The Commission

Justice Marie-Josée Hogue received her Bachelor of Civil Laws in 1986 from the Université de Sherbrooke. She was admitted to the Bar of Quebec in 1987, from which she received the distinction of Advocatus Emeritus in 2012. Before her appointment, she practiced primarily corporate commercial litigation, civil litigation and professional liability. She also practiced in administrative law and constitutional law.

She was appointed a judge of the Court of Appeal of Quebec on June 19, 2015.

Justice Hogue was in private practice for her entire career until her appointment to the bench. She was also a Law Clerk to the Honourable Antonio Lamer of the Supreme Court of Canada from 1988 to 1989.

Justice Hogue was received as a Fellow of The American College of Trial Lawyers in 2009 and was responsible for the Quebec chapter of this organization at the time of her appointment to the Court of Appeal. She has appeared before all levels of the Quebec civil courts and appellate courts, frequently appeared before domestic and international arbitration tribunals and acted on several occasions as arbitrator.

She is also the author of several publications dealing with various subjects, particularly in terms of ethics and arbitration. She is about to complete Specialized Graduate Studies in Applied Ethics undertaken at the Department of Philosophy of the Université of Sherbrooke.
Justice Hogue is fluently bilingual.

Shantona Chaudhury, a partner at Pape Chaudhury LLP, is a highly-regarded litigator with significant experience in both national security law and public inquiries. Shantona regularly acts as amicus curiae to the Federal Court of Canada and the Federal Court of Appeal in matters involving national security, and recently acted as co-Lead Counsel to the Public Order Emergency Commission. Her private practice includes civil and commercial litigation, class actions, administrative law, and constitutional law.

In 2023, Shantona received the Advocates’ Society’s prestigious Douglas K. Laidlaw Award for Excellence in Advocacy. She is ranked in the Chambers Guide to Canada’s Leading Lawyers, Lexpert, Best Lawyers, and Benchmark Litigation. She is also a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America.

Shantona is a former law clerk to Justice Ian Binnie of the Supreme Court of Canada, and is the co-Executive Director of the Supreme Court Advocacy Institute. She holds a B.C.L./LL.B. from McGill University and a B.C.L from the University of Oxford, as well as an M.A. in French Literature and a B.A. in French Studies from Queen’s University. Born and raised in Montréal, Shantona is called to the Bar in both Ontario and Québec.

Gordon Cameron obtained law degrees from the University of Toronto and the University of Oxford and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1987. He has practiced public and administrative law since then, for private sector clients and as tribunal and commission counsel.

Gordon’s practice is focused on national security law. His work in this area has included acting as a Special Advocate in security certificate cases, as counsel to the Security Intelligence Review Committee and the Public Order Emergency Commission, and as amicus curiae to the Arar Inquiry and in over forty national security cases before the Federal Courts.

Erin Dann is a criminal defence lawyer and partner at Embry Dann LLP. She has a busy trial and appellate practice and has acted in over 100 appeals at the Court of Appeal for Ontario and the Supreme Court of Canada. Erin is regularly appointed amicus curiae in criminal cases involving mental health issues and frequently acts as referee in privilege litigation matters.  In 2022-2023, Erin was senior counsel to the Public Order Emergency Commission.

Erin is also a member of the Pro Bono Inmate Appeal Program, is the Toronto co-ordinator for the Supreme Court Advocacy Institute, sits on the Case Review Committee of Innocence Canada, and is an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall Law School.  She earned an LL.B. from Queen’s University in 2007, graduating first in her class. Erin clerked for the Honourable Justice Morris Fish at the Supreme Court of Canada and was called to the bar in 2008.

Matthew Ferguson is an experienced Crown attorney on a leave of absence from the Montreal office of the Directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales (DPCP) where he specializes in high-profile, complex prosecutions, regularly before judge and jury.

In 2017, Matthew received the Courage and Perseverance Award presented by the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Heads of Prosecutions Committee recognizing his professional excellence and outstanding tenacity in completing the longest jury trial in Canadian history.

