Law Times

PAGE 4 NEWS April 11, 2011 • lAw Times Remembering John A. Tory 'A very good lawyer' who became a 'great businessman' BY MICHAEL McKIERNAN Law Times I n his 13 years at the helm of the Woodbridge Co. Ltd., there was one person at the top of Geoff Beattie's call list: John A. Tory. Beattie succeeded Tory as president of the Th omson fam- ily's holding company, but the transition wasn't the start of a quiet retirement for a man who "just loved working." "He wasn't a sage old wisdom kind of guy," Beattie says. "Th e reason you went to him was he just knew stuff better than you. He always kept up on top of things in case you needed him. You'd go to him and realize he was fully up to speed." Beattie made his last call to OntariO Lawyer's PhOne BOOk 2011 Your most complete directorY of ontario lawYers, law firms, judges and courts with more than 1,400 pages of essential legal references, Ontario Lawyer's Phone Book is your best connection to legal services in ontario. subscribers can depend on the credibility, accuracy and currency of this directory year after year. 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A short time later, he suff ered a stroke at his Florida home. Two days later, on April 3, he died while sur- rounded by family at his hospital bedside. Tory, who joined the fam- ily fi rm after his father founded what would eventually become Torys LLP, left the profession in 1973 to join Woodbridge. Th ere, he guided the Th omson business as it transformed from its roots in newspapers into a global commu- nications giant. "Some people think when someone leaves a law fi rm and goes and works in business, they work as a lawyer, notwithstand- ing what they do," Beattie says. "What John did was [he] mas- tered two crafts. He was a very good lawyer, left, and became a great businessman. He always be- lieved that the pursuit of a legal career gives you the tools to go on and do many things in life suc- cessfully." Beattie fi rst encountered Tory CANADA LAW BOOK® as an articling student at Torys in 1984 when he was summoned to the senior statesman's offi ce. Tory's humble and friendly de- meanour quickly dispelled any trepidation. "It was unique to the style of who he was that an arti- cling student would get to work with John Tory," Beattie says. "My relationship with John when I met him in 1984 is no diff erent to who he was when I talked to OLPB - 1-4 page 3X.indd 1 3/9/11 3:47:23 PM John A. Tory him last Friday night. Th at was the magic of the man." Tory's son, John H. Tory, also became a lawyer and went on to become leader of Ontario's Pro- gressive Conservative party. He now hosts a radio show in To- ronto. "He was a towering contribu- tor but he sought no attention for it," he told the Toronto Star. Th e elder Tory's own father, John S.D. Tory, had started the law fi rm Tory and Associates in 1941. John A. Tory and his twin brother James joined the fi rm in 1954 right out of law school and took control when their fa- ther died in 1965. He left them with an enviable client base that included the Th omson Corp., department store Simpsons, and investment bankers Wood Gun- dy Inc. "Th ese were major corpora- THE LAW OF SUBDIVISION CONTROL IN ONTARIO, THIRD EDITION Sidney H. Troister, LSM A NEW THIRD EDITION OF "THE" REAL ESTATE LAWYERS' GUIDE TO SECTION 50 OF THE PLANNING ACT Every real estate lawyer knows that section 50 affects all real estate transactions in Ontario. This is the only resource to help guide you through the intricacies of this complicated section. Written by leading expert Sidney Troister, this text has become known as "THE" Planning Act resource since its original publication in 1988. This indispensable and practical text helps you analyze and assess the validity of title and address any problems that may arise. This new third edition updates the law and practice and includes: updated case law and commentary • • • Hardbound • 464 pp. January 2011 • $139 P/C 1002010000 ISBN 978-0-88804-514-0 • updated legislation new commentary on the effect of land titles conversion and the automation and parcellization of title • a detailed section on the validation of title analysis of and recommended strategies for dealing with the complex problems that arise under section 50 tions, and for a couple of 35-year- olds to convince those corpora- tions to stay with what was really a small sort of business law bou- tique when all the major fi rms in the street were out there trying to pick them off was really remark- able," says Peter Jewett, a partner at Torys and chairman of its cor- porate and capital markets prac- tice group. In 1972, Jewett was another articling student whose meeting with the elder Tory left a last- ing impression. At that time, the fi rm consisted of about 20 lawyers and articling students. "My impression of him, right from the beginning, was he was a quite intense person, an incredibly skilled lawyer but with a wonderful sense of hu- mour," Jewett says. "He made young people feel very relaxed because of it. I'm not sure I can remember a time when I talked to him that he didn't have a smile on his face." Jewett met the man again many times over the years, most recently for a celebration of the elder Tory and his broth- er's 80th birthdays last year. "While he left here in 1973, canadalawbook.ca For a 30-day, no-risk evaluation call: 1.800.565.6967 Canada Law Book, a Thomson Reuters business. Prices subject to change without notice, to applicable taxes and shipping & handling. LT0117 www.lawtimesnews.com in some respects he never left," Jewett says. "He was always very close to the fi rm. He was a fundamental part of what I think Torys is, even though he hasn't been here for 30-some- thing years, which is just a tes- tament to his personality and his demeanour."

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• Great Businessman
• Election Special
• Focus On Class Actions