The Benchmark Canada 2017 awards ceremony was held at the Park Hyatt Yorkville in Toronto this past Thursday. The event was full capacity, with representatives from all seven of the provinces covered by Benchmark Canada, represented via attendees from nearly 40 private practice firms. In-house counsel from CIBC, Air Canada, Aviva Insurance were also present and honored with awards. Benchmark also honored Guy Du Pont, partner in the Montreal office of Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg, with the "Hall of Fame" award, which was followed by a speech from Du Pont that was at once humorous and elegiac, rendered with seamless transitions between English and French. 

Photos of the event are available here. (Password is "benchmark.")

Congratulations to the winners, all of which are listed below:

ALBERTA FIRM OF THE YEAR
Bennett Jones

ALBERTA LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
David Tupper, Blake Cassels & Graydon

ATLANTICS FIRM OF THE YEAR
Stewart McKelvey

ATLANTICS LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Michelle Awad, McInnes Cooper

BRITISH COLUMBIA FIRM OF THE YEAR
Hunter Litigation Chambers

BRITISH COLUMBIA LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Michael Feder, McCarthy Tetrault

MANITOBA FIRM OF THE YEAR
MLT Aikins

MANITOBA LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Steve Vincent, Pitblado

ONTARIO FIRM OF THE YEAR
Paliare Roland Rosenberg Rothstein

ONTARIO LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Michael Barrack, Blake Cassels & Graydon

QUEBEC FIRM OF THE YEAR
Woods

QUEBEC LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Eric Azran, Stikeman Elliott

SASKATCHEWAN FIRM OF THE YEAR
MLT Aikins

SASKATCHEWAN LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Robert Leurer, MLT Aikins

ABORIGINAL LAW FIRM OF THE YEAR
Gowling WLG

ABORIGINAL LAW LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Keith Bergner, Lawson Lundell

ARBITRATION FIRM OF THE YEAR
Fasken Martineau

ARBITRATION COUNSEL OF THE YEAR
Stephen Drymer, Woods

CLASS ACTION FIRM OF THE YEAR
Osler Hoskin & Harcourt

CLASS ACTION LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Andrew Borrell, Fasken Martineau

COMPETITION FIRM OF THE YEAR
Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg

COMPETITION LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
David Kent, McMillan

CONSTRUCTION FIRM OF THE YEAR
Borden Ladner Gervais

CONSTRUCTION LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Bruce Reynolds, Borden Ladner Gervais

ENERGY/RESOURCES FIRM OF THE YEAR
Bennett Jones

ENERGY/RESOURCES LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Maureen Killoran, Osler Hoskin & Harcourt

INSOLVENCY FIRM OF THE YEAR
Thornton Grout Finnigan

INSOLVENCY LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Ashley Taylor, Stikeman Elliott

INSURANCE FIRM OF THE YEAR
Borden Ladner Gervais

INSURANCE LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
David Bishop, Gowling WLG

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY FIRM OF THE YEAR
Smart & Biggar/Fetherstonhaugh

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Jason Markwell, Belmore Neidrauer

MEDICAL/HEALTH DEFENSE FIRM OF THE YEAR
Borden Ladner Gervais

MEDICAL/HEALTH DEFENSE LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Mary Thomson, Gowling WLG

PLAINTIFF FIRM OF THE YEAR
Roy O'Connor

PRODUCT LIABILITY FIRM OF THE YEAR
Fasken Martineau

PRODUCT LIABILITY LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Jill Lawrie, Blake Cassels & Graydon

SECURITIES FIRM OF THE YEAR
Crawley MacKewn Brush

SECURITIES LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Robert Staley, Bennett Jones

WHITE-COLLAR/ENFORCEMENT/INVESTIGATIONS FIRM OF THE YEAR
McCarthy Tetrault

WHITE-COLLAR/ENFORCEMENT/INVESTIGATIONS LITIGATOR OF THE YEAR
Stephane Eljarrat, Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg

TRIAL LAWYER OF THE YEAR
Geoffrey Cowper, Fasken Martineau

LITIGATION BOUTIQUE OF THE YEAR
Stockwoods

HALL OF FAME 
Guy Du Pont, Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg

IN-HOUSE TEAM OF THE YEAR
CIBC

IMPACT CASES OF THE YEAR

CN v. CP - Bennett Jones, Torys, Lenczner Slaght, Fasken Martineau, Chernos Flaherty Svonkin

Livent appeal - Stikeman Elliott

Catalyst v. West Face Capital and Brandon Moyse - Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg and Paliare Roland Rosenberg Rothstein

Lizotte v. Aviva Insurance of Canada - Stikeman Elliott

Elias et al v. Western Financial Group - Pitblado