Trials are about facts. In appeals, the facts are largely set, and the role of an appellate lawyer is to make the legal arguments—in the brief and in court—that explain why the decision below should be upheld or reversed in light of those facts. Torys’ appellate group, including numerous former Supreme Court of Canada and Ontario Court of Appeal clerks, brings the focus, advocacy and teamwork necessary to maximize our clients’ success on appeal.

When we are retained for the first time on appeal, we usually work closely with trial counsel, who is typically well-versed in the facts and evidence, as well as the procedural history. Sometimes we are retained to help write or edit the argument and appear as co-counsel in an appellate court.

We also regularly advise clients on seeking or resisting leave to appeal. We understand what makes a court want to hear—or not hear—an appeal.

In addition to corporate/commercial, class actions, securities, IP and employment cases, our appellate litigators have extensive expertise in constitutional and public law matters, having argued numerous cases under both the Charter and the Constitution Act, 1867. We regularly handle appeals from boards and tribunals, such as the CRTC, Securities Commissions and the Competition Tribunal, as well as conduct judicial reviews of regulatory decisions.

Recently, we have taken on several appeals and interventions on a fixed fee or other alternative fee arrangement. We are open to such arrangements, including an element of risk-sharing in appropriate cases.