Thomas D. Baulke, Baulke & Augaitis LLP (Co-Chair)
Mr. Baulke is Partner with the firm of Baulke & Augaitis LLP in Collingwood, practicing in the area of real estate, business and commercial law, estates and estate planning. He graduated from the University of Western Ontario law school in 1980 and called to the bar in 1982 receiving the Practitioners’ Prize in Real Estate. He has had significant involvement in the residential condominium practice area on behalf of developers, vendors, purchasers and approximately 50 condominium corporations. He is a Member of the Canadian Condominium Institute and the Executive of the Real Property section of the Ontario Bar Association. He is a Council member of the Ontario College of Pharmacists.
Raymond H. Mikkola, Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP (Co-Chair)
Mr. Mikkola is a partner in the Real Estate Group at Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP and has developed a particular expertise in condominiums, telecommunications, expropriations, GST and real property taxation. He is currently responsible for electronic registration issues at the firm and is an active participant in the Large Firm Electronic Registration Committee. Mr. Mikkola has a BA in economics and history and an LLB, both from the University of Toronto. He spent 26 years in the Canadian Armed Forces (Reserves) retiring in the rank of Lieutenant- Colonel in December 2002. He is a member of the executive of the Real Property Section of the Ontario Bar Association.
Janet Bobechko, Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP
Ms. Bobechko is a partner and co-chair of Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP National Environmental Law Group. Certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada as a specialist in Environmental Law. Recommended practitioner in Environmental Law in the L'Expert Directory. BV rating in the Martindale-Hubble Law Directory, environmental law for legal ability and general ethical standards. Ms. Bobechko's practice encompasses all aspects of environmental law with an emphasis on environmental compliance with federal, provincial and municipal legislation. Advises clients on corporate, commercial and real estate business transactions, financings and insolvencies including advice on minimization of environmental liabilities for corporations, officers and directors and negotiation of environmental indemnities. Provides advice on structures for environmental management systems (including ISO 14001) and environmental assessments. Devises legal strategies for contaminated sites including Brownfield development along with the complexities of construction, insurance and financing issues. Represented a Ministry of the Environment Provincial Officer at the Walkerton Inquiry and related proceedings. She is a frequent speaker at business, technical and legal conferences on all environmental matters. Past Vice-Chair of the Ontario Bar Association Environmental Section. Board of Directors and contributor, Environmental Law Journal, published by Federated Press. Member of the OBA, Environmental Law Section, CBA National Environmental, Energy and Resource Law Section, Air & Waste Management Association, Ontario Environment Industry Association and the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation.
Michael Bowman, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Mr. Bowman is a partner in the Litigation Department in Toronto. His practice in administrative and civil litigation includes municipal law and regulation, land use planning and development, municipal taxation and finance, expropriation, environmental issues, and lease arbitration and litigation. He joined the firm in 1988 and has been a partner since 1992. Mr. Bowman has extensive advocacy experience before municipal councils, administrative tribunals and the courts. He also advises clients with respect to municipal law and finance issues in commercial transactions, public-private partnerships and financings. He is a regular contributor to professional development and educational programs, and has served as an advisor to the provincial government in the development of property tax policy.
Ellie Choi, Ontario New Home Warranty Program
Ms. Choi joined the Ontario New Home Warranty Program as corporate counsel in 2003. She obtained her B.A. from the University of Waterloo and her LL.B. from Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to the Bar in 1999. She provides advice to the Warranty Program on its role as a regulator of the new home building industry and the task of registering every new home and condominium builder in Ontario. She is also active in helping to administer warranty claims made by new homeowners and regularly represents the Warranty Program before the License Appeal Tribunal. Prior to joining the Warranty Program, Ms. Choi practiced in the area of commercial litigation with an emphasis on construction law. She has contributed several articles to a number of trade publications in the area of construction, surety and insurance law. She is a member of the Canadian Bar Association and the Canadian Corporate Counsel Association.
