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Its been over 5 years since I included any posts here. May of 2020 seems like a world away…. So, as some update, I thought I’d share some of what I’ve been working on –

In July of 2020 I was retained as the sole lawyer by a client to negotiate all of the agreements with Air Canada’s lawyers for the Covid clinical study at Pearson International Airport. If you recall in Ontario at that time, we were in lockdown. Air Canada was shutting down some of its flights and operations, and if you flew between June and into early 2021, I’m told there were few people at Pearson Airport. Federal government regulations required passengers to quarantine for 14 days upon entry into Canada. Air Canada wanted to determine if that length of time was valid and if not, what length was safe for health purposes. Working opposite 5 lawyers on the Air Canada side, I negotiated the agreements, which were signed within a record 6 weeks. It really shows what can be accomplished when you have a lawyer with experience, and when both parties have a desire to get the deal done.

https://www.travelpulse.ca/news/airlines-airports/air-canada-launches-covid-study-of-travellers-at-pearson

https://www.mcmasterhealthlabs.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/MHL-Border-Study-Backgrounder.pdf

I went on to work with some of the same principals who were looking to set up a new lab for rapid testing, of Covid and other flu, for Ontario. That was full steam ahead with my client, until the Federal Government (Cabinet) quashed the promised funding and instead went ahead to fund the vaccines. So, all in all 2020 was a very busy year, and though we were all in lockdown of one stage or another it felt good to support efforts to move us (humanity) forward.

Since then I’ve been busy with client work and personally, with a number of large referrals and urgent requests.

In 2021, the sole legal counsel who was responsible for a large department and overseeing multi-national research had a medical situation and was required to work on a minimal basis. They were about to start some major funding agreements, so I stepped in to negotiate and draft the agreements. I have years of experience working on all manner of agreements for early stage companies, contract research organizations and hospitals, which was very helpful in the circumstance.

In 2022, I received an urgent call from the General Counsel at one of Toronto’s renowned hospitals asking for help. That client asked me to manage and complete a number of files as an external inhouse lawyer. I assisted him for over a year until he had sufficient staff to carry on.

In 2024 I started working with an early stage pharma company, who is involved in a rare disease for children. Its gratifying to be part of the team as their legal counsel. In that case, the company is a junior public, and has downtown lawyers to manage that aspect. I support the day-to-day contract requirements, including for setting up and negotiating their current international clinical studies.

Other calls over the time have come in from referrals, and with ongoing work from regular clients, I’ve been fully engaged.

I keep clients up to date when it comes to legal issues affecting them, however with so many podcasts and resources available, I hadn’t seen much need to publicly update. However, with 2026 around the corner, I’ll be starting to reconnect and may be writing more –

On the personal side, the biggest news for 2025 is that I’ve started to paint (as in artwork – not the walls of the house (!) though I’ve done that before). I’m a newbie to abstract art so am keeping my expectations in check and having a lot of fun! 🙂

Wishing you success, whenever you may be reading this. Feel free to reach out at any time.

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