Nicole Henderson

• Counsel to an investment firm in a class action relating to alleged privacy breaches, successfully opposing the plaintiffs' motion for certification

• Counsel to a gaming facility and public-sector entity in a privacy class action arising out of a cyberattack, successfully opposing the plaintiffs’ motion for certification

• Member of the trial team in the first medical products class action to go to trial in Ontario (146 trial days), which obtained a trial ruling dismissing the action against one of the world's leading manufacturers of life-saving cardiac devices in a national class action claiming more than C$1-billion in damages, alleging negligent design, testing and warning

• Counsel to a defendant in a competition class action seeking approximately C$1.4-billion in damages, successfully obtaining summary judgment prior to certification on the basis of the regulated conduct defence (upheld by the Ontario Court of Appeal)

• Counsel to a public-sector procuring entity in a judicial review application challenging its debarment of a contractor, successfully opposing the application (named one of Lexpert's Top 10 Business Decisions of 2018)

• Lead counsel to a leading manufacturer of heavy equipment, successfully obtaining early summary judgment in a product liability case seeking over C$7-million in damages

• Lead trial and appellate counsel in a commercial leasing dispute

• Currently representing leading multinational manufacturers/distributors in numerous class actions and mass tort proceedings relating to medical devices and pharmaceutical medicines

• Counsel on a judicial review application under the Ontario Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act addressing the scope of the third party information exemption

Nicole has been recognized as a leading lawyer in the following publications:

• The Best Lawyers in Canada 2021 (Product Liability)

• Benchmark Canada: The Definitive Guide to Canada's Leading Litigation Firms and Attorneys - 2020 and 2019 Editions (Future Litigation Star)

• Benchmark 40 & Under Hot List - 2020 and 2019 (Canada)

• Acritas Stars 2020 and 2019: Independently Rated Lawyer (Nominated as a stand-out lawyer by senior in-house counsel)

Nicole is Chair of the Ontario Bar Association's Class Actions Section Executive, having served on the Executive since 2014. She is a member of The Advocates' Society, the Defence Research Institute and the International Association of Defence Counsel.

Nicole sits on the Firm's Pro Bono Committee, and has acted pro bono on a variety of matters. Since 2012, she has been the Academic Director of the Wilson Moot, which focuses on constitutional law issues affecting equity-seeking groups.

• Co-author: Callow and the Duty of Honest Contractual Performance: What You Need to Know
  Blakes Bulletin on Litigation & Dispute Resolution, January 4, 2021.
• Co-author: Top Five Tips to Protect Privilege in a Data Breach
  Blakes Bulletin on Cybersecurity, October 22, 2020.
• Co-author: Data Protection & Privacy 2020
  Chambers Data Protection 2020 Guide, Canada Chapter, March 9, 2020.
• Co-author: Ontario Government Proposes Significant Amendments to Ontario Class Proceedings Act
  Blakes Bulletin on Class Actions, December 20, 2019.
• Co-author: Litigation Risk on the Rise: 3 Trends in Cybersecurity Class Actions in Canada
  Blakes Bulletin on Cybersecurity, October 30, 2019.
• Co-author: An Update on IADC Initiatives Towards Class Action Reform in Ontario, Canada
  Civil Justice Response and Class Actions and Multi-Party Litigation Joint Newsletter, International Association of Defence Counsel, September 2019.
• Co-author: Proposed Privacy Class Action “Collapses in its Entirety” on Commonality
  Blakes Bulletin on Class Actions, May 9, 2019.
• Co-author: Canada Chapter
  The International Comparative Legal Guide to Product Liability 2019, 17th Edition, Global Legal Group, May 2019.
• Co-author: Digital Resilience: Cybersecurity Trends to Watch in 2019
  Blakes Cybersecurity Trends, March 2019.
• Co-author: Refining Fairness: Precedent-Setting Cases in Procurement Law
  Blakes Bulletin on Litigation & Dispute Resolution, March 18, 2019.
• Co-authors: Privacy Commissioner Publishes Draft Guidelines for Mandatory Breach Reporting under PIPEDA
  Blakes Bulletin on Privacy, September 19, 2018.
• Co-author: Ontario Court Upholds Debarment of Municipal Contractor, Confirms Municipalities’ Broad Discretion in Commercial Decision-Making
  Blakes Bulletin on Procurement, July 10, 2018.
• Author: Canada Chapter
  The International Comparative Legal Guide to Product Liability, 16th Edition, Global Legal Group, June 2018.

