We Are Growing!

One of the great joys of being the Managing Partner at Goddard Gamage LLP is discovering talented young lawyers and articling students who share our firm’s values, our compassion for our clients, and our dedication to the practice of estates, disability and elder law. I'm pleased to announce that three people with exactly those qualities have re-joined us after articling and summering with us.

Our associate, Marie Fiedler, is tailor-made for our firm not only in terms of her experience and educational qualifications - which are stellar -  but because of what initially compelled her to embark on a legal career. Marie comes to us with a background in public health. During her years working at a hospice, she saw the impact the legal system had on the wellbeing of patients and their families. She also saw how difficult, even impossible, it was for many people to navigate that system. As is characteristic of her, Marie decided to do her part to make things better, and enrolled at University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law. 

During law school, Marie did disability human rights work, represented injured workers in insurance appeals, and represented individuals in Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) related appeals. It was while working with the Health Justice Program that Marie was exposed to estates and elder law, and knew she’d found her calling. 

All this led her to Goddard Gamage LLP, first as an articling student and now as an associate lawyer. Marie says this about her time so far with our firm:

I was initially drawn to Goddard Gamage LLP because of the firm’s extensive work and expertise in the fields of elder and disability law. During my time with the firm, I have learnt so much about the unique forms of discrimination and harm experienced by older people, and the systems we currently have in place to address these injustices.

I am looking forward to continuing to learn how I can be part of a meaningful response to these unique forms of oppression, as well as representing clients with disabilities in ODSP matters, appointing substitute-decision makers, and capacity litigation.

We are so pleased that Marie has chosen Goddard Gamage LLP as the place to grow in her career. I expect we'll learn as much from her as she does from us. 

Geenath Radhananthan and Melania Soudouk are our two articling students. Both are graduates of Osgoode Hall Law School, both have been summer students with us, and both have shown, through their educational choices and their volunteer and paid work, that they value what our firm values - fairness, equity and inclusion - and are willing to fight for those things.

Geenath worked at the Human Rights Legal Support Centre representing clients in proceedings before the Human Rights Tribunal. He volunteered at Fair Change Community Services, a pro bono legal clinic supporting street-involved individuals. At Osgoode Community Aid and Legal Services, Geenath provided interpretation in Tamil for lawyers and volunteers, and served as an advisor on Tamil culture and language. He volunteers regularly in Toronto’s Flemingdon Park. 

Geenath is a great fit for us, and his cultural, linguistic and legal talents are a welcome addition to our firm.

Melania Soudouk earned a master’s degree from the University of Guelph in Criminology and Criminal Justice, during the course of which she published a research paper on sexual assault sentencing. She was an associate editor of the Osgoode Hall Law Journal and a student caseworker at Parkdale Community Legal Services. Melania worked as a project lead for Pro Bono Students Canada  - an organization dedicated to providing free legal services to people and communities struggling with access to the justice system. Melania also took my elder law class at Osgoode where her interest in elder law was enhanced and where I had the pleasure of reading her paper on predatory marriage.

Like Geenath, Melania has demonstrated the qualities of a future lawyer who will treat her clients with compassion, intelligence and determination. She, too, is a welcome addition to our profession and to our firm.

Welcome Marie, Geenath and Melania - the future, yours and our firm’s, is looking bright!