Biography
Jennifer is available for virtual mediations globally, and selected in-person mediations. Advocates who have used Jennifer as a mediator have said that she has “tremendous skills with dealing with complicated parties and situations”, a “high level of skill and natural aptitude”, and is able to “gain the trust of both sides”.
Jennifer completed the Harvard Negotiation Institute program "Mediating Commercial Disputes", an executive education course at Harvard Law School, as well as the “Mediator Skills Training” course with the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution in London, UK. Her training has also included shadowing leading mediators in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom.
Jennifer is regularly invited to speak on issues such as multi-party mediation strategy, active listening, mediation in real estate disputes, mediation policy, and advocacy in mediation by various organizations globally. She provides consultancy services to the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution in London and organizes monthly professional development webinars for the International Academy of Mediators, arranging for leading international mediators to speak on cutting-edge mediation-related topics. She has coached mediation to law students on a pro bono basis at Small Claims Courts in Ontario, run mock mediation for students at the School of Law, Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London, and was hired to provide training to mediators at the Ontario Ministry of Government and Consumer Services.
Jennifer’s legal career included over five years practising civil litigation at Fasken, one of Canada’s largest law firms, where she was Vice-Chair of the ADR Practice Group, and six years running her own practice. She has acted as counsel for both plaintiffs and defendants in a wide variety of dual and multi-party cases including claims involving negligence, product liability, breach of contract, trademark, wrongful dismissal, personal injury, unjust enrichment, nuisance, defamation, occupier’s liability, negligent and fraudulent misrepresentation, landlord/tenant disputes, procurement challenges, director’s liability, estates, liability for environmental contamination, quasi-criminal environmental defence, private international law, refugee law, immigration detention and appeals, international trade and energy law. She has also provided advice and been invited to speak concerning foreign anti-corruption compliance and developing corporate social responsibility norms.
The cases on which Jennifer has worked involve a broad range of industries including real estate, energy, insurance, technology, advertising, hospitality, entertainment, sports, transportation including railway, food products, construction, mining, not for profit, retail and manufacturing, including automotive and automotive part manufacturing.
She is regularly invited to speak including at the American Bar Association, UK Civil Justice Committee, Judicial ADR Liaison Committee, Scottish Mediation, Canadian Corporate Counsel Association, Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada, a legal team at a major multinational healthcare company, and the Ontario Bar Association. Jennifer is an executive member of the Ontario Bar Association Alternative Dispute Resolution Section, and chairs a joint Ontario Bar Association committee which considered and recommended expanding automatic mediation more widely throughout Ontario.
Jennifer is a graduate of the University of Ottawa Law School and studied abroad on scholarship at George Washington University Law School in Washington DC. She received her undergraduate degree (with Honours) from the University of Guelph, with a semester completed at the University of Rajasthan in Jaipur, India.
Approach
Jennifer employs a flexible approach to mediation, recognizing that the dynamics of each case are unique. After ensuring the parties’ positions and interests are understood Jennifer helps identify issues, assists parties in considering the strengths and weaknesses of positions, and explores settlement options that may not be available through litigation. When relevant, she investigates the downsides of continued litigation such as risks to business, reputation, finances or regulatory risks, and helps the parties craft a satisfactory solution to their dispute. Jennifer appreciates that a mediator’s preparation can be critical to success and thoroughly reviews all submitted material prior to each mediation. She is respectful yet persistent in her efforts to help parties reach settlement.