Law Times

Law Times • August 24, 2015 Page 5 www.lawtimesnews.com Mendicino confident despite formidable opponents in federal election By tali FolKinS Law Times e knew it must be something big, Marco Mendicino remem- bers, when he discov- ered, on a Sunday night nine years ago, that Canada's chief federal prosecutor had left a voicemail on his home phone. "It's not every day that you get a call from your boss' boss on a Sunday night," says Mendicino. "He told me he wanted to assign me to a case involving a significant threat to national security, that it was a case that was going to take a considerable amount of my time and require a lot of sacrifice, but he felt that I should be a member of the team," he recalls. Four years into his career as a federal prosecutor, the young Toronto lawyer would be part of the team assigned to the trial of the Toronto 18, a group of reportedly al-Qaida-inspired young men accused of plot- ting a series of terror attacks in southern Ontario. It was a case, he says, that would stretch over the next three years and prove to be one of the highlights of his career. Mendicino would work with seven other prosecutors — "some of the finest lawyers I know," he says — on a case with "massive volume" and involv- ing investigations by various federal, provincial, and munici- pal police services and consti- tutional challenges under the Anti-terrorism Act. For Mendicino, the case was one episode in a diverse career that has seen him serve also as president of the Association of Justice Counsel, a team man- ager at the Law Society of Up- per Canada, and a lawyer in private practice. And now, as of a nomination victory this July, the Liberal candidate for Eg- linton-Lawrence, in which he's squaring off against two high- profile competitors in October's federal election: Finance Min- ister Joe Oliver and the NDP's Andrew Thomson, a former Saskatchewan finance minister. He earned the right to run for the Liberals after coming out on top in a hard-fought and high- profile nomination battle with MP Eve Adams. A Toronto native, Mendicino says he pursued the law partly out of admiration for his father, who has been a family lawyer for more than 30 years. After getting his law degree from the University of Windsor in 2001, Mendicino headed straight to an articling position at the federal Department of Justice, where he worked in tax, immi- gration, and criminal law. A sec- ondment at the war crimes unit in Ottawa, he says, almost led him to pursue a career as a Unit- ed Nations prosecutor until an old friend and mentor advised him otherwise. "He said I should go to the Old City Hall and learn the rules of evidence and learn how to litigate and prosecute a straight- forward file before learning to take on an international war criminal, and that advice proved to be spot on," he says. Mendicino would end up working as a federal Crown prosecutor until 2009, when he began a three-year stint as president of the Association of Justice Counsel. As president, Mendicino participated in two rounds of collective bargaining. Over the lifespan of the second collective agreement, he says, members' rate of pay increased by 15.25 per cent. Mendicino then spent what he calls a "fantastic year" at the LSUC's investigations depart- ment, where he managed two teams of investigators, before moving into private practice in partnership with his friend, reg- ulatory lawyer Bonni Ellis. Mendicino served as half of Ellis Mendicino LLP until earlier this year when he decid- ed to enter politics. Part of what drew him to politics, he says, was the inclina- tion he always felt toward public service and community involve- ment. He says he also feels "pas- sionate" about protecting indi- vidual liberties and ensuring equal opportunity. His nomination campaign against Adams would prove to be something of a baptism by fire. Mendicino found him- self up against not only Adams but party heavyweights such as Rocco Piccininno, the president of the Eglinton-Lawrence riding association who publicly de- clared his support for his oppo- nent. Managing Adams' cam- paign was Tom Allison, who had also managed Premier Kathleen Wynne's successful provincial leadership bid in 2013. Mendicino himself concedes it was a "very competitive and intense" campaign. In the end, victory boiled down to two things, he says: who could sign up the most new members and who could ensure they came to the meeting. The intensity of the match is likely to prove a foretaste of what Mendicino faces in October, when he'll be facing a candidate the Conservatives will be very eager to see win. Asked about his prospects facing Oliver, Mendici- no suggests the fatigue that he says Canadians feel with Conservative "wedge politics" and "fear mon- gering" will help him win the day. David MacNaughton, co- chairman of the Liberals' On- tario campaign, says he's confi- dent about Mendicino's chances in the election despite the pres- tige of his opponent. "He's obviously articulate and intelligent and hard-work- ing and persistent. He went through a really challenging nomination . . . and stuck with it and managed to both continue to be positive about the process and was victorious. It showed a tremendous amount of determi- nation and hard work, which is what you need to do," he says. "There are no seats in Toron- to that are safe seats for anyone. . . . I think he's extraordinarily competitive." LT NEWS With more than 1,400 pages of essential legal references, Ontario Lawyer's Phone Book is your best connection to legal services in Ontario. 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(prices subject to change without notice) 2015 ONTARIO LAWYER'S PHONE BOOK THE MOST COMPLETE DIRECTORY OF ONTARIO LAWYERS, LAW FIRMS, JUDGES AND COURTS Untitled-1 1 2015-08-20 8:30 AM H Marco Mendicino will be representing the Liberals in the Toronto riding of Eglinton- Lawrence following a high-profile nomina- tion battle.

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