Kathryn is a seasoned litigator and arbitrator with broad expertise in all aspects of commercial litigation and arbitration, particularly complex, multi-party matters. Her experience includes shareholder disputes, product liability litigation, complex contract disputes, civil fraud proceedings, employment litigation, professional negligence, and class actions.
Kathryn represents individuals and organizations both in the Ontario courts and in commercial arbitration proceedings. She provides her clients with practical, strategic advice at every stage of a dispute, all with a view to maximizing their business goals and achieving cost efficiencies. Kathryn leverages technology in all her files, including at examinations and hearings, to ensure that matters are more efficient. She has conducted hearings and examinations both virtually and by utilizing electronic data during in person attendances.
In addition to her trial and arbitration experience, Kathryn has expertise in complex motion and appellate advocacy. Her experience also includes obtaining, executing and enforcing Anton Piller and Mareva injunctions to preserve assets at the outset of litigation.
Kathryn successfully completed the Toronto Commercial Arbitration Society’s Gold Standard Course in Commercial Arbitration. She holds the Q. Arb. designation from the ADR Institute of Canada. She is a member of TCAS, ADRIC, ADRIO, and Arbitral Women.
Kathryn brings a unique perspective to her litigation practice that blends deep experience in commercial litigation with expertise in eDiscovery, honed over nearly two decades working in both large and boutique law firms. She practiced for more than 15 years in the Litigation Departments of two of Canada’s largest national law firms. Prior to founding DMG Advocates, Kathryn ran her own litigation boutique after spending two years as Senior Legal Counsel at Canada’s pre-eminent e-Discovery and Information Governance boutique law firm where she advised clients on efficient and defensible ways to manage and protect their data, privacy law, and eDiscovery law, and best practices.
Kathryn uses her expertise in discovery planning and eDiscovery to efficiently manage and resolve her clients’ business disputes while keeping their litigation costs under control. Kathryn’s practice also includes advising clients on how to effectively manage their information and on the preparation and implementation of litigation readiness policies and procedures so that when litigation or a cybersecurity breach hits, her clients are ready. Kathryn has also provided expert evidence on discovery planning and eDiscovery principles in the Superior Court of Justice.
Kathryn is an active participant in bench and bar organizations that provide information, education and resources in the areas of Civil Procedure and eDiscovery. She is a member of the Ontario Civil Rules Committee and sits on the Superior Court of Justice’s Civil Working Group. Kathryn is the 1st Vice-President of the Ontario Bar Association. She sits on the Policy Committee of the Canadian Bar Association. Kathryn is also the Chair of Sedona Canada, which is Working Group 7 of The Sedona Conference. She is a longstanding member of the Ontario Digital Evidence and eDiscovery Working Group, which she chaired from 2014-2018.
Bar Admission
- Ontario (1998)
Education
- Bachelor of Laws (LLB), Queens University (1996)
- Bachelor of Arts (BA) with Honours, University of Toronto (1993)
- President, Ontario Bar Association
- Member, Steering Committee, past Chair, Sedona Canada, 2020 to 2024
- Toronto Commercial Arbitration Society, Member
- ADR Institute of Canada, Member
- ADR Institute of Ontario, Member
- Secretary, Ontario Bar Association Board of Directors, 2019-2020
- Member, Ontario Bar Association Council, Toronto Region, 2016 to present
- Chair, Policy and Public Affairs, Board of Directors, Ontario Bar Association, 2018-2019
- Toronto Region Director, Board of Directors, Ontario Bar Association, 2017-2018
- Board Member, Toronto Lawyers Association, 2009-2014; 2015 to 2023
- Member, Toronto Business Lawyers Network, 2016 to present
- EIC Chair, 2014 to 2018; Co-Chair, E-Discovery Institute, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
- The Advocates’ Society member
- Member, American Bar Association, 2017 to 2022
- Best Lawyers (2023-2025)
Corporate and Commercial Litigation - Corporate INTL (2024)
Who’s Who Lawyer 2024 - Benchmark Litigation (2023-2024)
Top 100 Women in Litigation - Toronto’s Top Lawyers (2021-2023) Post Toronto
- Benchmark Litigation (2021-2024)
Litigation Star: Commercial, Securities, Product Liability and Recall - Who’s Who Legal Canada (2015-2022)
Commercial Litigation: eDiscovery - Certificate in eDiscovery, Records Management, Information Governance and Privacy
Osgoode (2013) - Business Leadership for Women Lawyers Certificate
Rotman School of Business (2011)
- Panelist: Common Privilege Issues Encountered in eDiscovery
Osgoode Certificate in eDiscovery, Information Governance and Privacy, Online live, September 18, 2024 - Panelist: AI, File Management and eDiscovery
Artificial Intelligence for Litigators: AI in Action Program, The Advocates Society, Online Live, April 16, 2024 - Panelist: The Highs and Lows of Hybrid Hearings
Society of Ontario Adjudicators and Regulators, Online Live, June 7, 2023 - Chair: Ontario Legal Conference
Ontario Bar Association, In Person, May 4, 2023 - Moderator: Judicial Competencies: Certificate Program Session 1 – Judicial Application and Appointment Process
Ontario Bar Association, Online Live, May 3, 2023 - Author: The Oppression Remedy’s Broad Reach – Personal Liability of Officers and Directors and Creditors as Claimants
The Annual Review of Civil Litigation – 2022, Thomson Reuters Canada, Fall 2022 - Moderator: Judicial Competencies: Certificate Program Sessions 6, 2 and 1 – Basics of Judicial Reasoning; Judicial Independence; Judicial Application and Appointment Process
Ontario Bar Association, Online Live, April 7, 2021, May 19, 2021 and April 14, 2022 - Panelist: Introducing Evidence at Trial
Your First Civil Trial, Ontario Bar Association, Online Live, March 4, 2021 and March 31, 2022 - Panelist: Gathering, Preserving and Disclosing Digital Evidence
Digital Evidence for Litigators, The Advocates Society, Online Live, March 30, 2022 - Editorial Team Member: The Sedona Canada Principles, Third Edition
The Sedona Conference, Working Group 7, Sedona Canada, January 2022 - Co-Editor: Enforcement of Money Judgments – Canada Chapter (Common Law Jurisdictions)
Juris Publishing Inc., 2019; 2021 - Co-Chair: Ontario Digital Evidence and e-Discovery Institute
Ontario Bar Association, Online Live, November 25, 2020 and November 22, 2021 - Co-Author: International Liability of Corporate Directors – Canada Chapter
Center for International Legal Studies, November 2021 - Speaker: Common Privilege Issues Encountered in e-Discovery
Osgoode Certificate in e-Discovery, Information Governance and Privacy, Online Live, September 21, 2021 - Co- Author: Rule 60.01-60.10 Chapter
Civil Procedure and Practice in Ontario, Noel Semple (ed.), Canadian Legal Information Institute, September 2021 (2021 CanLIIDocs 1981) - Moderator: Pre-Trials for Young Lawyers: A Virtual Chat with Justice Akbarali
Toronto Lawyers’ Association, Online Live, April 16, 2021 - Panelist: E-Hearing – Is it a Revolution?
Council of Federal Tribunal Chairs, Online Live, November 26, 2020 - Panelist: Master Remote Commissioning and the Effective Management of Digital Documents
Ontario Bar Association, Online Live, November 19, 2020 - Panelist: Virtual Civil Litigation: Tips, Tricks and Practical Insights
Thunder Bay Law Association, Online Live, October 29, 2020 - Author: E-Litigation in a Covid-19 World
Presented at The Six Minute Debtor-Creditor and Insolvency Lawyer, Law Society of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario, October 28, 2020 - Panelist: Today’s Advocacy Challenge
Mastering Remote Interactions with the Courts, Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, Ontario, April 21, 2020 - Panelist: Anton Piller and Mareva Orders
A Deep Dive Into Injunctions and Extraordinary Remedies, Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, Ontario, December 11, 2019 - Panelist: Technology, Litigation and the Law
Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, Ontario, October 28, 2019 - Moderator: Breaking the Glass Ceiling
Women in Litigation Toronto Forum, Benchmark Women in Litigation, October 24, 2019 - Speaker: Preparing for an Electronic Trial or Arbitration
The Advocates Society, Toronto, Ontario, April 9, 2018 - Panelist: Sharing Success Strategies – Private Practice Excellence
Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, Ontario, October 12, 2017 - Speaker/Author: Privacy Update for Business Lawyers
The Six Minute Business Lawyer, Law Society of Upper Canada, Toronto, Ontario, June 13, 2017 - Co-Chair: Ontario E-Discovery Institute
The Advocates Society/Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, Ontario, October 2017, 2016, 2015 and 2014 - Speaker/Author: Privacy and Social Media Minefields – Advising Business Clients How to Protect Themselves
The Six Minute Business Lawyer, Law Society of Upper Canada, Toronto, Ontario, June 8, 2016 - Panelist: E-Discovery Essentials
Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, Ontario, October 13, 2015 - Panelist: Discovery Planning – Key Issues and Strategies
Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, Ontario, April 14, 2015 - Author/Presenter: Privilege and Confidentiality Issues in the Context of E-Discovery
The Ontario e-Discovery Institute: e-Discovery for All Cases and All Lawyers, Toronto, Ontario, September 19, 2011 - Author/Presenter: Admissibility of Electronic Evidence
Federated Press: 5th E-Discovery Course, Toronto, Ontario, March 22, 2011 - Author/Presenter: Anton Piller Orders – Practical Considerations
Presented at Injunctions: Winning the Case Before Trial, Ontario Bar Association, October 27, 2010 - Author/Presenter: Electronic Discovery on “Small” Files in the Big Firm Setting
Presented at Electronic Discovery and the Sedona Canada Principles: Best Practices for Dealing with Electronic Information, Toronto, The Law Society of Upper Canada, May 31, 2007 - Author/Presenter: Recent Developments in Product Liability and Consumer Class Actions
Insight, Class Actions: The Second Annual Litigators’ Conference, January 27, 2003 - Co-author: Liability for Misrepresentation in the Distribution of Securities in Canada
Litigation Issues in the Distribution of Securities: An International Perspective, Kluwer Law International and International Bar Association (London: 1997)