Christine A. Carron, Ad E
Senior Partner
Christine Carron practises primarily in corporate and commercial litigation and in the areas of banking, privacy, product liability, consumer protection and e-commerce. She is chair of our Canadian privacy and access to information team. She has been involved in a wide range of commercial litigation, including the defence of class actions in the financial services, retail and tobacco industries and represents corporate clients in disputes involving damages for breach of commercial contracts or for latent defects and in shareholder disputes.
Ms. Carron also acts as defence counsel in major class actions. She has represented clients in parliamentary commissions on the adoption and amendment of Quebec’s privacy legislation for the private sector and participated in the consultation process for Quebec’s legislation on new technologies.
Ms. Carron is chair of our Canadian Pro Bono Committee.
Law school
B.C.L., McGill University, 1977
Education
M.A., McGill University, 1974
B.A., University of Michigan, 1972
Selected client work
Ms. Carron’s recent client work includes:
- Counselling numerous financial institutions, including Royal Bank of Canada, HSBC, CIBC and MBNA, with respect to regulatory and general banking issues, and class actions for alleged violations of the Quebec Consumer Protection Act
- Successfully defending Playtex against the certification of product liability class actions in respect of baby bottles containing BPA
- Currently representing Procter & Gamble in several class action certification proceedings respecting product liability
- Counselling numerous retailers including Sears, Dell, Household Finance, HBC and Electrolux with respect to contracts and the validity of provisions relating to advertising, credit, disclosure, discounts offered, etc.
- Quebec counsel to Canadian Bankers Association
- Successfully defending a credit card issuer in one of the first Quebec class actions to proceed on the merits
- Acting for Hydro-Québec with respect to contractual disputes
Speaking engagements
- “Complex Litigation,” Quebec Bar Association, Gatineau, Quebec, June 3, 2011.
- “Reform of the Consumer Protection Act: True Harmonization or Not?” Montréal, May 27, 2011.
- “Protection of Personal Information: What’s new?” presentation to selected clients, Toronto, September 2010 and January 2011.
- “Comparison of Federal and Provincial Cost of Borrowing Regulations - Reform of the Consumer Protection Act: True Harmonization or Not?” Canadian Bar Association conference, Montréal, October 6, 2010.
- “Leading Practices Profile on Crisis Management and the Role of the In-House Counsel,” Association of Corporate Counsel, San Antonio, Texas, October 2010.
- “Les entreprises privées et la protection des renseignements personnels: enjeux et développements récents,” Montréal, September 30, 2010.
- “The Evolution of Laws and Regulations in Privacy Matters and its Impact on Organizations Doing Business Outside the United States. An Overview of Canadian and other international jurisdictions,” Association of Corporate Counsel, Boston, October 2009.
- “L’arbitrage des recours collectifs : les limites constitutionnelles des articles 1033.1 et 1039 du C.p.c. et le modèle hybride proposé par Claude Masse” (co-author: Sébastien Jetté), Les Journées Maximilien-Caron, Montréal, March 31, 2006.
- “Renseignements concernant les professionnels de santé : sont-ils des renseignements personnels?” The Canadian Institute, Montréal, February 25-26, 2002.
- “Sign on the Digital Line,” Canadian Insurance Accountants Association, Montréal, September 17, 2001.
Rankings and recognitions
- Chambers Global: The World’s Leading Lawyers for Business, 2007, 2011- 2013: Dispute Resolution: Class Action and Dispute Resolution: Quebec
- Benchmark Canada, 2013 - recognized as a local litigation star in Quebec; Litigation star in Canada in Arbitration
- Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory, 2011-2012 - recommended in Class Actions, Litigation - Corporate Commercial and Litigation - Directors' & Officers' Liability
- Lexpert®/American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada, 2011-2012 - most frequently recommended in Corporate Commercial Litigation and Class Actions
- Benchmark Canada, 2012 - “Local Litigation Star,” Quebec, Class Actions, Media Law
- Best Lawyers’ Lawyer of the Year, 2012 - Appellate law, Montréal
- Best Lawyers in Canada, 2012-2013 - Appellate Law, Class Action Litigation, Corporate and Commercial Litigation, Banking and Finance
- 2011 Martindale-Hubbell® Bar Register of Preeminent Women Lawyers™, Rated AV® Preeminent™
- 2011 Lexpert® Guide to the Leading US/Canada Cross-border Litigation Lawyers in Canada (US Litigation Guide), Litigation – Corporate commercial; Litigation – Class actions
- Fellow, American College of Trial Lawyers
- Named Advocatus Emeritus by the Quebec Bar
- Lexpert Zenith Awards, which honours the top 25 women in the country
- La Presse “Personality of the Week” as a leading litigation lawyer
- Lexpert Magazine - One of Canada’s Top 25 Women Lawyers
- Magazine Entreprendre - One of “Les 101 Femmes entrepreneurs”
- National Post - Listed among Best Lawyers, Montreal for Corporate Commercial Litigation, Banking Law and Class Action Litigation
Memberships and activities
- Canadian Bar Association
- Supreme Court Advocacy Institute
- Quebec Bar task force on pro bono services
- Bar of Montreal
- Liaison Committee with the Court of Appeal
- Deliberations Committee
- Former member, Council
Directorships
- Director and Secretary, Pro Bono Québec
- Former treasurer and director, Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice