Appointment of Kristin Taylor as University Counsel and Chief Legal Officer (PDAD&C #5)

From: Meric Gertler, President
Date: July 30, 2021
Re: Appointment of Kristin Taylor as University Counsel and Chief Legal Officer (PDAD&C #5)

I am delighted to announce the appointment of Kristin Taylor as University Counsel and Chief Legal Officer, effective September 13, 2021.

Reporting directly to the President, the University Counsel and Chief Legal Officer will have overall responsibility for managing the legal affairs of the University, providing expert advice on a wide variety of complex legal matters, leading a team of internal legal counsel, and managing the University’s relationships with its external law firms. The rationale for this new role was described in PDADC Memo #63.

As the inaugural University Counsel and Chief Legal Officer, Kristin will oversee the establishment of a new office to co-ordinate the provision of legal services to the University. In this role, she will lead the work of a team of lawyers with expertise in areas of the law that are relevant to University operations, utilizing both in-house and external legal counsel as appropriate.

Kristin Taylor brings over two decades of legal experience to the role. She currently serves as General Counsel and Vice-President, Chief Legal and Risk Officer at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. She joined CAMH in 2009 as its first standalone General Counsel, where she led the process of centralizing the provision of legal services within a newly constituted Legal Office, bringing together a group of in-house lawyers as a legal team. She is an active member of the Toronto Academic Health Services Network (TAHSN) legal table and a strong mental health advocate.

Prior to joining CAMH, Ms. Taylor was a partner in the Health Law Group at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, where she began her practice in 2001 upon her call to the bar. In her role at Borden Ladner Gervais, she advised and represented a variety of health care institutions, on a wide scope of issues ranging from medical malpractice litigation, coroner’s inquests, privacy law, physician credentialing, quality of care measures, risk management and general corporate advice.

Ms. Taylor served as Faculty Chair of the Ontario Hospital Association’s Principals and Applications of Health Law, Program Director for Osgoode Law School’s Mental Health Law Certificate course and as a Co-Editor of the Canadian Health Law Practice Manual. She obtained her law degree from Dalhousie’s Schulich Law School. Ms. Taylor was named one of Lexpert’s Rising Stars Under 40 in 2011 and was nominated as one of Canadian Lawyer’s Most Influential Lawyers in 2014.

I am delighted that Kristin Taylor is joining the University to take on this new position. Her impressive experience and collaborative approach position her well to lead this very significant evolution of our legal services function to ensure that the provision of legal services continues to meet the needs of the University.

Please join me in welcoming Kristin Taylor to the University of Toronto.