Lawyer Profile

Biography

Tony enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) in 1985 as a reserve force gunner. In 1986, he transferred to the regular force and entered the Royal Military College of Canada. In 1990, after receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in Military and Strategic Studies, he was commissioned as an Artillery officer and subsequently served with regiments in Lahr (Germany), Montreal, Petawawa, and Toronto. Upon earning his Bachelor of Laws degree from Osgoode Hall Law School in 2003, Tony articled with the Crown Attorney in downtown Toronto and was called to the Bar in March 2004. After joining the Office of the Judge Advocate General, Tony served as a military prosecutor and as a legal advisor on the subject of military administrative law and human rights. Highlights of Tony’s military career include: second-in-command of the Vanguard Company on Operation ASSISTANCE, the CAF’s response to the Manitoba flood (1997); civil-military co-operation officer on Operation PALLADIUM in Bosnia and Herzegovina (1998); member of the Bill C-60 (“Trepanier”) legislative drafting team (2008); secondment as an Assistant Crown Attorney in Ottawa (2009-10); legal advisor to the Universality of Service working group (2014-17); and two appearances in the Supreme Court of Canada (2019). In May 2019, after 34 years of service, Tony retired from the CAF at the rank of lieutenant-colonel. Tony was appointed as a full-time member of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) on 12 December 2019 and cross-appointed as a part-time member of the Ontario Parole Board on 22 October 2020. He earned his Master of Laws degree in constitutional law from Osgoode Hall Law School in October 2021. Tony was appointed as a full-time vice-chair of the HRTO on 8 September 2022.