Background
Ira Nishisato is National Leader of the Commercial Litigation Practice Group and a Partner in our Toronto office.
Ira obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and French from Trinity College, University of Toronto (with High Distinction); a Bachelor of Laws degree from the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto (awarded Dean's Key); and a Diploma in International Law from the University of Cambridge, England. He was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1995.
Ira is an Officer of the Litigation Committee of the International Bar Association (IBA).
Areas of Practice
Ira's practice focuses principally on:
· complex commercial litigation;
· commercial fraud;
· anti-piracy and technology litigation;
· injunctions and extraordinary interlocutory remedies, including Anton Piller (civil search), Mareva (asset freezing) and Norwich Pharmacal (equitable discovery) orders;
· international and multi-jurisdictional dispute resolution; and
· public law, judicial review, and appellate litigation.
Rankings and Recognitions
· Recognized in Chambers Global - The World's Leading Lawyers for Business (Dispute Resolution: Ontario)
· Recognized in PLC Which Lawyer? (Dispute Resolution)
· Recognized in Who's Who Legal: Canada 2011 (Business Crime)
Professional Experience
Ira has:
· served as counsel in cases involving multi-million dollar fraud schemes perpetrated across multiple jurisdictions, including a worldwide "e-banking" fraud carried out over the Internet;
· designed and executed anti-piracy enforcement strategies across Canada for satellite television providers Bell TV, DIRECTV, and DISH Network;
· represented domestic and foreign banks and investment advisory firms (e.g. Bank of Nova Scotia, Bank of Montreal, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.), global pharmaceutical companies (e.g. Pfizer/Pharmacia, Bristol-Myers Squibb), and industry-leading corporations (e.g. JTI-Macdonald Corp., R.J. Reynolds), in complex commercial cases;
· developed special expertise in obtaining injunctions and extraordinary interlocutory remedies, including over 80 Anton Piller orders, Mareva injunctions, and Norwich Pharmacal orders;
· served as an "officer of the court" as Independent Supervising Solicitor in connection with Anton Piller orders in mortgage fraud and trade secrets/confidential information cases;
· participated in drafting "model" Anton Piller and Mareva orders for the Superior Court of Justice (Commercial List);
· developed extensive experience in dealing with electronic evidence, "e-discovery", and Internet-related disclosure and take down orders;
· obtained court approval for corporate plans of arrangement;
· argued numerous judicial review applications in Federal and Ontario courts;
· appeared before all levels of courts in Canada, including the Supreme Court of Canada, Federal Court of Appeal, Ontario Court of Appeal, Federal Court, Ontario Divisional Court and Superior Court of Justice; and
· handled cases involving access to information/freedom of information, administrative law, banking, broadcasting and communications, class actions, computer and internet law, conflict of laws, constitutional law, contracts, corporate/commercial law, defamation, fiduciary duties, fraud, intellectual property, labour and employment, officer and director liability, product liability, public and private international law, professional negligence, and shareholder disputes.
Speeches and Presentations
Ira has addressed numerous national and international professional and industry conferences including:
· "Has the Consumer Suffered A Disadvantage in the Acquisition of Goods and Services?", International Bar Association, Vancouver, 2010
· "Options for the Resolution of International Commercial Disputes: Should Party Autonomy Always Prevail?", International Bar Association, Madrid, 2009
· "The Courts and E-Discovery: Striking the Balance", International Bar Association, Buenos Aires, 2008
· "Litigation Risk: The Litigator's Perspective on Common Trouble Spots That Can Land You in Court", Canadian Corporate Counsel Association, Toronto, 2008
· "Measures for Combating Counterfeiting and Piracy", International Bar Association, Singapore, 2007
· "Remedies and Damages: Interlocutory Injunctions", The Law Society of Upper Canada, Toronto, 2007
· " Anton Piller Orders", Investigative and Forensic Accounting Conference, Toronto, 2006
· "Cost-Effectively Managing Complex Litigation", The Canadian Institute Conference on Complex Litigation, 2006
· "Civil Enforcement in Canada : The Satellite Television Piracy Success Story", International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition, Toronto, 2006
· "When the Raid Begins - Crisis Management", International Bar Association, Prague, 2005
· "International Fraud, Mareva Injunctions, and Canadian Courts", Florida Bar Association, Orlando, 2005
· "The Interim Preservation of Property", Butterworths LexisNexis Commercial Litigation Conference, Toronto, 2005
· "The Anton Piller Order: A Civil Solution Against Fraud, Piracy, and Counterfeiting", Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, Montréal, 2003
Professional and Community Activities
· Officer, Litigation Committee, International Bar Association
· Author, Ontario Litigator's Pocket Reference (Butterworths, 2001+)
· Judge, Canadian National Division and International Division, Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition