Alumni: 2011-12 Students

Jack Bensimon

Jack BensimonJack Bensimon is the Managing Director of Risk Diagnostics, an independent securities regulatory compliance consulting firm involved in mitigating regulatory risk including US and Canadian securities/banking compliance. He is dual registered with securities regulators in both Canada/US. He has worked in the securities industry for over 19 years, mainly acting as Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) for banks, investment banking and counselling firms, trust companies, and broker-dealers.  He has provided expert testimony in federal court and securities litigation cases. His sector coverage spans energy infrastructure, real-estate, financial services, software, consumer products, utilities, and manufacturing. Recent clients include McKinsey & Company, nagel + associates, Experis, Wellington West Capital Markets, Fidelity Equity Partners, Perry Capital LLC, and TransCanada Pipelines.

Bensimon is also co-host of the Money & Business segment of Radio Shalom (1650 am), a business radio show with studios in Montreal. He is the in-resident expert on banking law and securities law matters. He is chair of the Toronto chapter of the Canadian Technion Society (CTS), in support of the Technion Institute of Technology in Israel. Jack also leads panel discussions in corporate governance for the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA).

Bensimon is a graduate of the University of Toronto (Math/Economics), and the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania (Investment Management). Jack has completed a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Securities Law and an LL.M. in General Law, both from Osgoode Hall Law School, York University. 

Kathryn J. Daniels

Katie DanielsKatie Daniels is a Deputy Director at the Enforcement Branch of the Ontario Securities Commission.  Daniels is responsible for leadership and strategic renewal, senior outreach and external engagement, and day-to-day execution of operations. Daniels served as Litigation Counsel and Manager of the Litigation Group at the OSC prior to her current appointment.  Daniels has experience in both senior management and litigation combined with a broad understanding of securities and corporate law, public law, and corporate governance. Daniels also served as litigation counsel at Fasken Martineau LLP with a focus on complex corporate/commercial litigation, shareholder disputes, and professional negligence.

Daniels completed her B.A. (Hons.) at McMaster University and received her J.D. from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law.

Allan Ebedes

Allan EbedesAllan Ebedes has over 30 years of professional, business, management, entrepreneurial and teaching experience. Ebedes is President & CEO of the Canada Awards for Excellence program under the Vice-Regal Patronage of the Governor General of Canada and he is President & CEO of Excellence Canada (formerly the National Quality Institute or NQI), a not-for-profit organization that helps organizations improve results through operational excellence, and recognizes them for achieving pre-determined milestones. Ebedes also founded and serves as the CEO and President of Management Mentors International Inc., a company providing training, coaching and mentoring to managers, executives and business leaders. Ebedes is a faculty member at the Schulich Executive Education Centre (SEEC) and York University.

Ebedes is a recent graduate of the Rotman School of Management’s Directors’ Program and received the ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors. Ebedes earned a B.Com degree from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa, an MBA degree from the University of Toronto, and is a qualified CA and member of the Canadian and Ontario Institutes of Chartered Accountants.

Nils Engelstad

Nils EngelstadSince 2009, Nils Engelstad has acted as corporate counsel to the McEwen Capital Group of companies, a group of publicly traded resource exploration companies with properties in the Americas. Part of a small general management team, Nils provides support and direction for corporate development initiatives, including mergers & acquisitions, financings, and other corporate transactions. He is also responsible for litigation management, oversight of outside counsel and other corporate legal and compliance matters.

Prior to joining McEwen Capital, Nils served as an associate lawyer at Stikeman Elliott LLP in Toronto. He received a BA from the University of Toronto in International Relations and Political Science, and a LL.B from the University of Windsor.  He is a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada.

Ricardo Fisher

Ricardo FisherRicardo Fisher is a lawyer specializing in international law and business. Currently a member of the Master File Department at Food Services (Ontario) Inc., Fisher works closely with the company’s finance and sales teams, particularly during recent acquisitions of Bimbo Bakeries (USA and Latin America) and the bakery division of Sara Lee (USA).  Prior to his move to Canada, Fisher worked in many areas of El Salvador’s government and legal system, including the Ministry of Education, General Attorney’s Office, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Fifth Criminal Court, and National Institute for Judges.

Fisher completed his law degree at José Simeón Cañas Central American University, and a post-graduate certificate in International Business from Universidad Tecnológica de El Salvador. He is also a graduate of the Program for Judges, Constitutional and Human Rights and holds a Diploma in Financial Administration.

