The Board of Governors, comprised of representatives of the founding partners and at-large members, determines policy for the LCO and approves projects, discussion papers and reports, among other responsibilities. Governors serve for three years.

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Raj Anand (Chair)

Raj joined the LCO Board of Governors in 2014 and was appointed Chair effective April 16, 2020. After 25 years as a partner with WeirFoulds LLP, he set up his own firm in 2024 through Raj Anand Professional Corporation.

Raj acts as a mediator, adjudicator, investigator or counsel, largely in administrative, human rights and regulatory cases. He served as an elected Bencher of the Law Society of Ontario for three terms,  and he previously worked with the Law Reform Commissions of Ontario and Canada. Raj taught undergraduate or graduate law school courses in administrative law and professional ethics for over 20 years.

Work Experience

  • Lawyer, Raj Anand Professional Corporation (2024—)
  • Partner, WeirFoulds LLP (1998—2023)
  • Partner, Scott & Aylen (1989—1998)
  • Chief Commissioner, Ontario Human Rights Commission (1988—89)
  • Partner, Cavalluzzo Hayes & Shilton (1985—87)
  • Partner, Laskin Jack & Harris (1983—85)
  • Partner, Cameron Brewin & Scott (1980—83)

Achievements

  • Dean’s Key, University of Toronto Faculty of Law (1978)
  • Chair, Ontario Task Force on the Law of Trespass to Publicly Used Property as it affects Youth and Minorities (1986—87)
  • Bilingual Adjudicator, Ontario Human Rights and Police Boards of Inquiry (1989—94), U of T Tribunal (1998—2010) and Law Society Tribunal (since 2007); Vice Chair of the Law Society Tribunal Hearing Division (2015—19); currently Panel Chair for Discipline Committees of four other professional regulators, and Mediator for the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal
  • President, Pro Bono Law Ontario (2003—05), Minority Advocacy and Rights Council (1989—2000) and U of T Law Alumni Assn (2006—08) and Acting President of the International Commission of Jurists (Canada) (2014—15)
  • Board of Directors, Advocates’ Society; Legal Aid Ontario; Income Security Advocacy Centre; Justice for Children; Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
  • Founding Chair, Ontario Human Rights Legal Support Centre (2008—10)
  • Elected Bencher of Law Society (2007—19); served as Chair of Tribunal Committee, Working Groups on Systemic Racism in the Legal Profession, Tribunal Reform, and Tribunal Three Year Review; Member of various Law Society standing committees and task forces
  • Published numerous articles and chapters on equality rights, constitutional and administrative law, access to justice, appellate advocacy, legal ethics and employment law
  • McMurtry Fellow, Osgoode Hall Law School (2013)
  • Asper Centre Constitutional Litigator in Residence (2015—16)
  • Recipient of Law Society Medal; SABA Distinguished Career Award; Indo-Canadian Chamber of Commerce Man of the Year; FACL Lifetime Achievement Award; Desi Achievers Award; Arbor Award; OBA Distinguished Service Award; Advocates’ Society Award of Justice; and SOAR medal

Education

  • A., Queen’s University, BA (1975)
  • B, University of Toronto Faculty of Law (1978)

Called to Ontario Bar

  • 1980
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Neha Chugh (Vice-Chair)

Neha Chugh joined the LCO Board of Governors in January 2021 and is the appointee of the Law Foundation of Ontario. Neha is a criminal defence lawyer practicing in Eastern Ontario since 2011, and since 2014 has been the owner and managing partner of Chugh Law Professional Corporation.

Neha graduated from the University of Waterloo with honours degrees in Sociology and Social Work, a Masters of Science from the University of Guelph in Planning, and a juris doctorate from Osgoode Hall Law School at York University. Neha is currently working on a PhD from Concordia University under the supervision of Dr. Martin French focusing on problem solving courts, therapeutic justice, and access to justice.

Following law school and her articles with the Honourable Justice David Berg and defence lawyer Gerald Logan, she joined Dotsikas Hawtin in Ottawa where she worked for two years before setting up Chugh Law Professional Corporation in Cornwall. Neha’s focus is primarily on conducting effective trials and managing fair resolutions, with a specific focus on youth and adult mental health, litigation, and research. She has conducted a wide range of judge-alone and jury trials including break and enters, sexual assaults, assaults, mischiefs, drinking and driving, and cases in front of various tribunals in Ontario.