Matthew holds a LL.B. from l’Université de Montréal (2006) as well as a B.A. (honours in Linguistics) from Concordia University (2002). He is the Quebec editor of the Criminal Reports and of the National Judicial Institute’s Criminal Essentials e-letter. He also teaches criminal law at the Quebec Bar School.
 

Hubert is a member of the Québec Bar since 2019 and holds a Bachelor and Masters of Law from the University of Montreal, where he was a research assistant for Professors Noura Karazivan and Jean Leclair. Before coming to the Commission, Hubert clerked for Justice Marie-France Bich at the Quebec Court of Appeal and practiced sports law at the World Anti-Doping Agency, in Montreal.

Leila Ghahhary is an international Barrister, practicing in Canada and the UK; ranked as a Tier 1 Leading Barrister by the Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners in Public Inquiries, Inquests, Business and Regulatory Crime.

Leila brings significant experience in public inquiries, regulatory, and international law to the Commission. She acts in complex, high-profile public inquiries of national significance representing government departments, public and private organisations, individuals, and as Counsel to the Inquiry. This includes acting as Counsel for the UK Government’s Cabinet Office and No.10 Downing Street in the UK Covid19 Public Inquiry, the bereaved families in the Manchester Arena Inquiry, the UK Information Commissioner in relation to the Northern Ireland Renewable Heat Incentive Inquiry, as Counsel to the Gosport Independent Panel Inquiry, and in the Hillsborough Inquests. Leila also has extensive experience acting in large complex regulatory cases, including the largest ever UK trading standards prosecution. In 2023, Leila completed a Masters with Honours in international law, global governance, and human rights at Columbia University, receiving The Parker School Recognition of Achievement Certificate.

Leila is appointed onto the UK Attorney General’s Panel of Counsel, Panel of Specialist Regulatory Counsel, and Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Panel of Counsel.
 

Benjamin Herrera has been a member of the Quebec Bar since 2022. Prior to joining the Commission, Benjamin practiced in the litigation group of the Montreal office of Stikeman Elliott, where he was initially recruited in 2018. At Stikeman Elliott, Benjamin maintained a diversified litigation practice, with a particular interest in public law and corporate litigation. Benjamin holds a bachelor's degree in civil and common law (B.C.L./J.D.) from McGill University.
 

Howard Krongold is a Certified Specialist in Criminal Law and a partner at AGP LLP, based in Ottawa. His practice focuses on criminal appeals and national security litigation. Howard has acted in over 125 appeals before the Court of Appeal for Ontario and has argued over half a dozen times in the Supreme Court of Canada. Since 2018, he has appeared as amicus curiae in national security cases before the Federal Court of Canada.

Howard is a Director and long-time volunteer for the Pro Bono Inmate Appeal Program. He holds a B.A. (Honours) from the University of King’s College and an LL.B. from Dalhousie University. He was called to the Ontario bar in 2005. Before starting his practice in Canada, he trained for a year with members of the English bar as a Fox Scholar.

Hannah Lazare comes to the Commission on a leave of absence from Stikeman Elliott LLP, where she practices in the litigation group of the Montreal Office. In law school, Hannah clerked for Justice Sophie Bourque at the Superior Court of Montreal (Criminal Chamber) and was a research assistant for Professor Emeritus Pierre-Gabriel Jobin.

Hannah has a B.A. (Hon.) from the University of Toronto in Ethics, Society, and Law and Philosophy, and a B.C.L/J.D from McGill. Hannah is a member of the Quebec Bar.

Jean-Philippe MacKay comes to the Commission on a leave of absence from the Montreal office of the Directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales (DPCP) where he specializes in appellate proceedings and firearms prosecutions.

