Jeff G. Cowan

Jeff Cowan is recognized as one of Canada’s leading public law litigators. He acts as counsel before administrative tribunals and the trial and appellate courts in many aspects of public law, including professional self-regulation and discipline, judicial review of government decision-making, freedom of information and privacy matters, municipal and provincial planning and environmental approvals, municipal assessment and taxation, health, education, alcohol and gaming, legislative drafting and government relations, and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In addition, Jeff regularly litigates in matters relating to real property, including purchase and sale disputes, lease and contract interpretation, expropriation, valuation, taxation, boundary and ownership issues, Aboriginal land claims, and arbitration proceedings, including acting as an arbitrator.

Jeff has argued many of the leading cases – including in the Supreme Court of Canada – in the areas of tribunal jurisdiction and independence, Ministerial discretion, standard of judicial review, equality rights, constitutionality and interpretation of taxation and valuation legislation and remedies, freedom of information, aboriginal land claims and remedies, ownership of waterfront property, and the interpretation of commercial leases.