Neha also serves as the prosecutor in the Akwesasne Court, assists with provincial offences prosecutions with the City of Cornwall, and is an instructor at Iohahi:io Akwesasne Education & Training Institute.  Neha serves as the chair of the board of the Centre York Centre supervised access facility in Cornwall, on the community editorial board of the Cornwall Standard Freeholder, and on the board of directors of CUREA/CURET – an organization founded to address systemic racism in local institutions. In her spare time, Neha can be found playing board games with her kids or taking walks with her mom squad.

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Andrew Bernstein

Andrew Bernstein joined the LCO Board of Governors as a member-at-large in September 2024. Andrew is a partner in Torys’ litigation department, and head of Torys’ Appellate Practice.

Andrew’s practice focuses on appeals, public law, intellectual property, and commercial cases. He has appeared frequently in the Divisional Court, the Ontario and Federal Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada. He has litigated issues involving federalism, administrative law, freedom of expression, contracts, administrative law, defamation, patents and copyright.

Andrew is a former director of the Advocates Society, where he focused on policy, civility and professionalism. He is also a former chair of the CBA National Intellectual Property Section.

Outside of the legal profession, Andrew has served on the Board of the Canadian Journalism Foundation and the Queen West Art Crawl.

Andrew graduated from the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law in 1997, as the gold medalist. In 1999, he graduated from the Bar Admissions Course with the Treasurer’s Medal. In 1997-98, Andrew served as a law clerk to Chief Justice Antonio Lamer. In 2003-04, Andrew obtained his LL.M. at the University of California (Berkeley), as a Canada-U.S. Fulbright Fellow.

Andrew frequently writes and speaks on constitutional law, administrative law, professional ethics, legal writing and appellate advocacy. Andrew has several professional recognitions, such as Lexpert, Chambers & Partners, Best Lawyers and Benchmark. He was once a “Top 40 Lawyer Under 40” but that was longer ago than he would care to admit.

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Trevor Farrow

Dean Trevor Farrow joined the LCO Board of Governors in September 2023 and is the appointee of Osgoode Hall Law School. Trevor C.W. Farrow, AB (Princeton), BA/MA (Oxford), LLB (Dalhousie), LLM (Harvard), PhD (Alberta), is the Dean and a Professor at Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto.

Professor Farrow is the Chair of the Canadian Forum on Civil Justice and was the founding Academic Director of the Winkler Institute for Dispute Resolution and former Director of the York Centre for Public Policy and Law. He is internationally recognized as a leading scholar on access to justice, legal process and the profession. His scholarship is widely published in Canada and internationally. He has taught and lectured at universities across Canada and around the world. Professor Farrow has received teaching awards from Harvard University and Osgoode Hall Law School. Professor Farrow was formerly a litigation lawyer in Toronto.

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Colleen Flood

Dean Colleen Flood joined the LCO Board of Governors as the representative for the Law Deans of Ontario in January 2025. She is the Dean of the Faculty of Law at Queen’s University.

Dean Flood served as a professor and the Canada Research Chair for the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law from 2000-2014 and as the inaugural director of the Centre for Health Law, Policy and Ethics and University of Ottawa Research Chair in Health Law & Policy from 2014-2023. Dr. Flood holds a Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD) and Master of Laws (LLM) from the University of Toronto and a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) Honours from the University of Auckland, New Zealand. Her research informed national and global debates over privatization, health system design, accountability, governance, and the role of courts in defending rights in health care. Her latest research focuses on the governance of health-related artificial intelligence. She holds many honours and accomplishments, including being named a Justice Emmet Hall Laureate in 2022, and member of the Canadian Council of Academies Scientific Advisory Committee in 2021, and a member of the Royal Society Taskforce on COVID-19 in 2021. She has over 100 publications and over 1200 citations, including publications on implementing digital passports for COVID-19 immunizations, vaccine ins and outs, the legal issues that have been raised in the presence of COVID-19, and accounts of what our country could look like post-pandemic.

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Kingsley Jesuorobo

Kingley Jesuorobo joined the LCO Board of Governors as a member-at-large in September 2024. He is the founder and principal counsel at Kingsley Jesuorobo & Associates: Barristers, Solicitors & Notaries.

Kingsley is also the founder and CEO of Danalix Software Limited, an all-in-one legal and business management software solution that simplifies service delivery and fulfills the regulatory compliance needs of professionals in the legal sector. He is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Lil Requester, a technological software solution that helps developmentally challenged people to combat socio-communication challenges. He also serves as a member of the Law Society of Ontario’s Advisory Council on Access to Innovation (A21) where he is actively engaged as part of a team of experts that reviews applications from developers of innovative technological legal services to serve Ontario consumers.

