Pallett Valo Celebrates Its 75th Anniversary
Our firm’s roots in the community go back to 1948, when brothers John and Leslie Pallett, both decorated World War II heroes, formed Pallett & Pallett.
John was a highly respected lawyer who was also active in politics and would eventually become the Parliamentary Secretary of the 13th Prime Minister of Canada. He was very involved in the community including being chairman of the board of the Mississauga Hospital Foundation and president of various sports clubs.
Sid Valo was the founding partner of another law firm, Milman Valo Barsky. In 1980, the firms merged to become Pallett Valo. Sid was also very community-spirited, involved in many Mississauga organizations and was recognized as Business Person of the Year in 1994 by the Mississauga Board of Trade.
The ethos and values of the firm can be traced back to these founding partners. And, true to our roots, we have continued to support many not-for-profit organizations, charity groups, and community agencies by donating time and resources over the past 75 years.
Throughout the years, Pallett Valo and its lawyers have been recognized for expertise and service excellence. For this, we’d like to thank our clients who have entrusted us to step alongside them, to help grow their businesses, resolve conflicts, and provide legal advice and support in many different ways.
We also thank our lawyers and colleagues for their dedication, teamwork, and commitment to excellence. We couldn’t have made it to 75 years without you. Your contributions have made Pallett Valo a respected law firm in Ontario.
With so much to be grateful for, what is better than to embark on a new community project? Our latest association is with the Mississauga Food Bank, a network of over 50 agencies that distribute food for over five million meals each year to vulnerable families in Mississauga. Its mission is to end hunger in Mississauga by providing and promoting access to healthy and appropriate food. We’re looking forward to partnering with them through volunteer and financial support over the next year and beyond.
Our rich history and consistent commitment to clients and the community are what set us apart. We look forward to the next 75 years of serving our clients and our community.
Canadian Lawyer Top 10
We are pleased to be named as a Top 10 Ontario Regional Law Firm for the seventh time by Canadian Lawyer magazine. Every two years, Canadian Lawyer magazine asks lawyers, in-house counsel and clients from across the country to select their Top 10 Ontario regional law firms, based on the firms’ regional service coverage, client base, service excellence and legal expertise. Being ranked in the Top 5 in this year’s survey is a great honour and we thank our clients for their ongoing support and our colleagues for their commitment to our firm’s values of excellence, integrity, and respect.
John Russo, managing partner at Pallett Valo LLP, says, “We are honoured to have been consistently ranked in the Top 10 since 2011. This recognition confirms that our lawyers provide exemplary service aligned with our core values, offering our clients what they need when they need it most.”
Two New Partners
Catherine DiMarco, a highly regarded lawyer with more than 17 years of construction and general civil litigation experience, joined Pallett Valo’s Construction Law practice. With a deep understanding of the industry, Catherine provides practical guidance on managing risks during contract negotiations and assists with project delivery plans.
Certified by the Law Society of Ontario as a specialist in construction law, she represents owners, general contractors, subcontractors and suppliers, as well as design and engineering professionals on claims, or on the defence of claims. In addition, Catherine has defended public authorities, including municipalities, in matters involving allegations of negligent design, supervision and inspection.
Mujir Muneeruddin, an experienced corporate and securities lawyer, joined Pallett Valo’s Business Law practice. He provides strategic advice on complex transactional, commercial, and regulatory matters. With a passion for moving high-growth businesses to the next level, he combines his business background as a C-level executive with his legal expertise, offering clients a unique perspective that translates into agile and effective business solutions.
He represents clients on everything from going-public transactions and governance and compliance matters, to venture capital financings and public and private company mergers and acquisitions. He also routinely leads the set-up of private equity, real estate, and syndicated investment entities.
Three New Lawyers
Trevor Moum joined our Wills, Estate and Trusts practice. With extensive experience in estate litigation, Trevor acts for clients in a wide variety of matters, such as complex estate disputes and multi-day hearings, guardianship applications, breach of trust claims, certificates of pending litigation, contested shareholder agreements, and oppression remedy applications.
