. Jonathan has a broad commercial real estate and estate litigation practice. Acting successfully as counsel in Ontario cases, Jonathan has advised on a broad array of real estate litigation issues, including mortgagee and tenant rights/priorities, rights of f...

For over 30 years, trade unions have relied on Steven Barrett to represent their interests, and the interests of their members, in all types of legal proceedings. Grievance and interest arbitration, labour relations board applications, collective bargaining – Steven does it all and makes it look easy. That’s why a member of parliament once referred to Steven as “the Wayne Gretzky of labour law”. From protecting the scope of bargaining unit work, to challenging discipli...

Christopher Rae practices civil and commercial litigation. He has broad experience litigating a variety of civil and commercial disputes (including contract, shareholder and governance disputes), fraud, breach of confidence, product liability, professional negligence, insurance and insurance brokering. Christopher is also a member of Fasken’s Indigenous Legal Matters practice group. Christopher regularly represents clients across a range of industries, including agriculture, mining, aut...

George Vassos focuses his practice on advocacy before trial and appellate Courts, and before various labour boards, arbitrators, mediators, adjudicators, and other administrative tribunals, as well as strategic and proactive advice on a wide variety of labour and employment law issues. His work includes: - Employment contracts - Wrongful dismissal and employment litigation - Fiduciary dutiesRestrictive covenants - InjunctionsGroup benefits - Employment standards - Human rights - Certification...