Rahat Godil

Rahat represents leading national and international companies in multi-million dollar complex arbitrations and court disputes. Some representative matters in which Rahat has acted include:

• Counsel for the Toronto Commercial Arbitration Society and the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators before the Supreme Court of Canada in Uber v. Heller, an appeal involving issues relating to arbitration and class actions

• Counsel for an international mining and natural resources company in multiple International Chamber of Commerce arbitrations involving disputes relating to purchase and sale agreements

• Counsel for an international telecommunications company in an International Centre for Dispute Resolution arbitration involving a dispute arising out of an acquisition transaction

• Counsel for a leading insurance company in a high-stakes reinsurance arbitration

• Counsel for a US-based steel tubing company in an American Arbitration Association arbitration involving a dispute relating to a license agreement

• Counsel for leading Canadian companies in the energy, telecommunications and the food and beverage industries in a number of complex domestic ad hoc arbitrations

• Counsel for The Bank of Nova Scotia in a class action relating to benchmarks in the gold and silver markets

• Counsel for Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company in a proposed class action and jurisdiction motion relating to a statutory accident benefits dispute

• Counsel for manufacturers of various consumer products, including in the food, drugs and automotive industries, in class actions commenced across Canada

• Counsel for financial institutions in multimillion-dollar disputes involving contract and tort claims

• Counsel for a pharmaceutical company in a dispute involving contract and tort claims and appeal of a jurisdiction motion

• Counsel for Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. in a wide range of disputes, including a C$1.8-billion joint venture dispute involving the Wabush Mine in Labrador

• Counsel for RR Donnelly in a multi-party dispute involving printing and insertion services

• Counsel for the Insurance Bureau of Canada in constitutional challenges in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick brought by individuals seeking to have declared unconstitutional provincial legislation limiting claims for pain and suffering for minor injuries

• Counsel for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association in appeals to the Ontario Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada involving the intersection of right to freedom of religion and fair trial rights

Rahat is recognized in the following publications:

• The Best Lawyers in Canada 2021 (Alternative Dispute Resolution)

• Lexpert Rising Star, Canada’s Leading Lawyers Under 40 - 2018

Rahat is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. She taught an International Commercial Arbitration Course as part of Osgoode’s International Business Law Program and regularly speaks on arbitration topics and issues. Rahat is on the executive committee for the Toronto Commercial Arbitration Society, a director of The Citizens Foundation Canada and a past director of the South Asian Bar Association of Toronto.

In addition, Rahat is a member The Advocates' Society, the Canadian Bar Association and the Ontario Bar Association.

Rahat is committed to pro bono work and has volunteered with Pro Bono Law Ontario's court projects as well as provided pro bono advice and representation to organizations like the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, Dignitas International and The Equality Effect. Rahat is also a champion for diversity and inclusion and has taken a leadership role in a number of Blakes’ diversity initiatives.

• Co-author: Canada Chapter
  Country Comparative Guide on International Arbitration, The Legal 500, November 2020.
• Co-author: Supreme Court of Canada Addresses Accessibility and Unconscionability in Arbitration Clauses
  ADR Perspectives, August 2020.
• Co-author: Supreme Court of Canada Finds Arbitration Clause to Be "Uber" Unconscionable
  Blakes Bulletin on Arbitration, June 29, 2020.
• Co-author: Resolution of Commerical Disputes in the Age of COVID-19 Closures: The Arbitration Advantage
  Blakes Bulletin, March 20, 2020.
• Co-author: Court of Appeal for Ontario Invalidates Foreign Arbitration Clause in Standard Form Contract
  Commercial Litigation and Arbitration Review, Vol. 8, No. 1, February 2019.
• Co-author: Court of Appeal for Ontario Invalidates Foreign Arbitration Clause in Standard Form Contract
  Blakes Bulletin on Arbitration, January 8, 2019.
• Co-author: Two Recent Decisions Affirm International Arbitration Clauses Will Be Enforced
  Blakes Bulletin on Arbitration, February 22, 2018.

• Speaker: The Supreme Court’s Expansion of the Unconscionability Doctrine: What to Expect Post-Uber
  Business Law Section-South Webinar, The Canadian Bar Association, October 29, 2020.
• Speaker: The 5 W’s (and H) of the Arbitration Process
  Arbitration Advocacy Webinar, The Advocates’ Society, Toronto, Ontario, September 24, 2020.
• Speaker: Use of Different ADR Mechanisms in the Energy Sector
  International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution, 2019 CPR Canada Conference, Calgary, Alberta, October 17, 2019.
• Speaker: Analysis of the Case Law Relating to Interpretation and Enforcement of Arbitration Agreements: A Panel Discussion Arbitration: An Update for Civil Litigators
  Law Society of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario, October 7, 2019.
• Co-chair: Toronto Commercial Arbitration Society’s Annual Conference
  Toronto, Ontario, May 24, 2018.
• Moderator and Panellist: In-House Counsel Perspectives on Arbitration
  TCAS 2018 Annual Conference, Toronto, Ontario, May 24, 2018.
• Speaker: Class Action Exposure, Managing Litigation Risk in Foreign Acquisitions: What Every Buyer Should Know
  Blakes Business Class Seminar, Toronto, Ontario, March 7, 2018.
• Speaker: International Commercial Arbitration
  21st Annual Business and Law Conference, Beyond Borders: Implications of International Business and Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, Toronto, Ontario, February 9, 2018
• Facilitator: Planning Past Unconscious Bias in Arbitration
  Arbitral Women, Arbitration Place, Toronto, Ontario, February 5, 2018.