When it comes to estate planning and administration, Trevor assists business owners and high-net-worth individuals to manage and transfer assets through business succession plans, trusts and wills. Trevor is a full member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners of Canada (STEP) and holds the internationally recognized designation of Trust and Estate Practitioner (TEP).
After completing their articles at Pallett Valo, Cassie Wasserman joined our Business Law practice and Saghi Khalili our Commercial Real Estate practice. Saghi focuses on the acquisition, disposition, financing, and leasing of all types of real property. Cassie advises clients on a broad range of corporate, commercial, and regulatory matters.
Awards
The Globe and Mail Names Pallett Valo One of Canada’s Best Law Firms
Pallett Valo LLP has been recognized by The Globe and Mail as one of Canada’s Best Law firms for 2023 in the Corporate & Commercial category.
The Globe and Mail partnered with Statista to determine which law firms in Canada are held in the highest esteem by their colleagues. The Top 200 law firms in Canada were identified based on the number of recommendations they received from approximately 25,000 lawyers and in-house legal executives across Canada. The full awards list can be viewed on The Globe and Mail website.
Peel Law Association Lifetime Achievement Award
Anne Kennedy received the 2023 Peel Law Association Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of her substantial contributions to the practice of law and the local community. The PLA exists to promote and advance the interests of its members by providing resources to enhance the practice of law.
Anne joined Pallett Valo in 1990. She had two tenures as managing partner and was instrumental in bringing strategic planning, visioning and integration of values to the firm. Those efforts contributed to the firm’s success, tripling its size and becoming a well-respected law firm, recognized as one of the top regional firms in the province. Anne is the go-to partner for issues around insurance, risk and conflicts of interest, and has been part of the firm’s management executive for many years. She has been instrumental in advancing significant initiatives pertaining to innovation, women advocacy, gender equality, mentorship, and strategic planning.
Colleagues and peers hold Anne in highest regard. She is an exceptional leader and role model, and we’re pleased that her career-long commitment to others and to her work has been recognized.
HRD Canada’s Best Places to Work Award
Pallett Valo has been named a winner of the Best Places to Work Award 2023 by Human Resources Director (HRD) Canada. HRD is the world’s leading independent HR publisher, reaching over 120,000 HR professionals daily in five markets.
The entry process for HRD Canada’s Best Places to Work ranking comprised an employer submission followed by an employee survey. Employees were asked to rate their company across a range of metrics that constituted drivers of employee satisfaction. We are thrilled to be named as one of the best places to work.
Lexpert Recognizes Four Pallett Valo Lawyers
Partners Catherine DiMarco, Anna Esposito, Maria Ruberto and Craig Ross are recognized in the 2023 Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory.
Catherine DiMarco, Anna Esposito and Maria Ruberto have been recommended in the area of Construction Law, and Craig Ross in the area of Estate and Tax Planning.
Lexpert-ranked lawyers are acknowledged as leaders in their field, prominent in their practice areas and professional organizations, and recognized as professionals of excellence by their colleagues.
Eight Lawyers Recognized by Best Lawyers®
We are pleased to have eight of our lawyers included in the 2023 edition of Best Lawyers in Canada™ and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in Canada™.
Best Lawyers is a prestigious international publication featuring the top legal talent from firms around the world. This recognition is an honour for lawyers who are selected based on confidential peer review surveys.
