Law Times

Law Times • June 25, 2018 Page 5 www.lawtimesnews.com John Mountain was advocate for LGBTQ community BY JENNIFER BROWN For Law Times T he legal and finan- cial communities are mourning the passing of a strong advocate for diversity and inclusion in the profession. John Mountain died sudden- ly June 18 at the age of 62 sur- rounded by family, including his spouse of 27 years, Greg, whom he married in 2003. He had re- cently been diagnosed with met- astatic pancreatic cancer. Mountain was director, in- vestment funds and structured products at the Ontario Securi- ties Commission and a support- er of Legal Leaders for Diversity where he was remembered by friends and colleagues of the in-house and law firm commu- nity at the annual meeting in Toronto. Lino Cambone, vice presi- dent and deputy general coun- sel, wealth management, legal at BMO Financial, knew Moun- tain well and had learned only a week earlier that his friend of 20 years was sick. "I was totally shocked and gutted by this; he is gone in such a short period of time," says Cambone. "We had lunch planned for next month." Dorothy Quann, former gen- eral counsel of Xerox Canada, said Mountain was a "man with a big [last] name and a big heart" and "a great sense of personal style with his signature bow ties." "He leaves an important leg- acy in the LGBTQ community for his leadership and courage in celebrating diversity — he really believed in making the world a better place," said Quann. In 2014, Mountain received the Canadian General Counsel Award for social responsibil- ity when he was general counsel at NEI Investments, presented to him by Simon Fish, general counsel at BMO Financial. "I am deeply saddened by the sudden loss of John Mountain. John was a highly regarded law- yer and business leader. In 2014, I was delighted to present John with the CGCA's ESG and social responsibility award. Having worked closely with John on Le- gal Leaders for Diversity, I think he would have considered his advocacy to promote inclusion and equitable treatment within the legal profession some of his most important work. He will be dearly missed," Simon Fish, general counsel, BMO Financial Group, said in an emailed state- ment. Cambone said Mountain is probably best known for being a "fierce and tireless" champion of human rights and for his con- tribution to the regulatory land- scape in Canada. "He brought the idea of di- versity and inclusion not only in the legal profession but to the in- vestment community. That was really near and dear to his heart. He probably would have wanted his contributions to diversity and inclusion to be the hallmark of his life and his career," says Cambone, who met Mountain in 1997 when Mountain was heading up regulatory affairs at the Investment Funds Institute of Canada, where he worked for seven years before moving to NEI Investments. "I met him at IFIC and we were on a few committees to- gether and I got to know him socially as well and [he] was just an all-around good guy," says Cambone. "We had great and numer- ous conversations over the years about things like investor pro- tection and the growth of the fund industry and making sure you can accomplish both — you can have investor protection and still have a thriving indus- try. John got that and had a very practical approach to things." In 2016, Mountain returned to the OSC, where he had also worked from 1989 to 1996 as deputy director of registration and senior legal counsel. "He was only in that role a short time, but I think he would have done a lot of good for the regulatory environment in Can- ada," says Cambone. "We are missing a real leader today." Mountain loved to travel and in 2003 he and Greg took time off to do a trip around the world. "John took a year off from IFIC and literally went around the world and called it follow- summer," recalls Cambone. "He was blogging about it at a time when no one really knew what blogging was." Mountain attended the Uni- versity of Windsor Law School and was an associate at McMil- lan LLP for two years before moving to the OSC. He also at- tended the University of West- ern Ontario Richard Ivey School of Business, obtaining his MBA in 2003. Donations in lieu of f lowers should be directed to the John Mountain Law Scholarship. Please direct to Karen Momo- tiuk at Windsor Law karenm@ uwindsor.ca. An obituary indicates cele- brations of life will be held in To- ronto and St. Marys, Ont., later this summer. LT NEWS Get expert insight into the impact of key rulings on Canadian criminal law Available risk-free for 30 days Online: store.thomsonreuters.ca Call Toll-Free: 1-800-387-5164 In Toronto: 416-609-3800 Order # L7798-8103-65203 $173 Hardcover February 2018 approx. 1300 pages 978-0-7798-8103-1 Shipping and handling are extra. 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Phil., and Steve Coughlan, B.A., M.A., LL.B., Ph.D. © 2018 Thomson Reuters Canada Limited 00250IX-91657-NP John Mountain's friends say he is probably best known for being a 'fierce and tireless' champion of human rights and for his contribution to the regulatory landscape in Canada. He brought the idea of diversity and inclusion not only in the legal profession but to the investment community. Lino Cambone LawTimesNews.com Fresh Ontario legal news and analysis available on any device. