Shahzad Siddiqui

Shahzad has been involved in some of the most important legal actions in Ontario, including the leading case on the law of deposit in Canada, Azzarello v. Shawqi, which has been cited over 50 times including by the Alberta Court of Appeal, the Nova Scotia Supreme Court and also been profiled in the Toronto Star; Forest Hill Homes v. Ou, a precedent-setting case striking a high interest penalty clause, which has been cited with approval by the Ontario Court of Appeal; Aga v. Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, an Ontario case that went to the Supreme Court of Canada; and Treyes v. OLGC, involving a father, husband and Parkinson’s sufferer who lost his family and home and then fought the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation.

Shahzad is the author of several publications, including American Lawyer: Twelve Attorneys Who Have Transformed the United States for Twelve Tables Press, a book on Wills, Trusts and Estate Drafting in Canada recently published by Thomson Reuters and “Estate Planning for the Wealthy Entrepreneur” in the Financial Post.

Legal Background

A graduate of the University of Toronto, Shahzad obtained an LL.B from Osgoode Hall Law School and an LL.M from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. He lectured, on Abrahamic finance, at Harvard Law School in March 2010.

After articling at one of Canada’s oldest and largest law firms, Shahzad taught international business transactions and international law at Southwest University of Political Science and Law, a top-tier law school in the People’s Republic of China. He subsequently spearheaded the entry of a government-backed company based in Chongqing, the world’s largest city, into the Subcontinent.

Shahzad was profiled in The National Jurist magazine in November 2013, as an outstanding LL.M graduate of a U.S. law school. He was previously profiled as managing partner of his former firm in the “Meet the Head” column of IFN in September 2011.

Interests

Shahzad speaks English, Urdu/Hindi and Mandarin Chinese.

He has completed marathons in Toronto and on the Great Wall of China.

He has volunteered as a director of one of Canada’s top charities, International Development and Relief Foundation.

After playing competitive polo for 12 years, he returned to his first love, golf, and is a member of Wyndance Golf Club.

Sample Representative Work

· Assisting a TSX-V listed tech company in ongoing litigation matters in Ontario, Canada.

· Litigated breach of fiduciary duty and conversion of property action for a Canadian television broadcaster.

· Retained by world’s third largest manufacturer of fragrances, based in Tianjin, China, on complex, multi-party, long-running litigation involving contamination of commercial real estate in Toronto, Canada.

· Represented Canada’s largest grocery and baking company in appellate tax litigation.