Jean-Philippe was called to the Quebec Bar in 2014 and holds a B.C.L./LL.B. from McGill University (2013), as well as a B.A. from Université du Québec à Montréal (2010). Before joining the DPCP, he clerked for the Honourable Justice Yves-Marie Morissette at the Quebec Court of Appeal and practiced civil litigation in a Montreal firm.

Jean-Philippe taught criminal procedure at the McGill University’s Faculty of Law and is acting as a legal consultant for the École nationale de police du Québec. In 2022, he was named lawyer of the year in criminal law by the Young Bar of Montreal.

Emily McBain-Ashfield is an associate at RavenLaw LLP, where she practices in the fields of labour, human rights, and administrative law. She was called to the Ontario bar in 2022. Prior to starting her practice, she worked as a judicial law clerk for Associate Chief Justice Fairburn and Justice Roberts at the Court of Appeal for Ontario. Emily earned her JD degree from the University of Ottawa and was awarded the Common Law Silver Medal. In addition to her law degree, Emily holds a Master of Arts and Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Ottawa. 

Kate McGrann is a partner at Crawley MacKewn Brush LLP, where she practices civil litigation with a focus on public law and administrative law, corporate commercial and M&A litigation, and securities litigation. She served as Senior Enforcement Counsel in the Enforcement Branch of the Ontario Securities Commission on a secondment where she, among other things, provided advice on confidential investigations. Kate brings significant experience in public inquiries to her work on this Commission. She served as lead inquiry counsel on the Town of Collingwood Judicial Inquiry, and as co-lead commission counsel on the Ontario COVID-19 Long-Term Care Commission, and the Ottawa Light Rail Transit Commission. Kate has been ranked as a leading litigator by Lexpert, Benchmark Litigation, and Best Lawyers. In 2021, she received the Lexpert Rising Star Award which recognizes leading lawyers under the age of 40 across Canada. From 2018-2022, Benchmark Litigation named Kate as one of the top litigation lawyers under 40 in Canada.

Hamza is an associate at Stikeman Elliott LLP in Toronto within the Litigation & Dispute Resolution Group. His practice focuses on commercial litigation, including securities law, competition law, corporate and commercial matters, white collar crime/fraud litigation, public and administrative law, and class actions.  He has represented clients in several internal investigations and regulatory investigations. Prior to joining Stikeman Elliott, Hamza spent time at a large international law firm in Paris.  Hamza was called to the Ontario bar in 2021 and graduated with a BCL/JD from McGill University in 2020. He also holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Wilfrid Laurier University, where he graduated as a Gold Medalist in 2016.   
 

Lynda is a partner at ALG.  She has a criminal and regulatory law practice with expertise in search and seizure issues.

Before joining ALG, Lynda worked for nine years at a top criminal and regulatory boutique firm in Toronto. Lynda also gained experience on the other side of the courtroom as an Assistant Crown Attorney for the Guns & Gangs Unit. Lynda acts as duty counsel for the Law Society of Ontario and the Pro Bono Inmate Appeal Program.

Lynda earned her law degree from the University of Ottawa, where she graduated at the top of her class and earned awards including prizes for highest standing in criminal law and procedure.

Lynda is a member of the Criminal Lawyers’ Association and the Advocates Society. She is a regular speaker at search and seizure conferences and co-chair of the annual Osgoode Tech Crime Conference.

Siobhan Morris is an associate at Conway Baxter Wilson LLP in Ottawa. She practices civil litigation, with a focus on public and administrative law and appellate advocacy. She recently completed her LLM degree at Harvard Law School, where she wrote on the tensions between judicial independence and judge-supportive artificial intelligence tools. Siobhan is a former law clerk to Chief Justice Richard Wagner at the Supreme Court of Canada, and to Justice Judith Woods at the Federal Court of Appeal. She earned her JD degree from Queen’s University, graduating with the Dean’s Gold Scholar Award and the Medal in Law. Before that, she completed her Bachelor of Science with First Class Honours in Physics at St. Francis Xavier University, where she won awards for her research in computational modelling of materials. She was raised in Halifax and is called to the bar in Ontario.