• Co-chair: 12th Annual Class Actions Colloquium
  Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, Ontario, December 2, 2020.
• Speaker: Understanding Your Legal Risks & Damages: An Essential Litigation Update
  Data Breaches & Cybersecurity Incidents: The Legal Guide to Preparedness and Response, Osgoode Professional Development, Toronto, Ontario, November 20, 2020.
• Panellist: Director and Officer Liability for Privacy and Cybersecurity
  7th Annual Securities Law Symposium, Association of Corporate Counsel, Toronto, Ontario, October 1, 2020.
• Speaker: Cybersecurity Tactics for Turbulent Times
  Episode 2, Blakes Continuity Podcast, April 20, 2020.
• Speaker: Using (and Challenging) Digital Evidence
  Digital Evidence for Litigators, Advocates' Society, Toronto, Ontario, February 26, 2020.
• Speaker: Preparing for a Cybersecurity Incident: Best Practices and Quick Wins
  10th In-House Counsel Summit, Law Society of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario, February 19, 2020.
• Speaker: Issues in Modern Cross-Border Mass Torts Litigation
  International Association of Defence Counsel, Webinar, January 22, 2020.
• Speaker: The High Stakes World of Emissions Litigation - An International Scorecard on the State of Play and What's Next
  Environmental & Energy, Mass Torts, and Products Liability Litigation Committees' Joint Regional CLE Program, American Bar Association, Snowmass, Colorado, January 20, 2020.
• Speaker: Cybersecurity: Director and Officer Liabilities in the Digital Age
  Blakes Business Class Seminar on Cybersecurity, Toronto, Ontario, October 23, 2019.
• Speaker: Class Actions Update
  All About Data, Blakes Business Class Seminar on Cybersecurity, Toronto, Ontario, May 28, 2019.
• Speaker: Cybersecurity and Data Breach Developments
  Class Action Climate in Canada: Recent Developments and Emerging Trends, Blakes Business Class Seminar, Toronto, Ontario, January 30, 2019.
• Moderator: Dealing with cyber risk, GDPR and privacy compliance
  Women in Litigation Forum, Benchmark Litigation, Toronto, Ontario, October 18, 2018.
• Speaker: Mandatory Breach Reporting Under PIPEDA
  Cybercrime: Threat Landscape and Working with Law Enforcement, Blakes Business Class Seminar on Cybersecurity, Toronto, Ontario, September 20, 2018.
• Program Chair: Class Actions: Best Practices for Class Actions Settlements
  Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, Ontario, April 20, 2018.

• Quoted: Common law data breach class actions not precluded by PIPEDA
  Interviewed by Alex Pugh, GDR News, September 4, 2020.
• Quoted: Ontario's proposed US-style class-action law will block plaintiffs, lawyers say
  Interviewed by Mark Coakley, PaRR, Latest Intelligence, Private Litigation, January 17, 2020.
• Quoted: Digital Privacy Evolves in Class Actions,
  Interviewed by Adrian Macnab, Canadian Lawyer, September 16, 2019.
• Quoted: Connected devices can lead to security risks
  Interviewed by Marg Bruineman, Law Times, May 14, 2018.

Admitted to the Ontario Bar - 2009
J.D. (with Honours), University of Toronto - 2008
B.A. (Hon., with Distinction), Wilfrid Laurier University - 2005