Tim Clarke, LawPRO (Lawyers’ Professional Indemnity Company)
Mr. Clarke graduated from The University of Western Ontario, Faculty of Law, in 1990 and was called to the Ontario Bar in 1992. He practised at the Toronto law firm Strauss, Cooper where he specialised in defending errors and omissions claims against real estate practitioners. He joined Lawyers' Professional Indemnity Company in 1995. During his time with LawPRO, he has filled a number of positions including acting as Operations Manager, TitlePLUS 1999-2000. He is currently Claims Manager and continues his speciality in real estate and commercial matters. He also manages the TitlePLUS claims portfolio and is LawPRO’s primary liaison with competitor title insurers.
Jeremy G. Johnston, Barrister & Solicitor
Mr. Johnston, B.A., J.D., LL.M., was called to the Ontario bar in 1964 and practised until 2003 with Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP and its predecessor firms, as associate, partner and counsel. His practice concentrated on real property matters of all kinds. He retired from active practice earlier this year and is now engaged in graduate studies at Osgoode Hall Law School of York University.
James H. (Kim) Little, Q.C., Little, Inglis
Mr. Little received his LL.B. from Osgoode Hall and was called to the Bar in 1960. The concentration of his practice has been real property, residential purchases and Sales, Land Development, Condominiums and some wills and estates, and he was previously a seminar leader in the real property section of the bar admission course. He is an occasional presenter on real estate matters for the Law Society of Upper Canada and the Ontario Bar Association. Mr. Little is a Law Society representative on the Joint Committee on Electronic Registration and he frequently presents to the profession on Electronic Registration.
Bruce McKenna, Lang Michener LLP
Mr. McKenna is a partner at Lang Michener LLP, practising in the areas of commercial real estate, title insurance, environmental and lease law. He is involved in real estate acquisition, disposition, financing, leasing, development and environmental audits. He acts for a number of parties related to title insurance matters, including various title insurers active in Canada, insureds and Canadian lending institutions. He has written and spoken extensively about real estate and title insurance matters and is the Contributing Editor to: “Title Insurance: A Guide to Regulation, Coverage and the Claims Process in Ontario” by Lang Michener.
Catherine Patterson, McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Ms. Patterson is a partner of the McCarthy Tétrault litigation group. Since joining McCarthy Tétrault in 1987, she has appeared in trials and on appeals at all levels in Ontario, and before a wide variety of administrative tribunals. She practices litigation in the areas of commercial and property disputes, product liability and professional negligence and discipline. Ms. Patterson has been an instructor in trial advocacy through the Osgoode Hall Law School, Bar Admission Course and the Advocates' Society. She has been an invited speaker on issues relevant to the real property bar most recently on the issue of rights of first refusal.
Netanus Rutherford, Ontario New Home Warranty Program
Ms. Rutherford is the Manager of Dispute Resolution & Counsel at Ontario New Home Warranty Program, where she manages administrative proceedings and arbitrations, conducts litigation in the courts, and assists in policy development. She has a masters degree in Civil Litigation and ADR, and has practiced law for fifteen years.
David M. Sherman, Tax Author & Consultant
Mr. Sherman received his B.A. and LL.B. from the University of Toronto and his LL.M. from Osgoode Hall Law School. He was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1983. He is widely recognized as Canada’s leading authority on the GST legislation, as well as a leading author on income tax and other taxes. His publications include the Canada GST Service, the Canada GST Cases, The Practitioner’s GST Annotated, the Practitioner’s Income Tax Act and Basic Tax Guide for Lawyers, among several others. Mr. Sherman provides consulting services in GST and PST and represents clients in dealings with Revenue Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Finance on audits, objections and appeals. He is a long-standing member of the Ontario Bar Association’s Taxation Law Section executive. He was a member of the Canada Customs & Revenue Agency’s Appeals Advisory Committee from 1999 to 2001. He is the designer and author of the Law Society of Upper Canada computer-assisted instruction system, used to teach Tax and Accounting in the Bar Admission Course from 1984 to 2000. \