Todd J. Burke

Todd Burke is an effective problem solver providing high-level strategic and legal advice to our clients. He practices in the areas of complex commercial litigation, insurance defence, professional liability and crisis management. Todd is one of six members of the Firm’s International Board.

In over 30 years of practice, Todd has represented national and international clients in a number of sectors, including manufacturing, pharmaceutical, sports, technology, defence, transportation, finance, health and nuclear energy. Todd also regularly advises public entities including Crown Corporations and Agents, as well as national not for profit associations.

In civil and arbitration mandates, he delivers effective representation, proven value and excellent client service. In one trade secret case, the judge commented that an expert "was largely destroyed" based on Todd's cross-examination. Todd’s complex commercial litigation practice involves disputes arising from M&A transactions, technology disputes (including software implementations and AI), class action defence (most recently as lead counsel in a seven week class action trial), real estate disputes, shareholder disputes, environmental contamination, product liability, transportation matters, and leading corporate investigations.

For many years, Todd has represented professionals from many disciplines whether before regulators, in the Courts or in responding to investigations. His many years of experience and his sensitivity to reputational issues makes him an effective advocate for his clients. Todd leads a national team of professionals responding to professional liability issues on behalf of Lloyd's of London insurers and is the Co-Leader of our Lloyd's of London Client Service Team.

Todd also has extensive experience in domestic and international arbitration, cross-border issues and in obtaining injunctions. He is the Co-Leader of International Arbitration at Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP.

 In 2021, Todd was the winner of the Lexology Client Choice Award for Litigation in Canada. Comments made by his clients demonstrate Todd's commitment to client service:

• "Todd led a team which provided great service to our clients and partners and his handling of complex matters was superlative, permitting us to achieve excellent results."
• "Todd was a full-fledged partner at all levels, sharing his vast experience and knowledge with my team and myself, thus permitting us to better attain our objectives. No matter how complex or urgent the situation, we could always count on Todd."
• "Todd Burke is one of our most trusted advisors. When we call on Todd for his expertise, we know that, in doing so, we can count on him to provide us with real value."
• "He has a way of helping us to peel away complexity, getting to the heart of the matter and driving results for our team."
• "In the support Todd provides, we know that Todd will not only address our specific question or need but will do so in a way that offers us choices and a practical approach."
• "Todd is always looking for ways to solve problems that don't necessarily fall into the usual process and often will go out of his way to solve problems that at first blush may seem unsolvable."
• "Todd is an effective communicator, and he is deeply aware of the intricacies of our business, for which he makes a point of getting familiar with. This allows him to effectively serve our needs and ultimately obtain the best results for our business."

Todd was also the winner of the Lexology Client Choice Award for Litigation in Ontario in 2018. In addition, Todd has been top ranked in Lexpert, Best Lawyers in Canada and Benchmark Litigation. Todd is recognized as a stand-out lawyer by Thomson Reuters.

Given his broad experience, Todd is available to act as an arbitrator on cases in the commercial, insurance and professional liability fields.

In the past, Todd has led the firm's National Commercial Litigation Group, the Firm's US and European Initiatives and was the lead Trustee of the Firm's Canadian Board of Trustees. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Hnatyshyn Foundation, a charitable Foundation dedicated to the enhancement of the Arts. Todd is also a dedicated minor league hockey volunteer and an enthusiastic yet sub-average player of the game.