Emilija Giovinazzo

Emilija GiovinazzoEmilija Giovinazzo works in the Strategy Division at Hydro One Networks Inc, a government agency delivering electricity across Ontario.  With seven years of experience in the energy industry, Emilija’s contribution to the Transmission Projects Development team helps to shape and develop Hydro One’s strategic plans, and ensures that project plans align with legislative and regulatory requirements.  She also worked as a Regulatory Strategies & Standards Analyst at Hydro One, and held other roles in Toronto Hydro and the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO). 

Emilija graduated from University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Business Administration, and completed an international exchange in University of Amsterdam. 

Zuzanna Kusyk

Zuzanna KusykZuzanna Kusyk is a skilled financial services professional with over ten years of progressive experience in accounting, reporting, management, and treasury operations. She is currently employed at the Bank of Nova Scotia as Director of Special Purpose Vehicles and has held various operational, corporate finance, and audit positions in the past. Through these roles, Kusyk has acquired a strong background in securitization, the CMHC programs, Special Purpose Vehicle management, corporate financing, as well as derivative operations, and has obtained a legal foundation in complex financial and tax structures. In addition, Kusyk has led operational training courses in Latin America, and has assisted with due diligence through mergers and acquisitions special task forces.

Kusyk graduated with distinction from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario, earning an Honours BA in Business Administration. She has received her US Certified Public Accountant (CPA) designation, completed her Corporate Financier (CF) qualification with the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA), and is an accomplished polyglot.

Dana Lezau

Dana LezauDana Lezau practices law in the area of creditors’ rights enforcement at Noik & Associates, a Toronto-based boutique firm. She has participated in many commercial and real-estate transactions, and is involved with different aspects of debtor-creditor law, estate law, and civil litigation for federally-regulated institutions. Lezau’s legal expertise across every province and territory has positioned her to work effectively with local counsel towards achieving the best resolution for clients.

Lezau completed her Certificate with distinction in Criminology and Criminal Justice and her LLB from the University of Windsor, securing several awards and scholarships including the Executive Dean’s List.

Alan Luk

Alan LukAlan Luk is Director of Legal and Development at Sarku Japan, the largest Japanese quick service restaurant chain in USA. Through this role, Luk has acquired in-house expertise in restaurant leasing and franchising together with experience in corporate legal support including trademarks, franchised business regulations compliance, commercial litigation, and insurance liabilities claims. Luk manages the legal portfolio for over 200 stores, as well as compliance with the franchise disclosure rules of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and some U.S. states. Luk is also working on the expansion of Sarku Japan into Colombia and Vietnam.

Luk received his Bachelor of Law degree from the University of Hong Kong, where he also completed a post-graduate Certificate of Laws. Luk qualified as a Solicitor of Hong Kong and England and Wales in 1996 and 1997 respectively.

Mark Mahoney

Mark MahoneyMark Mahoney is a member of Fraser Milner Casgrain’s Business Law Group and practices corporate/commercial and securities law. He provides advice to both public and private corporations in a wide variety of areas, including mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance transactions, share and asset purchase transactions, amalgamations and corporate restructurings. He also advises public issuers on general corporate law matters including stock exchange listings, continuous disclosure obligations and other regulatory compliance issues. Mahoney is also a member of the Young Professional Council of the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research and coaches the Osgoode Hall Law School Negotiating Team.

Mahoney completed his Bachelor of Business Administration at Wilfrid Laurier University and his Bachelor of Laws from University of Western Ontario, graduating with distinction. While completing his degrees, Mahoney gained experience in human rights law as well as brand management and international sales while working and studying in Spain, India and the Netherlands.

Shrianand Misir

Shrianand MisirShrianand Misir has seven years international experience leading comprehensive fund-raising and sales & marketing strategies for businesses and government agencies. He is the founder and president of AM Capital Inc., a boutique investment and consulting firm that focuses on the energy and technology industries. As a Legal Analyst for Merger Law Associates Ltd, a financial consulting practice catering to emerging growth companies, Misir recently contributed to the listing of a major Dubai company on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, managing investor relations, contracts and financial analysis.

Misir completed his BA in Marketing from the University of South Florida and his LLB at the University of Stirling in Scotland.

Matt Mortazavi

Matt MortazaviMatt Mortazavi has over 20 years’ experience in the engineering and construction industry.
In addition, he has worked for well-known consulting firms including Marshall Macklin Monaghan Ltd and Fenco Engineers Inc.  In 1999, he established Mortazavi Inc. after his return from Singapore, where he managed the construction of the $65 million dollar Singapore Civil Defense Training Camp.

