Heenan Blaikie
Encyclopedia
Heenan Blaikie LLP is a full service Canadian
law firm
. It practices in the areas of business, labour and employment, litigation, taxation, entertainment law
and intellectual property law. The firm was founded in 1973 by Roy Heenan
, Donald Johnston
, and Peter Blaikie
. Based in Montreal
, the firm now has over 500 lawyers with offices in Toronto
, Ottawa
, Calgary
, Vancouver
, Victoria
, Quebec City
, Sherbrooke, Trois-Rivières
and Paris
, and a representative office in Singapore
. The firm was founded in 1973 by Roy Heenan
, Donald Johnston
, and Peter Blaikie
. The firm is one of the top ten firms in Canada; as of February 2011, it was the sixth largest law firm in Canada.
At the international level, Heenan Blaikie is counsel to the Canadian Employers Council, an organisation that represents Canadian employers at the International Labour Organization
(ILO). Heenan Blaikie is also the Canadian member of the National Workers' Compensation Defense Network (NWCDN), an organization of independent law firms in the United States and Canada with an established workers' compensation practice and experience in defending employers and insurance companies in workers' compensation and related actions. In addition to its European and Asian presence, its Paris office serves as a foray into the African market. However, the firm's activities in Africa have garnered controversy, as its endeavours there included a working relationship with Ari Ben-Menashe
, from whom the firm has since tried to distance itself.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
law firm
Law firm
A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to represent clients in civil or criminal cases, business transactions, and other...
. It practices in the areas of business, labour and employment, litigation, taxation, entertainment law
Entertainment law
Entertainment law or media law is a term for a mix of more traditional categories of law with a focus on providing legal services to the entertainment industry. The principal areas of Entertainment Law overlap substantially with the well-known and conventional field of intellectual property law...
and intellectual property law. The firm was founded in 1973 by Roy Heenan
Roy Heenan
Roy Lacaud Heenan, OC is a Canadian labour lawyer and academic. He is the founding partner of the Canadian law firm Heenan Blaikie....
, Donald Johnston
Don Johnston
The Honourable Donald James Johnston, PC, OC, QC is a former Canadian politician, lawyer, and was Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development from 1996 to 2006.-Early life:...
, and Peter Blaikie
Peter Blaikie
Peter Macfarlane Blaikie is a prominent Canadian lawyer and a fluently bilingual statesman from Quebec.-Genealogy:Blaikie was born in Shawinigan, Mauricie on May 10, 1937. He was the son of Kenneth Guy "Bill" Blaikie and Mary Petrie Black....
. Based in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, the firm now has over 500 lawyers with offices in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Victoria
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...
, Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
, Sherbrooke, Trois-Rivières
Trois-Rivières
Trois-Rivières means three rivers in French and may refer to:in Canada*Trois-Rivières, the largest city in the Mauricie region of Quebec, Canada*Circuit Trois-Rivières, a racetrack in Trois-Rivières, Quebec...
and Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and a representative office in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. The firm was founded in 1973 by Roy Heenan
Roy Heenan
Roy Lacaud Heenan, OC is a Canadian labour lawyer and academic. He is the founding partner of the Canadian law firm Heenan Blaikie....
, Donald Johnston
Don Johnston
The Honourable Donald James Johnston, PC, OC, QC is a former Canadian politician, lawyer, and was Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development from 1996 to 2006.-Early life:...
, and Peter Blaikie
Peter Blaikie
Peter Macfarlane Blaikie is a prominent Canadian lawyer and a fluently bilingual statesman from Quebec.-Genealogy:Blaikie was born in Shawinigan, Mauricie on May 10, 1937. He was the son of Kenneth Guy "Bill" Blaikie and Mary Petrie Black....
. The firm is one of the top ten firms in Canada; as of February 2011, it was the sixth largest law firm in Canada.
At the international level, Heenan Blaikie is counsel to the Canadian Employers Council, an organisation that represents Canadian employers at the International Labour Organization
International Labour Organization
The International Labour Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with labour issues pertaining to international labour standards. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland. Its secretariat — the people who are employed by it throughout the world — is known as the...
(ILO). Heenan Blaikie is also the Canadian member of the National Workers' Compensation Defense Network (NWCDN), an organization of independent law firms in the United States and Canada with an established workers' compensation practice and experience in defending employers and insurance companies in workers' compensation and related actions. In addition to its European and Asian presence, its Paris office serves as a foray into the African market. However, the firm's activities in Africa have garnered controversy, as its endeavours there included a working relationship with Ari Ben-Menashe
Ari Ben-Menashe
Ari Ben-Menashe is the author of Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network, a book purporting to describe his involvement in Iran-Contra and other intelligence operations. An Iraqi Jew who was educated in Israel, he is a former Israeli government employee, and has said that he...
, from whom the firm has since tried to distance itself.
Notable lawyers
- The Right Honourable Jean ChrétienJean ChrétienJoseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....
, P.C., C.C., O.M., Q.C., former Prime Minister of Canada - The Honourable Donald J. JohnstonDon JohnstonThe Honourable Donald James Johnston, PC, OC, QC is a former Canadian politician, lawyer, and was Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development from 1996 to 2006.-Early life:...
, P.C., O.C., Q.C., a co-founder of the firm, former Secretary-General of the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and DevelopmentOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and DevelopmentThe Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development is an international economic organisation of 34 countries founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade...
(OECD) - Pierre Marc Johnson, FRSC, former Premier of the Province of Quebec
- André BureauAndré BureauAndré Bureau, O.C. is a Canadian lawyer and communications executive.Born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, he received an LL.B. from Université Laval in 1958 and a D.E.A. from the University of Paris I: Panthéon-Sorbonne in 1960. He was called to the Quebec Bar in 1959.From 1960 to 1968, he was a...
, O.C., former Chair of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission and current Chair of Astral MediaAstral MediaAstral Media Inc. is a Canadian media corporation. It is Canada's largest radio broadcaster with 83 radio stations in eight provinces, and is a major player in premium and specialty television in Canada, including The Movie Network, Super Écran, Family, Teletoon, Canal D, Canal Vie, VRAK.TV,... - The Honourable Michel BastaracheMichel BastaracheJ. E. Michel Bastarache is a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and retired puisne justice on the Supreme Court of Canada....
, C.C., former Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada - The Honourable John W. Morden, former Associate Chief Justice of Ontario
- The Honourable René Dussault, FRSC, formerly a judge on the Québec Cour d'Appel.
Past lawyers and alumni
- The Right Honourable Pierre Elliott Trudeau, former Prime Minister of CanadaPrime Minister of CanadaThe Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
- The Honourable Justice David StratasDavid StratasDavid W. Stratas is a Canadian jurist. He has served on the Federal Court of Appeal since 2009.Mr. Justice Stratas was educated at Queen's University, earning an LL.B. in 1984 and Oxford University, earning a B.C.L. in 1986. He then returned to Canada and clerked for Justice Bertha Wilson of the...
, Federal Court of Appeal