Offering creative advice and skilled advocacy, John is a leading tax lawyer, advising many of Canada’s largest businesses and financial institutions.
John solves tax problems with his notably broad experience covering transactional work, planning and counsel roles, and tax controversy/transfer pricing for many of Canada’s largest businesses and financial institutions. Multinational and Canadian organizations in the private and public sectors have worked closely with John across a broad mix of tax matters, including tax structuring, international transactions, transfer pricing, tax controversy, corporate finance, derivatives, securitization and mergers and acquisitions.
John has represented international and domestic businesses, banks, financial institutions, mutual funds and government agencies in a wide range of matters. From domestic and cross-border transactions, infrastructure, energy (including wind, solar and hydro) and public private partnerships, to financial products, lending and securitizations, income funds, managed assets and leasing, John’s multidimensional experience benefits clients across industries. John has also worked extensively in the areas of federal and provincial income tax, international tax, sales and use tax, goods and services tax and harmonized sales tax.
Clients enthuse: ‘He is practical and a pleasure to deal with.’’
—Chambers Canada, 2021
2020-2025 | Chambers Canada—Leading lawyer in tax |
2021-2024 | Chambers Global—Leading lawyer in tax |
2023-2025 | World Tax—Highly regarded in general corporate tax |
2006-2024 | Best Lawyers in Canada—Leading lawyer in equipment finance law and structured finance law |
2018-2021 | Lexpert/American Lawyer's Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada—Leading lawyer in corporate tax |
2012-2023 | The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory—Leading lawyer in asset securitization, asset equipment finance/leasing, corporate tax and derivative investments |
2018 | Lexpert/Thomson Reuters' Guide to the Leading U.S./Canada Cross-Border Corporate Lawyers in Canada—Most frequently recommended lawyer in tax |
2018 | Best Lawyers in Canada—Equipment Finance Law Lawyer of the Year in Toronto |
2002 | Lexpert’s Rising Stars: Leading Lawyers Under 40—One of Canada’s leading lawyers under 40 |
John is a current governor of the Canadian Tax Foundation and a current director of the International Fiscal Association (Canada Branch). He is the past Chair of the Board of the Michael Garron Hospital (formerly Toronto East General Hospital), as well as the former Chair of its Construction Redevelopment Committee, currently building a $500 million addition.
John is a Tax Committee Member of both the Canadian Finance and Leasing Association and the Investment Funds Institute of Canada.
In addition, John served in the Adjunct Faculty of Law at Osgoode Hall Law School (2012-2016) (teaching International Tax Seminar), was the President of the Osgoode Hall Law School Alumni Association 2009 to 2012 and a guest lecturer for the University of Toronto Corporate Tax Law course.
Further, John is a member of the Canadian Finance and Leasing Association, the Investment Funds Institute of Canada, the Canadian Tax Foundation and the International Fiscal Association. He is also a member of Canada Company, which is a liaison group between Canadian business leaders and the Canadian Forces.