Mortazavi has extensive experience in project and construction management, including management and restoration of a number of high-rise condominium and apartment buildings. He has assisted investors in creating development projects from land acquisition to marketing, financing, and managing construction. He has now expanded his practice overseas with joint venture partnerships in Singapore, Dubai and Qatar.

Mortazavi completed both his B.A.Sc. and his Masters degree in Civil Engineering, with a specialization in Project and Construction Management at the University of Waterloo.

Peter Ohonsi

Peter OhonsiPeter Ohonsi is a Global Loans Administrator at the Royal Bank of Canada, where he manages an international syndicated portfolio of loans for corporations ranging from energy, gas, oil, agriculture, insurance, financial, health, government, and other public sector organizations.

He also works as a Senior Principal Consultant for Imperial Trades & Maritime Consultants Ltd, where he advises clients of legal, compliance and regulatory requirements for the global business environment, with a focus on the law of contract, sale of goods and agency law.

Ohonsi completed his BA in Political Science at the Ambrose Alli University in Nigeria and his MBA in Corporate Finance & Strategic Marketing at the Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden.  He also holds several diplomas in international trade, ship-brokering, and shipping business & logistics from Canada and the United Kingdom.

Ugo Popadic

Ugo PopadicUgo Popadic is an international lawyer at Appleton and Associates, a law firm specializing in international trade and investment law. He provides advocacy and strategic legal analysis on investor-state disputes, bilateral investment treaties, state regulation of foreign direct investments and structured investment transactions.

Popadic completed his articles at Papazian Heisey Myers, a small full-service law firm in Toronto.  He was awarded the 2009 Ontario Expropriation Association prize for his paper on “Compensatory Standards for Expropriated Property at International Dispute Resolution,” and was an Oralist in the Philip C. Jessup 2009 International Moot Court Competition.

Popadic received his Honours BA in Political Science and History at University of Toronto, graduating with distinction. He completed his Bachelor of Laws at University of Windsor and received a certificate in public international law from The Hague Academy of International Law.

Cynthia Robertson

Cynthia RobertsonCynthia Robertson is Principal with Parkridge Properties Inc., a consultancy specializing in advisory services, organizational change and real estate development specializing in public-private partnerships (PPPs). She has also held management positions with the University of Toronto and the Technical Standards and Safety Authority in Toronto and is the Past President of the Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships. She was previously employed as Vice President of Government Relations with Corporate Communications Limited in Halifax. She spent over 13 years with the Government of Nova Scotia in executive positions working in the Management Board, the Department of Agriculture and Marketing and the Department of Business and Consumer Services.

Robertson is a graduate in Adult Education from St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, and earned a BA in Political Science and an MBA from Dalhousie University. She has also attended the Executive Program at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

Fateh Salim

Fateh SalimFateh Salim is Counsel for the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General.  Fateh practices civil litigation and has worked on a wide variety of subject matters including class actions,  administrative law, labour and employment and professional discipline law.  Fateh has appeared before various boards of arbitration, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice and both the Divisional Court and the Court of Appeal. He has also advised on inter-jurisdictional matters with specific emphasis on disputes under the World Trade Organization agreements and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Fateh recently completed a sabbatical with Zahaf & Partners, a Libyan law firm, advising multinational corporations and other foreign investors on a wide range of business-related matters including foreign investments, taxation, employment, financial transactions, and international dispute resolution. Fateh attended the University of Victoria where he studied Economics and Political Science. He received his LLB from University of Windsor Law School and was called to the Ontario Bar in 1999.

Matthew Scott

Matthew ScottMatthew Scott is Vice President, Legal and Chief Litigation Counsel at CI Financial, one of Canada's largest publicly traded fund companies. He manages all litigation matters for CI Financial Corp. and its affiliates.

As a lawyer with Groia & Company and Crawley Meredith Brush LLP, Scott worked on some of Canada's leading securities and corporate litigation cases. Scott has assisted clients with a full range of business litigation needs, including claims for and against stockbrokers; claims against banks, financial institutions and other major public companies; shareholder disputes and remedies; wrongful dismissal claims; breach of contract lawsuits; and defense of white-collar criminal prosecutions.

Scott completed his Bachelor of Commerce in International Business at University of Victoria and his LLB at the University of British Columbia. He also completed his Level 1 CFA with the Association for Investment Management & Research.

Brian Soye

Brian SoyeBrian Soye is Vice President, Head of Commercial and Special Situations at Realstar Group, one of Canada’s leading private equity real estate investment and management firms. He is responsible for advising on special situation investments with a current emphasis on manufactured housing. He has also acted as Vice President, Asset Manager for Realstar Capital Corporation.

