Jennifer L. King
Jennifer King is a partner in Gowling WLG's Toronto office and a member of the firm's Environmental Law Group.
Jennifer's current practice focuses on strategic regulatory advice and litigation involving a wide array of complex environmental, land use planning and Indigenous issues. These matters include environmental assessments, complex development applications and approval regimes involving the environment including land use, cultural heritage, transportation and endangered species approvals.
Jennifer has been litigating complex commercial, tort and environmental matters for over ten years. Over the course of her career, she has acted as lead and co-counsel on all aspects of land use planning disputes, land contamination disputes, complex commercial litigation, class actions, product liability, professional liability litigation, health law, insurance coverage applications, and defamation litigation. Jennifer appears regularly before all levels of Ontario courts, including the Court of Appeal, and tribunals including the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (formerly the Ontario Municipal Board). Jennifer provides strategic advice to clients in all phases of litigation as well as in alterative dispute resolution. She has extensive experience negotiating settlements both informally and at formal mediations.
Jennifer's current work includes litigation for the Town of Oakville before the Ontario courts and tribunals regarding conservation of the Glen Abbey Golf Course, and work for Halton Region and four area municipalities related to the integration of land use standards within a federal environmental assessment panel review of a proposed major private sector intermodal transportation facility. Most recently, she represented the Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA) in both the Ontario and Saskatchewan Courts of Appeal cases surrounding the constitutionality of the federal Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act; both courts ruled in support of the Act.
Jennifer regularly works with multidisciplinary teams of specialized technical experts in her regulatory and advocacy practices.
Jennifer is co-author, along with Rodney Northey of Gowling WLG and Alastair R. Lucas of the University of Calgary, of the 2018 reissue of Halsbury's Laws of Canada - Environment (LexisNexis Canada). A comprehensive and authoritative guide to Canadian environmental law, the new edition covers a range of important topics, including environmental impact assessments, international obligations and civil liability issues.
Jennifer serves on the board of the Eastview Neighbourhood Community Centre, a charitable, multi-service neighbourhood centre that offers a broad range of recreational, social and capacity-building programs to residents in Toronto east end. She previously completed a five-year term as board president and vice-president of the Ralph Thornton Centre, a multi-purpose neighbourhood centre providing a range of community and social service programs.