About Ellie
Ellie's practice focuses on privacy, access to information, cybersecurity, AI governance, accessibility, online safety and related consumer protection issues.
As a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/C), Ellie advises public and private sector clients on a broad range of strategic and practical data governance matters, including drafting privacy policies and consent frameworks, conducting privacy impact assessments, responding to data subject requests, and negotiating data processing agreements. She leads clients through incident response, including representing clients in regulatory investigations arising from cybersecurity attacks. She assists with complex corporate transactions involving data-based assets, AI, and transborder data flows. Ellie also assists organizations in standing up AI governance frameworks, including AI use policies and vendor management programs, and advises on compliance with transparency requirements for automated decision-making systems.
Ellie routinely handles freedom of information matters, including Information Commissioner of Canada investigations, and provides advice to government institutions on their disclosure obligations and to third parties affected by access requests. She was counsel to the Toronto Star in the precedent-setting Supreme Court of Canada decision Sherman Estate v. Donovan, a landmark case affirming the constitutional open court principle and providing guidance on how privacy interests are to be balanced with openness.
Ellie has developed significant expertise advising businesses of all sizes on compliance with accessibility legislation across Canada, including the Accessible Canada Act, Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, and provincial equivalents. She also represents clients before accessibility regulators and is actively advising clients on preparing for new digital technology accessibility obligations.
Ellie also advises social media platforms and other online services on online safety compliance, including navigating Canadian laws governing harmful content and the evolving federal and provincial regulatory landscape.
Ellie's practice is grounded in a deep academic and professional engagement with the intersection of law, technology and society. She holds a master of science (with distinction) from the Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, where her research examined the impact of government surveillance on people with disabilities. Her scholarly work has been published in peer-reviewed academic journals, including the Canadian Journal of Law and Technology. Before joining Blakes, she trained at the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General — experience that sharpens her practical advice and ability to anticipate how regulators think and respond.