Stephen A. Pike

Stephen A. Pike is a Toronto-based partner at Gowling WLG and co-leader of the firm's Canadian ESG Advisory Services practice.

As a senior legal advisor to Canadian, American and global businesses, Stephen regularly advises on corporate, governance, ESG, transactional, operational and risk management issues, including supply chain, product distribution, regulatory compliance, as well as product liability matters.

He is co-editor of ESG in the Boardroom: A Guidebook for Directors, published by the American Bar Association and hosted the ABA Business Law Section’s “ESG in the Boardroom” podcast series.

He advises businesses and investors in Canada and the U.S. frequently on ESG and how they can address and mitigate the risks of forced labour and child labour in their supply chains.

Stephen appeared as a witness before the Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights to give evidence regarding Bill S-211 (now Canada's Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act).

Stephen is a member of the board of directors of the International Commission of Jurists – Canada, co-chair of the ESG Joint Subcommittee, and Vice-Chair of the Corporate Governance Committee of the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association. 

Stephen is a member of the Finance, Audit and Risk Management Committee of the Canadian Cancer Society.

He is a member of the 2021-2024 Program Faculty of the ESG, Sustainability, Climate Risk and the Law Professional Development Certificate Course at Osgoode Hall Law School. He also was a member of the Program Faculty of the Osgoode Hall Law School “Managing Legal and Business Risk in the Supply Chain” Professional Development Certificate program.

He regularly speaks about forced labour, child labour modern slavery in supply chains to business and legal organizations, and has spoken at meetings of the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), Women Get on Board, the Ontario Bar Association, Responsible Investment, Governance Professionals of Canada, Canadian Corporate Counsel Association, the American Bar Association, ESG Summit Toronto,  National Association of Corporate Directors, the Canadian Centre for Ethics and Corporate Policy, Canadian Public Sector Pensions and Benefits Conference, and at the Legal ESG Summit – New York.

Stephen holds the ICD.D. designation having completed the Directors Education Program offered by the Institute of Corporate Directors and the Rotman School of Management.

Stephen has written a 20+ part continuing series offering insights for Canadian CEOs and directors on addressing modern slavery in their businesses and supply chains. He also co-authored three chapters – "Managing Reputational Risk," "Enterprise Risk Management," and "Governing the Multinational Enterprise" – in the Director's Handbook: A Field Guide to 101 Situations Commonly Encountered in the Boardroom, published by the American Bar Association.