Annie-Claude Poirier is a member of the Quebec Bar since 2023. After obtaining a Bachelor of Law from the University of Montreal, she worked as a law clerk at the Quebec Court of Appeal for the Honourable Marie-Josée Hogue. In addition to her law degree, Annie-Claude holds a Bachelor in Health Sciences from the University of Montreal.

Gabriel Poliquin is an experienced legal counsel and litigator whose practice is focused on public law, including administrative and constitutional law cases. In 2022-2023, Gabriel was senior counsel to the Public Order Emergency Commission. 

Prior to obtaining his LL.B. from the University of Ottawa in the French common law program, Gabriel obtained a Ph.D. in linguistics from Harvard University.  He clerked for the Honourable Justice Louis LeBel at the Supreme Court of Canada in 2010-2011.  Since 2018, he has taught private international law in the French common law and bijuridical programmes at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law.  He is called to the bars of Ontario and Quebec.

Natalia Rodriguez is a partner at Conway Baxter Wilson LLP in Ottawa. She practices civil litigation and dispute resolution, with a focus on commercial litigation, public and administrative law and appellate advocacy. She has been recognized in the Lexpert guide to Canada's leading lawyers.

In May 2022, Natalia was appointed Senior Commission Counsel to the Public Order Emergency Commission, inquiring into the circumstances that led to the Federal Government's declaration of emergency in February 2022, and the measures taken thereunder. From 2012-2014, she served as Commission Counsel for the Elliot Lake Commission of Inquiry investigating the collapse of the Algo Centre Mall and the subsequent emergency response.

Natalia is a bencher of the Law Society of Ontario and an adjudicator of the Law Society Tribunal of Ontario. She is a former judicial law clerk to Justice Louis LeBel at the Supreme Court of Canada and to the judges at the Court of Appeal for Ontario. Natalia graduated from Queen’s University with the Silver Medal in Law in 2010.

Guillaume Rondeau is a lawyer specializing in simplifying legal communications. He acts as a consultant to numerous public and private organizations, and as a trainer and coach to professionals in law and other fields. He is also a lecturer at McGill University in the legal translation graduate program. Guillaume has developed in-depth expertise in the field of clear communication and legal design. He was scientific director for the Clarity 2018 international conference, guest editor for The Clarity Journal, and speaker at various conferences of the Plain Language Association International (PLAIN). He received his law degree from Université de Sherbrooke and was admitted to the Quebec Bar in 2010. He worked for 13 years at Éducaloi, an organization dedicated to legal information and education for the general public, where he held the positions of Chief Plain Language Specialist and Clear Communication Expert.

Nicolas Saint-Amour is a member of the Quebec bar since 2022. After obtaining a Bachelor of Law from the University of Montreal, Nicolas worked as a law clerk at the Quebec Court of Appeal for the Honourable Stephen W. Hamilton. In addition to his law degree, Nicolas holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from HEC Montreal.

Daniel Sheppard is a lawyer in the Toronto office of Goldblatt Partners LLP, where he specializes in public and constitutional law. Daniel mainly acts for trade unions, non-governmental organizations, and independent public authorities. He also acts as court-appointed referee in solicitor-client privilege disputes and has experience supervising the execution of search warrants. Daniel has litigated numerous cases before the Supreme Court of Canada, federal and provincial appellate courts, and international courts and tribunals. In 2022-2023, Daniel was Senior Commission Counsel to the Public Order Emergency Commission. Daniel Graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School in 2009 as the Silver Medalist before clerking at the Court of Appeal for Ontario. He teaches constitutional law at Osgoode Hall and has peer reviewed publications in the areas of international law, criminal law, and public interest litigation.

Maia Tsurumi’s areas of expertise include civil and commercial litigation, class actions, constitutional rights, regulatory investigations, jurisdictional issues, administrative law, and Aboriginal title and rights. She has also worked with federal and provincial commissions.

