Case studies of trailblazers reveal why your submission can elevate vital work in our profession
Every year, Canadian Lawyer’s Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers list prompts the same question: What does it really mean to have influence in this profession? For me, the answer lies in the lawyers whose work changes systems, shifts conversations, and improves lives in tangible ways. That is why I feel so strongly about encouraging you to nominate for our 2026 Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers list, in its 17th year.
Our recent winners capture the kind of impact this list is meant to recognize.
Consider Pam Hrick. As executive director and general counsel of the Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund, she led interventions across Canada on issues such as Bill 21 in Quebec, conditional sentencing, and rape shield laws, while advancing law reform on technology-facilitated gender-based violence and publication bans. She also guided LEAF through an expanded mandate that includes advocacy for trans and nonbinary communities and intervened in key cases to protect the rights of trans youth.
Influence can also look like institutional transformation. Chief Justice Geoffrey Morawetz of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice has overseen a remarkable period of modernization in our trial courts, embracing virtual hearings, electronic filing and digital case management at scale. His work to modernize civil procedure, reduce delay, and oversee complex matters such as the $32.5 billion tobacco settlement shows how judicial leadership can reshape both access to justice and public confidence in the system.
In the business world, Doug Nathanson exemplifies how in-house counsel can shape markets and legal strategy. As executive vice president, chief development officer and general counsel of Empire Company and Sobeys, he has helped drive major transactions, e‑commerce partnerships and a refreshed loyalty strategy, including the Scene+ program. Doug has also been a key architect of the Grocery Code of Conduct, working to secure a fairer, more transparent marketplace.
Then there are the changemakers who are redefining how law is practised. At Gowling WLG, Al Hounsell leads AI, innovation and knowledge, embedding legal design, automation and analytics into everyday practice. As an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall Law School and a frequent speaker to judges, managing partners and in‑house teams, he helps the profession think more clearly and ethically about how technology can expand, rather than erode, access to justice.
And when we talk about influence, we must also recognize those who are changing the profession's culture. Senior counsel Beth Beattie has combined a distinguished career in health and mental health law with courageous leadership in destigmatizing mental illness in law. Through her work on a widely read book on mental health in the profession, her cofounding of Voices for Mental Health within government, and her co-chairing of the Law Society of Ontario’s Mental Health Summit, she has helped thousands of legal professionals confront stigma and seek support.
Their work spans courtrooms and corporations, public service and innovation labs, yet these lawyers share a common thread: they use their expertise and platforms to move the profession – and the country – forward.
This year, I am especially pleased that Pam, Beth and Doug will serve on Canadian Lawyer’s editorial board, lending their insight and experience to the process of selecting our next Top 25. Their involvement reinforces what this list is about: informed, peer‑driven recognition of meaningful, recent impact.
Nominations for the 2026 Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers are open for lawyers who have made a significant difference over the past 18 months. The Top 25 will feature five lawyers in each of our categories: Human Rights, Advocacy and Criminal Law; Business; In-House; Changemakers; and Government, Nonprofits, Associations, and Judiciary. Lawyers who have received this recognition in the past five years are not eligible.
Nominations close on Friday, April 17. A public vote on qualifying nominees will run from April 27 to May 15, and the results will help shape a shortlist for our editorial board. Winners will be announced on our website in September.
Influence in law is not about headlines or titles. It is about those who, often without fanfare, change how we deliver justice, serve clients, support colleagues and strengthen communities. If someone in your orbit fits that description, I hope you will take the time to nominate them.