Best Lawyers in Canada
Anna Esposito – Recognized for Construction Law since 2006, her 15th consecutive year
Catherine DiMarco – Recognized for Construction Law since 2021
Craig Ross– Recognized for Trusts and Estates since 2016, his 5th consecutive year
Maria Ruberto – Recognized for Construction Law since 2021
Ray Mikkola – Recognized for Real Estate Law since 2020
Scott Price – Recognized for Construction Law since 2022
Best Lawyers “Lawyer of the Year”
Maria Ruberto – Recognized for Construction Law in Toronto
Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in Canada
Ann Twigg – Recognized for Real Estate Law since 2022
Neeta Sandhu – Recognized for Construction Law for the first time
The Ones to Watch list gives recognition to lawyers who have practiced law for three to eight years.
Lexology Canada Recognizes Lisa Sticht-Maksymec as Leading Author
Lisa Sticht-Maksymec, a senior member of our Wills, Estates and Trust Practice, has been recognised as a leading author in the Lexology Legal Influencers for Private clients – Canada. Lisa was selected for her high-quality legal content across Q4 2022. In her articles, she draws on her extensive experience in estate planning, estate administration and estate litigation.
Other News
Seven Pallett Valo Lawyers Serve the Ontario Bar Association in Various Roles for 2022/2023
The Ontario Bar Association represents close to 16,000 legal professionals across the province. Its role is to promote fair justice systems, facilitate effective law reform, uphold equality in the legal profession, and eliminate discrimination. The OBA is also a leading provider of quality professional development.
Through volunteer participation of its members, the Ontario Bar Association is able to implement programs to serve the interests of the profession and the public.
We are pleased to advise that seven of Pallett Valo’s lawyers serve in the following roles to support the OBA’s mandate:
- Monty Dhaliwal – Council Member, Central West Region
- Sudevi Mukherjee-Gothi – Newsletter Editor, Insurance Law Section Executive
- Andreea Muth – Secretary, Business Law Section Executive
- Jeffrey Percival – Council Member, Central West Region
- Krystyne Rusek – Public Affairs Liaison, Trusts and Estates Law Section Executive
- Sarah Rustomji –Regional Representative, Women Lawyers Forum Executive
- Neeta Sandhu – Member-At-Large, Construction and Infrastructure Law Section Executive
In Memoriam
Mindy Dodds, a law clerk at Pallett Valo for over 38 years, passed away unexpectedly this January. We pay tribute to her for the wonderful person she was, for the wealth of knowledge she shared with us, and for all her contributions to the culture and success of our firm. She was a very valued member of the Business Law team and will be much missed.
PV Women’s Network
Join the PV Women’s Network
The PV Women’s Network was created with a vision to provide business and professional women in our community with a platform for connection and support, while delivering programs that contribute to their personal and professional development and success. Subscribe to the email list to learn about upcoming events by visiting pallettvalo.com/pv-womens-network.
Up With Women
The network hosted its first post-pandemic event featuring Keynote Speaker Gina Alexandris, Career Coach and Professional Development Consultant. Gina shared some innovative ideas to ignite a fresh interest in networking. Proceeds from the event were donated to Up With Women, a growing charity dedicated to helping low-income women and gender diverse individuals build sustainable, prosperous careers and businesses with the aim of permanently exiting poverty.
Break the Silence Gala
The PV Women’s Network was delighted to be an Ambassador Sponsor for the Yellow Brick House Gala for the third consecutive year. The event had a great turnout, and the fundraising target was surpassed with over C$200,000 raised! Yellow Brick House provides life-saving services and prevention programs to meet the diverse needs of individuals, families, and communities impacted by violence.
Pallet Valo Supports
Since 1948, we have had the privilege of partnering with many worthwhile not-for-profit organizations, charity groups and community agencies. These are just a few of the wonderful organizations we are proud to have played an active role in over the past year:
- Arthritis Society
- Canadian Spinal Research Organization
- Canadian Women’s Foundation
- EveryMind Mental Health Services
- Mississauga Arts Council (MAC)
- Pride and Remembrance Foundation
- Red Cross Red Crescent
- Sick Kids Foundation
- South Asian Bar Association (SABA)
- Up with Women
- Women in Law Leadership
- Yellow Brick House
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