After serving as a legal clerk for the Supreme Court of Canada and the Federal Court, Isabelle Hardy now works as a lawyer for the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages. She is very interested in language rights and constitutional law, particularly matters affecting minority groups. As well, she strongly values community engagement. She’s a member of the board of the Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO), which represents French-speaking legal professionals, serving as chair of the young legal professionals committee. She’s also a member of AJEFO’s response and conference organizing committees. In her free time, Isabelle likes to play piano, as well as hockey and softball.

Michelle Liu (she/they) is a Queer and racialized engineer, researcher, and soon-to-be lawyer using equity, diversity, and inclusion frameworks to critically examine the interactions between technological designs and engineering professional norms. Michelle earned their Honours BASc and MASc in civil engineering from the University of Waterloo, after which they worked in construction and design for various national and multi-national consulting engineering firms. Michelle went on to pursue their law degree (JD) and engineering PhD simultaneously at the University of Ottawa. Michelle conducts their doctoral research between the Faculty of Engineering and the Centre for Law, Technology, and Society under the joint supervision of Dr. Beatriz Martin-Perez in civil engineering and Professor Jena McGill in the common law section. In all their academic endeavours, Michelle prioritizes mentoring and supporting equity-seeking students as well as students interested in interdisciplinary research. Engineers Canada named Michelle one of thirteen EDI Leaders in Engineering Workplaces in 2021-2022. Michelle’s volunteer work in both the engineering and legal professions include serving as a Councillor of Professional Engineers Ontario, Chair of the Waterloo Recent Engineering Alumni Council, Co-Chair of the of the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Task Force, mentor with the Ontario Network for Women in Engineering, and member of the Equity Advisory Group of the Law Society of Ontario. Michelle also co-created and co-funds the Liu-Kennington Award for the 2SLGBTQ+ Engineering Community, the first university-level scholarship for 2SLGBTQ+ engineering students in Canada. Michelle is a recipient of both the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship (NSERC stream) and the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Scholarship for their PhD research and leadership. As a law student, Michelle received the Rovinescu Award of Excellence for Community Service, the Torkin Manes LLP Academic Excellence and Community Service Award, the Carole Workman Leadership Scholarship, and the County of Carleton Law Association Scholarship. Michelle graduated magna cum laude from the JD program in June 2023 and received the Common Law Section Dean’s Award. In February 2023, Michelle became the first openly 2SLGBTQ+ identifying Councillor (board member) of Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO), the body regulating over 100,000 licensed engineers in the province. Michelle led PEO to host its first pride event in the organization’s 101-year history in June 2023.

Catherine Sicotte obtained her Juris Doctor in 2019 and her Bachelor of Science in Human Kinetics (with a Minor in Law) in 2016, all completed in French at the University of Ottawa. Despite her recent Call to the Bar in June 2020, she has acquired much more experience than one would expect and she is proud to be able to assist clients in both official languages. Catherine approaches each situation with compassionate listening in order to really understand the issues at hand, determine what her client needs and offer the best effective solutions. Catherine’s straightforward yet patient approach and communication skills ensures that each client fully understands and is comfortable with the estate planning or estate administration process. She played varsity hockey with the Gee-Gees during her undergraduate studies.

Shaunt Tokmakjian is a proud graduate from the Faculty of Law at the University of Ottawa. During his time as a student, he co-founded a local charity golf tournament and the Business Law Clinic at the Faculty of Law.

Following his graduation in 2014, Shaunt became a board member of the University of Ottawa Alumni Association, and took on the role as a member of the Association’s Executive team and Chair of Governance. In this role, he has worked closely with the Association and the Alumni Relations Office on various successful initiatives to support alumni. Shaunt regularly attends and contributes to alumni events in Ottawa and Toronto. In 2020, Shaunt was appointed to the University of Ottawa Board of Governors and currently sits as a member of the Board of Governors audit committee. 

Shaunt has held various board positions outside of the University as well, including most recently as President of his condominium board in the GTA, representing the interests of over 200 units. 

Currently, Shaunt is Legal Counsel, Compliance and Privacy Officer at Canaccede Financial Group. Through his practice in business and law, Shaunt has gained experience working in the automotive, finance, telecommunications, and the artificial intelligence industries. Through his practice in business and law, Shaunt has gained experience working in the automotive, finance, telecommunications, and the artificial intelligence industries.

Shaunt is a focused leader and a strategic thinker who enjoys collaborating with others to find the right answers. 

Jordan Wright is a corporate associate in his third year of practice at Torys LLP in Toronto. After graduating from the Faculty of Common Law in 2019, he completed his articles at an international law firm in Ottawa before spending time as corporate counsel at a biotechnology company in Ottawa. Born and raised in Ottawa, Mr. Wright received an undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of Ottawa. Outside of the office, he enjoy spending time with family and friends near, in or on a body of water, trying new restaurants and new recipes, and playing almost all sports.

Kavi Sivasothy is a litigator practicing in Toronto for Gowling WLG. His practice includes commercial and class action litigation, cybersecurity breach coaching, privacy-related advisory work and anti-money laundering compliance auditing. In addition to his practice, Kavi also dedicates time to pro bono initiatives and mentorship where possible. As a first-generation lawyer, being able to pass on some of the lessons learned through law school and his professional career remains a key priority.