Philip Michael Epstein

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Philip Michael Epstein

CM OOnt QC LSM
Philip M. Epstein.png
Born(1942-08-30)August 30, 1942
Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England
DiedApril 4, 2021
NationalityCanadian
Alma mater University of Toronto
University of Toronto Faculty of Law
Occupation(s) lawyer, legal author
Known for Canadian family law
Website epsteincole.com/team/philip-m-epstein

Philip Michael Epstein CM OOnt QC is a Canadian family law lawyer.

Contents

Epstein was the co-founder and senior partner of Epstein Cole LLP, in Toronto, Ontario. He authored numerous publications, acted as a policy advisor to the Canadian government on family law issues, was a regular lecturer at law schools in Toronto, and practiced in mediation, arbitration, and appellate advocacy. [1] [2]

Background

Epstein was born in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England. He emigrated to Canada with his parents and went on to study at the University of Toronto. After obtaining his B.A. there in 1964, he obtained his law degree (LL.B.) from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law in 1968. [3]

Career

Epstein was called to the Ontario Bar in 1970. He founded Epstein Cole LLP with Kenneth Cole in 1978, and was a senior partner there. [4] Epstein was the Head of the Family Law Section for the Bar Admission Course for the Law Society of Upper Canada (now the Law Society of Ontario) between 1983 and 1996, [5] and is a former Chair of the Family Law Section of the Ontario Bar Association. [6]

He has been described as “one of Canada’s leading lawyers and lecturers on family law” in Canadian Lawyer magazine [7] and as the “Dean of the family law bar” by the Toronto Star newspaper. [8]

From 1992 to 1997 Epstein was a member of the Child Support Advisory Committee, which advised the Canadian Department of Justice's child support team on the implementation of child support reforms. [9] From 1997 – 2007 he was a member of the Department of Justice's Advisory Working Group On Family Law [10] and Spousal Support Advisory Committee. [11] These positions were by appointment of the federal government of Canada.

Epstein was a Bencher and Governing Member of the Law Society of Upper Canada between 1984 and 1999. During this time, he served as the chair for the Law Society's Admissions and Equity Committee, Legal Aid Clinic Funding Committee, and Education Committee. [12] He co-founded the Dispute Resolution Officer Program [13] for the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, and acted as a Dispute Resolution Officer of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice between 1995 and 2015.

Epstein represented clients in appellate matters and acted as a mediator and arbitrator. In addition to being a former Dispute Resolution Officer of the Superior Court of Ontario, Epstein was a Certified Mediator/Arbitrator of the ADR Institute of Ontario, [14] and a Certified Mediator with the Ontario Association for Family Mediation. [15]

Epstein was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1981. [2]

Awards

Epstein was a recipient of the 1998 Award of Excellence in Family Law [16] from the Family Law Section of the Ontario Bar Association. He was awarded the Law Society of Upper Canada Medal in 1999 for his service to the profession. [17] He was also a recipient of the 2012 Alternate Dispute Resolution Excellence Award from the Ontario Bar Association. [2]

More recently, in 2018, Epstein was awarded the Order of Ontario. [18] And in June 2020, The Law Society of Ontario awarded Epstein an honorary Doctors of Law. [19]

In 2020, he was appointed as a member of the Order of Canada. [20]

Writing

Epstein was the Editor in Chief of the Reports of Family Law [21] and the author of Epstein, This Week in Family Law. [22] He authored of numerous articles on family law and solicitors' negligence claims for the Continuing Education Department of the Law Society of Upper Canada and for the Ontario Bar Association.

Selected publications

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References

  1. ↑ "Lexpert". Archived from the original on 2020-09-13. Retrieved 2018-05-21.
  2. 1 2 3 Bernard Morrow (January 2013). "Philip M. Epstein, Q.C. 2012 ADR Award of Excellence Recipient" (PDF). Ontario Bar Association . Retrieved July 4, 2018.
  3. ↑ Cynthia Macdonald, “Family matters: Does breaking up have to break the bank? How our alumni—and students—are changing family law” “Nexus, The University of Toronto, Faculty of Law”, 2014
  4. ↑ "About - Epstein Cole". epsteincole.com.
  5. ↑ 11th Annual Family Law Summit, “Biographical Summaries of Presenters”, “The Law Society of Upper Canada”, March 7, 2017
  6. ↑ Our Team "Philip M. Epstein", epsteincole.com
  7. ↑ "Hoodwinked! - Canadian Lawyer Mag". Canadian Lawyer.
  8. ↑ Toronto Star, December 21, 2002
  9. ↑ Canada, Senate of (2016-09-21). "Senate of Canada - Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology". Senate of Canada.
  10. ↑ "Draft Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines". www.westlawecarswell.com.
  11. ↑ "Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines:A Draft Proposal" (PDF). law.utoronto.ca.
  12. ↑ "Committees, Task Forces and Working Groups - The Law Society of British Columbia". www.lawsociety.bc.ca.
  13. ↑ "Family Court Services - Superior Court of Justice". www.ontariocourts.ca.
  14. ↑ http://adr-ontario.ca ADR Institute of Ontario
  15. ↑ "Home - Ontario Association for Family Mediation". www.oafm.on.ca.
  16. ↑ "OBA Award for Excellence in Family Law in Memory of James McLeod". www.oba.org.
  17. ↑ "List of All Law Society Medal Recipients - LSO". www.lsuc.on.ca.
  18. ↑ "Order of Ontario members". www.ontario.ca. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  19. ↑ "Distinguished family law scholar and former bencher, Philip M. Epstein, receives honorary LLD from Law Society of Ontario". The Gazette. 2020-06-26. Retrieved 2020-07-01.
  20. ↑ "Governor General Announces 114 New Appointments to the Order of Canada". 26 November 2020.
  21. ↑ "Reports of Family Law, 7th Series/Recueil de jurisprudence en droit de la famille, 7e série". store.thomsonreuters.ca.
  22. 1 2 "Epstein's This Week in Family Law". store.thomsonreuters.ca.
  23. ↑ http://canlii.ca/t/6h3f
  24. ↑ http://www.oba.org/en/pdf/sec_news_fam_apr13_SpousalSupport_Epstein.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  25. ↑ Holdings : Kissing cousins : - York University Libraries. www.library.yorku.ca. Continuing Legal Education, Ontario Bar Association. 2012.
  26. ↑ Fidler, Barbara Jo; Epstein, Philip (2008). "Parenting Coordination in Canada: An Overview of Legal and Practice Issues". Journal of Child Custody. 5 (1–2): 53–87. doi:10.1080/15379410802070393. S2CID   143627466.
  27. ↑ (2007) 26 Lawyers Wkly 36
  28. ↑ (2006) 18 Matrimonial Affairs 1
  29. ↑ Canadian Family Law Quarterly; Scarborough Vol. 25, 2006: 199-V
  30. ↑ Canadian Family Law Quarterly, 22, 1–36, 2004
  31. ↑ Epstein, Philip; M, Grant, Stephen; Goodman, Suzanne Ruth; Canada, Law Society of Upper; Sadvari, Gerald P. (1 December 2000). Separation Agreement Annotated. Law Society of Upper Canada, Department of Continuing Education. ISBN   9781894648035 – via Google Books.
  32. ↑ 1983 Annual institute on continuing legal education: Law Reform Was Not Built in a Day, Toronto, Canadian Bar Association of Ontario, 1983
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