Maia is a member of the Law Society of British Columbia’s disciplinary panel pool, a recipient of Pivot Legal Society’s Access to Justice Award (2014) and Vice President of the Community Legal Assistance Society, as well as pro bono counsel for non-profit organizations working on constitutional and civil liberties issues. She was raised in Victoria and Japan and is called to the bar in British Columbia.

Geneviève Cartier is a full professor in the Faculty of Law at the Université de Sherbrooke. She holds a doctorate from the University of Toronto. She teaches and researches in the fields of administrative and constitutional law, with a particular interest in the foundations of law and the rule of law. She is a former Herbert Smith Freehills Fellow of the Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge, and a Life Fellow of Clare Hall College, Cambridge. Professor Cartier has been a member of the Governing Board of the Université de Sherbrooke, a member of the Advisory Council of the Law Commission of Canada, and Vice-Dean and Interim Dean of her Faculty. From 2012 to 2015, she held the full-time position of Research Director for the Quebec Commission of Inquiry into the Awarding and Management of Public Contracts in the Construction Industry (the Charbonneau Commission) and, in 2022, she chaired the Research Council of the federal Public Order Emergency Commission (the Rouleau Commission).

Nomi Claire Lazar is Professor in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa. She is the author of a wide range of scholarship on crisis government, rights, and democratic theory, including the books States of Emergency in Liberal Democracies (Cambridge Press, 2009/13) and Out of Joint: Power, Crisis, and the Rhetoric of Time (Yale Press, 2019). Professor Lazar holds a PhD in political science from Yale University, as well as degrees from University College London and the University of Toronto. She has taught at the University of Chicago and Yale, and served as Associate Dean of Faculty at Yale-NUS College. In addition to her academic work, Professor Lazar is active in civil society, working on prisoners’ rights issues, and sitting on the University of Ottawa’s Governing Board. Prior to her doctoral studies, she worked with Justice Canada on the policy framework around the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Lori Turnbull is a Professor in the Faculty of Management at Dalhousie University and a senior advisor at the Institute for Public Policy and Governance. Her research and teaching focus on parliamentary democracy and governance, elections, public sector ethics, and democratic reform. She has taught political science and public administration at Dalhousie, Queen’s, Carleton, and Acadia universities. Dr. Turnbull's work has been published in many highly ranked journals in public administration and political science. Her book Democratizing the Constitution: Reforming Responsible Government, co-authored with Mark Jarvis and the late Peter Aucoin, won the Donner Prize in 2011 and the Donald Smiley Prize in 2012. Professor Turnbull has worked as a policy researcher for the Commission of Inquiry into Certain Allegations Respecting Business and Financial Dealings Between Karlheinz Schreiber and the Right Honorable Brian Mulroney. More recently, from July 2015 until July 2017, she was seconded to the Privy Council Office in Ottawa, first as a policy advisor in the Machinery of Government Secretariat, then as departmental liaison to the Office of the Minister of Democratic Institutions, and finally as a policy advisor at the Priorities and Planning Secretariat.

Leah West (SJD) is an Associate Professor at the Norman Patterson School of International Affairs, Carleton University, where she teaches graduate courses on national security law, international law, counterterrorism and ethics. Dr. West is the co-author, along with Craig Forcese of National Security Law (Irwin, 2021, 2 ed), and a co-editor of Stress Tested: The COVID-19 Pandemic and Canadian National Security (UCP, 2021). She is also the author of several peer-reviewed articles on legal issues concerning national security, cyber operations and the law of armed conflict, and is a regular commentator on national security matters for Canadian and international media outlets. She has testified before both the House of Commons and the Senate, and the European Parliament. Dr. West serves on the editorial board of the Journal of National Security Law and Policy and Terrorism and Political Violence. Additionally, Dr. West is a practicing lawyer with Friedman Mansour LLP, supporting the firm’s criminal, quasi-criminal and administrative law practice. She has appeared before the Ontario Superior Court, the Federal Court of Canada, the Security Intelligence Review Committee, and the Supreme Court of Canada. 

