Jacqueline is an experienced trial and appellate counsel who during the past sixteen years has focused on providing litigation and dispute resolution services to clients in numerous specialized areas including: corporate commercial disputes; product liability; professional negligence of health care professionals, lawyers, insurance agents and accountants; directors’ duties and liability;class actions; employment; securities litigation; tax litigation; estate and charitable foundation litigation; educational institutions; life insurance; defamation; and privacy.
She has acted for stakeholders in many sectors including manufacturing (medical devices, chemicals, motor vehicles, heavy construction equipment, elevators and household appliances), biotechnology, retail, financial services, mining, health care, pharmaceutical, education, telecommunications and cable services.
Jacqueline has appeared as counsel before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (including the Commercial List and Estates List), Ontario Divisional Court, Court of Appeal for Ontario, Tax Court of Canada, New Brunswick Court of Queen’s Bench, Ontario Securities Commission and Financial Services Commission of Ontario.
Significant litigation matters on which Jacqueline has worked include:
Acting in numerous breach of contract actions involving manufacturing agreements, supply agreements, commercial lease agreements, an e-commerce website development and internet services agreement and cable service agreements.
Defending actions against manufacturers and distributors of medical products and devices including genetic test kits, prosthetic heart valves, Factor VIII for the treatment of haemophilia, nephrostomy tubes and detachable balloons to treat cerebral aneurysms.
Defending a pharmaceutical product liability class action against a multinational health care company.
Prosecuting an action brought by a global chemicals company against a demolition contractor and its subcontractors who allegedly misappropriated confidential and proprietary information to be used to build a competing chemical plant.
Prosecuting an action against a company’s former senior executives who breached their fiduciary duties by secretly setting up a competing business and misappropriating their employer’s confidential customer and manufacturing information.
Defending diverse claims brought against Ontario universities including medical malpractice actions alleging negligence by students enrolled in professional health care programs, a libel action, and claims by students alleging that they were unable to complete their graduate programs of study, in one case due to racial discrimination and, in the second case, as a result of the university’s alleged failure to provide financial assistance and a supervising professor for the student’s thesis.
Defending numerous actions involving claims under life insurance policies which the insurers denied on such grounds as the life insured made material misrepresentations on the application, the life insured committed suicide or the beneficiary intentionally caused the life insured’s death.
Acting on behalf of a Crown agency in a jury trial involving allegations of fraud, negligence and vicarious liability for the conduct of an independent contractor.
Acting for a mining company in Ontario Securities Commission proceedings which defined the circumstances in which an acquirer is required to hold a shareholders’ meeting and obtain shareholders’ approval of an acquisition.
Acting on behalf of a hospital foundation seeking to enforce a $1.0 million pledge which was only partially paid before the grantor’s death.
Jacqueline obtained her Honours Bachelor of Science degree (with Distinction) specializing in Immunology from the University of Toronto (Trinity College) in 1989. When she obtained her Bachelor of Laws degree from Queen’s University in 1994, she was awarded the prize for the highest standing in Securities Regulation.
Prior to pursuing her legal career, she conducted cancer research at a downtown Toronto hospital. The results of Jacqueline’s cancer research have been published in several medical journals, including Canadian Journal of Surgery, Breast Cancer Research and Treatment and Proceedings of ASCO.
Prior to joining McCague Borlack LLP in 2011, Jacqueline practised corporate commercial litigation and insurance defence litigation at a major Canadian law firm.
Jacqueline has a strong interest in legal education and has instructed at Osgoode Hall Law School at York University conducting civil procedure workshops for first year law students.
Jacqueline has written numerous papers, delivered presentations and recorded podcasts on diverse topics including liability of accountants and investment advisors, product warranties and limitation of liability clauses, medical device recalls, the effective use of experts in product liability litigation, employee references, directors’ liability and the business judgment rule, shareholder buy-outs and wind-ups of private companies, indemnity and insurance for directors and officers, rectification in tax cases, the Limitations Act, 2002, reverse bad faith by insureds and law firm risk management. Jacqueline also offers risk management seminars to corporate counsel and executives on such topics as risk assessment and crisis management, preservation of solicitor-client privilege, management of litigation, and the avoidance, management and resolution of disputes with business partners, suppliers and customers.
Jacqueline was called to the Ontario Bar in 1996 and is a member of The Advocates’ Society, American Bar Association, Canadian Bar Association, Defense Research Institute, Ontario Bar Association and Toronto Lawyers Association.
