Lawyer Profile

Biography

Julian Falconer holds degrees from the University of Alberta, McGill University, and the University of Toronto in addition to an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Guelph-Humber. He is a Bencher of the Law Society of Upper Canada and an author, writing extensively on issues of race and civil liberties, and co-authoring the book, the Annotated Coroners Act. With his partner, Asha James, and a talented team of senior and junior associates, the firm’s work focuses on state accountability and the relationship between Canadians and Indigenous nations. The firm has been counsel on matters related to prisoner rights, police accountability, human rights and Specifically, this work has included the representation of Maher Arar, who made Canadian legal history in receiving the largest human rights settlement allotted to an individual plaintiff; the family of Ashley Smith, the 19 year who died in custody at Grand Valley Federal Penitentiary; and Adam Nobody and the “Free Press Four” in relation to their unlawful beatings and arrests during the G20 summit in Toronto. More recently, with the firm’s expansion from Southern Ontario into the North, their work has expanded to focus on Indigenous-side representation on matters including child welfare, education, equitable service provision, and community governance, always focusing on the unique remedies required for reconciliation. Specifically, this work has included representation of the two largest First Nations police forces in negotiation of legislated standards of policing, representation on the Inquest into the deaths of Seven Youth in Thunder Bay, and as Counsel for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada over a five year period in respect of document collection litigation. Julian is also a pilot with over 1600 hours in the air. With the addition of “Falconair”, the firm not only represents individual First Nations in the remote North, but also provides a new level of access to justice by flying to them, visiting and engaging in the communities, and building new relationships.