Kingsley graduated from the University of Benin, Nigeria with LL.B. (Hons) and he attended the University of Toronto for his Canadian LL.B. equivalency program. He was called to the Bars of Ontario, Canada (1996) and Nigeria (1990).

Achievements

  • He has written numerous legal articles, presented legal lectures and moderated various scholarly fora, including the University of Oxford, UK; York University, Canada; international Bar conferences and seminars.
  • He currently serves as the Chair of the Board of Directors, Canadian Association of Nigerian Lawyers (CANL) (2022 – Present).
  • He served as the President, Canadian Association of Nigerian Lawyers (CANL) (2017 – 2019).
  • He currently serves as the Vice President (North America), African Bar Association, and Chairman (Canada Forum), African Bar Association (2017 to Present).
  • He organized intensive Law Course/Professional Training program for over a dozen foreign judges in Canada.
  • He has trained and mentored dozens of lawyers and paralegals under the Bar Admission program of the Law Society of Ontario, Canada, and the Law Practice Program of Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University).
  • He co-founded Canada’s first 24-hour black television network, First Entertainment Voice of Africa Television (FEVA TV); and he served as the Chief Legal Counsel at FEVA TV (2013 – 2016.)
  • He served as the Chair of the Board of Directors, Canada Nigeria Chamber of Commerce (2011 to 2012).
  • He served as the Chair of the Board of Directors of Democratic Alliance for Nigerians in Canada (DANIC) during Nigeria’s pro-democracy struggle in the 1990s.
  • He has received numerous awards of recognition for community service, including an Award of Recognition from the Nigerian Canadian Association (NCA) for outstanding contributions to the community and an Award of Excellence from the Nigerian Bar Association and many more.
  • He is the author of an Amazon Bestselling book, titled: “Province of Poetry: A collection of poems and philosophical phrases”.
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Randall Kahgee

Randall Kahgee joined the LCO Board of Governors as a member-at-large in January 2021.  He is Senior Counsel with Olthuis Kleer Townshend LLP and specializes in indigenous rights law, with an emphasis on community-based processes and government-to-government negotiations.

Randall served as Chief of the Saugeen First Nation for four consecutive terms from June 2006 to June 2014.  He has worked with First Nation governments across Canada and participated in significant agreements between First Nation communities and provincial and federal governments on energy matters, including issues relating to the development of nuclear facilities, transmission lines, wind energy projects, as well as environmental matters.  He has extensive experience in consultation and accommodation related issues and has also been involved in the negotiation and implementation of land claim and self-government agreements and participated in a number of successful impact benefit negotiations. He has also advised First Nations on a range of governance related issues.  Randall received his BA (Hon) from York University and his LLB from the University of Toronto.
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Shalini Konanur

Shalini Konanur joined the LCO Board of Governors in January 2021 and is the appointee of the Law Society of Ontario. Shalini has worked in Ontario’s legal aid clinic system for her entire career (over 20 years).

At SALCO, Shalini provides direct legal service in a number of areas of poverty law, appears routinely in the clinic’s test case work at all levels of court including the Supreme Court of Canada, and does extensive advocacy on human rights issues at the domestic and international level.  SALCO and Shalini are a leading voice on the issues that impact low-income and racialized South Asian communities in Canada, including poverty, systemic racism, Islamophobia, religious discrimination, gender-based violence, and immigration reform.

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Julie Lassonde

Julie Lassonde (she/they) joined the LCO Board of Governors as a member-at-large in 2024. She is a bilingual lawyer, a member of the Law Society of Ontario and the Barreau du Québec, and an accredited mediator.

Me Lassonde holds a joint Bachelor of Civil Law and Bachelor of Laws from McGill University, and a Master of Laws with interdisciplinary studies in visual arts from the University of Victoria. Over the past few years, she has developed a business focused on social justice, in particular in the areas of harassment, discrimination and violence, including domestic violence. Her work has spanned training, mediation in workplaces, universities, and communities, as well as legal work in family law, mainly in the public and non-profit sectors.

Since 2022, they are a part-time commissioner at the Canadian Human Rights Commission. From 2018 to 2020, they were a part-time member of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board of Ontario. They have been a member of several committees and boards of directors, i