As the co-founder in his firm, Paul is a leading constitutional, labour and administrative law lawyer, arguing significant cases before the Supreme Court of Canada, the Courts of Ontario, and labour and administrative tribunals.

Paul was appointed by Associate Chief Justice Dennis O'Connor to act as lead commission counsel to the Commission of Inquiry into the Actions of Canadian Officials in Relation to Maher Arar. Previously, Paul acted as lead commission counsel in the Walkerton Inquiry. In this role, Paul was responsible for ensuring all necessary evidence was brought forward to determine the cause of the May, 2000 e coli water supply crisis.

More recently, Paul has been appointed by the Federal Minister of Justice to act as a Special Advocate in security certificate cases. In this regard, Paul acts as counsel representing the interests of persons alleged to be threats to the national security of Canada in top secret hearings before the Federal Court of Canada in Ottawa. Paul's role is to ensure that the top secret evidence relied upon by the government is reliable and that as much information as possible is released to the named person so that he is given an opportunity to defend against the allegations. Paul is presently acting in one security certificate case which have been ongoing since February 2008.

Paul was awarded the Order of Canada, the Order of Ontario and the Law Society Medal for his contributions to social justice, equality and the rule of law in Canada.

Paul graduated with honours from Osgoode Hall Law School in 1970 and Harvard Law School in 1971.

A graduate of the Université de Sherbrooke Law School, Danielle Côté began her practice as a legal aid lawyer before joining a private firm. 

In 1983, she was appointed a crown prosecutor under what is now known as the Directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales (DPCP). In 1989, she joined the Public Prosecution Service of Canada (PPSC).

In parallel with her practice, she was a lecturer at the Université de Sherbrooke Law School, the Université du Québec à Montréal Department of Legal Sciences and for the Québec Bar. 

She was appointed a judge of the Court of Québec in 1994, where she heard cases in the Criminal and Penal Division, the Civil Division, the Professions Tribunal and the Administrative and Appeal Division. 

Upon being appointed to the bench, she became involved in the continuing education of judges, both at the Court of Québec and at the National Judicial Institute.

In 2011, she was appointed Associate Chief Judge of the Criminal and Penal Division of the Court of Québec for a seven-year term.

Me Coté retired as a judge in 2023.

After a federal public service career of over 30 years, Annie Desgagné retired in August 2020 as the Regional Director General of Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC). Annie joined PSPC from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada in 2012 where she was the Director of Programs, Policy, and Planning. 

Annie began her public sector career with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, where she held increasingly senior positions in Ottawa and Vancouver providing industrial development policy and program advice across several industrial sectors including aerospace/defence, health/pharmaceuticals, and clean energy. 

Annie holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Ottawa as well as a master's degree in business administration with a specialization in technology commercialization from the University of Alberta.​​​

Originally from Montreal, Rear-Admiral (retired) Casper Donovan, served in the Canadian Armed Forces for 35 years.  His tours of duty have seen him serve on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, ultimately serving as Commanding Officer of Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship Vancouver.  He deployed around the world on Canadian, Coalition and NATO missions, including to Afghanistan.  Promoted to Flag rank in 2016 following an assignment to the Privy Council Office in support of the National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister of Canada, he was charged with playing the lead role in determining what ships and capabilities the Navy needs in the future.  He retired in 2022 while serving as Deputy Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy. 

Michael Tansey is a communications professional with over 30 years of experience in strategic communications planning, media relations and crisis communications. A former journalist, Michael has worked on four previous public inquiries, including the Public Order Emergency Commission and the Commission of Inquiry into the Bombing of Air India Flight 182. He is also a freelance writer/photographer who has worked in every major policy area including Indigenous affairs, health, justice, the environment, and intergovernmental affairs. 

Michael was educated in English and French in Montreal and is fully bilingual.