Sarah is a trusted advisor and advocate for clients facing domestic and international disputes, investigations, regulatory matters, and compliance issues. She is able to offer practical and timely strategies to clients seeking to proactively manage risk and strategically and effectively respond to issues when they arise.
She has experience navigating complex commercial and civil litigation matters, domestic and international commercial arbitrations, investor-state arbitrations, government investigations and white-collar matters, enforcement proceedings, compliance and governance reviews, securities disputes, trade disputes, tax disputes, internal investigations, and drafting dispute resolution, trade, anti-corruption and anti-money laundering provisions in various commercial agreements. Sarah was previously seconded to the Enforcement Branch of the Ontario Securities Commission, worked in the International Arbitration practice group of a major global firm in Paris, and completed a summer clerkship at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
Active in the arbitration community, Sarah serves on the Executive Board of Young Canadian Arbitration Practitioners (YCAP) as the Chair - Policy and Advocacy Committee.
Areas of Expertise
Representative Work
- Prospector Capital Corp.
Prospector Capital Corp. in its business combination with LeddarTech for US$ 348 million
- Representing a European subsidiary of a Canadian mining company in an investor-state arbitration in The Hague against a member state of the European Union, alleging discriminatory treatment under the terms of a bilateral investment treaty
- Conducting internal and regulatory investigations
- Drafting arbitration, anti-corruption, anti-money laundering, and trade provisions in various agreements
- Representing an infrastructure company before the Canadian International Trade Tribunal in the expiry review of an anti-dumping injury finding
Prospector Capital Corp. in its business combination with LeddarTech for US$ 348 million
- Representing an infrastructure company before the Canadian International Trade Tribunal in the expiry review of an anti-dumping injury finding
Latest Insights
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Blog Jul 10, 2024
Long awaited U.S. Supreme Court ruling curtails SEC’s use of administrative courts
On June 27, 2024, the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) released its ruling [PDF] on what has been a decade-long dispute between the Securities...
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Osler Update Dec 11, 2023
White-collar enforcement will continue to take shape in 2024
Canada continued to face international criticism for its perceived lack of white-collar crime enforcement in 2023.
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Blog May 11, 2023
B.C. Supreme Court rules that firms cannot be liable for internal investigations into misconduct
An effective compliance program is one of the best risk management tools that businesses have at their disposal — but conducting an internal...
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Blog May 5, 2023
Canada’s Modern Slavery Act: what businesses need to know
Modern slavery — specifically forced labour — is a global challenge. The International Labour Organization estimates that 28...
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Awards and Recognition
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The Edward and Emily McWhinney Foundation Scholarship
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Women’s Law Association of Ontario/Torkin Manes LLP Trailblazer Award for her leadership role in promoting women in business, legal expertise and business acumen, and an entrepreneurial spirit
Media Mentions
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Media Mentions Feb 3, 2021
Institution’s rules changes part of international arbitration’s embrace of technology, says lawyer — Law Times
Revised International Chamber of Commerce rules that came into effect on January 1, 2021, are “part of a shift toward technological adoption in...
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Osler News Oct 14, 2020
Osler welcomes the 2020 first-year associates to the Toronto office
Osler Toronto is pleased to welcome the following first-year associates.
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Media Mentions Jan 22, 2020
Canada is among the first countries to release guidelines for combining mediation and arbitration – Law Times
A recent article in the Law Times looks at Canada’s forthcoming “med-arb” rules, which are among the first of their kind and are garnering...
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Community Involvement
- Chair – Policy and Advocacy Committee on Executive Board (2022-), Board of Directors (2021-), Events Committee Member (2020-2022), Young Canadian Arbitration Practitioners (YCAP)
- Arbitration Advisor at LexisNexis Practical Guidance
- Moot Coach (2020-2022), Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot Team at Osgoode Hall Law School
- Volunteer Judge, McGill Moot Court Invitational Tournament (2021)
Speaking and Writing
Published Work
- Mundo Media: Insolvency single proceeding model vs. international arbitration clause (M. Paterson, M. Angela Rowe, S. Firestone), LexisNexis Canada Inc., September 2022
- Anti-Corruption Canada: Trends & Developments (S. Eljarrat, M. Aboud and S. Firestone), Global Practice Guides, 2022
- Sources of Ethical Obligations in International Arbitration, (S. Bjorkquist and S. Firestone), LexisNexis Canada Inc., May 2021
- Mediation-Arbitration in Canada (L. Tomasich and S. Firestone), LexisNexis Canada Inc., March 2021.”
- Anti-Corruption Canada: Trends & Developments (S. Eljarrat, M. Aboud and S. Firestone), Global Practice Guides, 2021
- Research Assistant to Hon. Allen M. Linden, for the 15th edition of Canadian Tort Law: Cases, Notes & Materials (2018).
Credentials
Education
- University of Toronto, J.D.
- University of Oxford, M.Sc.
- McGill University, B.A. (First Class Honours)
Languages
- English
Professional Affiliations
- Law Society of Ontario
- Women’s White Collar Defense Association
- Young Canadian Arbitration Practitioners