Soye previously served as President and General Counsel for Madison Press Limited, one of the world’s leading independent book producers. He also worked for Nortel Networks in the Leadership Development Program and as an Associate at Goodmans LLP.

Soye received his LLB from Osgoode Hall Law School and completed his MBA at Ivey School of Business at University of Western Ontario, concentrating on Strategy and Operations.

Stanley Strug

Stanley StrugStanley Strug has spent the last 11 years as President of Parkridge Properties Inc., a real estate and infrastructure investment consulting company.  In this role, he has worked with private sector companies in Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada, as well as provincial governments, the federal government and United States government agencies. He has advised international clients on investment strategies and has led numerous infrastructure projects in both the public and private sectors to successful completion.

Stanley has been licensed as a general contractor in both Quebec and the state of Florida. He is presently a licensed real estate broker in the province of Nova Scotia and owner of Macro Realty Group, a Nova Scotia realty company. He completed his Honours Bachelor of Commerce at Dalhousie University.

Andrew Szonyi

Andrew SzonyiAndrew Szonyi is Principal of Andrew J. Szonyi & Associates Inc., which offers business consultancy in financial management, mergers and acquisitions, strategic planning, corporate governance, reorganization and privatization. Over the past 21 years, Szonyi has served over 100 clients in the private and public sectors and serves on the boards of several public and private corporations.  Szonyi has initiated and arranged debt and/or equity financings in Canada and overseas and has experience with IPOs, RTOs, M&A transactions and financings in excess of $2 billion.  He is also a Principal and Executive Vice President of First Nations Equity Inc., an aboriginal investment banking and advisory firm, and an associate of Caldwell Investment Management Ltd.

Szonyi owned and operated several businesses, was Professor of Management and Engineering at the University of Toronto, Program Director of a CIDA-Management Education Program in China, and Professional Development Director of the Association of Canadian Venture Capital Companies. He is senior author, co-author and contributor to several textbooks, including Small Business Management Fundamentals and Principles of Engineering Economic Analysis,both translated into several languages.

Szonyi received his undergraduate engineering education in Hungary and earned his M.A.Sc. and Ph.D degrees in Chemical Engineering as well as an M.B.A., all from the University of Toronto.

Kevin Thomas

Kevin ThomasFor the last 13 years, Kevin Thomas has served as Director of Advocacy for the Maquila Solidarity Network, an international NGO working in the field of labour rights. In this role, Thomas has developed and negotiated policies, codes of conduct and strategies for promoting fair labour practices in global supply chains.  He has also provided consulting services to governments and public institutions on procurement and social responsibility. His reports and analyses of trends in corporate social responsibility, global sourcing and working conditions are used and cited by businesses, organizations and academics.  Thomas has also acted as Chief Negotiator for the Lubicon Lake Indian Nation, a prominent Canadian First Nation, in land claims, economic development, intergovernmental, financial, land use, and business negotiations.

Thomas completed his Honours BA with High Distinction at the University of Toronto, earning a Specialist in Peace and Conflict Studies and a Major in Environment and Resource Management.

Hilary Thompson

Hilary ThompsonHilary Thompson is the Niagara Region Technical Services Manager of Enbridge Gas Distribution, where she manages a regional gas distribution network involving pressure regulation, transmission to distribution transfer facilities, commercial and industrial metering, regulatory compliance, and oversight of corrosion and leak survey programs. Previous positions at Enbridge have included field manager and senior project leader for both measurement and regulation and large capital engineering projects. She is a Steering Committee member of the women’s networking initiative at Enbridge, and has done NSERC-funded research in the area of alternative energy development.

Thompson is a Professional Engineer and completed her Honours B.Sc. in Chemical Engineering (Process Control) at Queen’s University where she received both the Engineering Society Prize and the Dean’s Award.

Denise Williams

Denise WilliamsDenise Williams is an Associate in the Corporate Finance/Securities Group at Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP.  Williams recently completed a secondment in the Toronto office of a South African mining company that is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Williams has also worked at Parkdale Community Legal Services in the social assistance, violence and health division advocating for clients with various government offices.

Williams completed her Honours Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology and Health Science (First Class with Distinction) from York University. She earned her JD from Osgoode Hall Law School, earning numerous awards and scholarships for her academic achievements and community involvement. Williams was one of five lawyers at Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP that was awarded a 2010 Political Pro Bono Zenith Award.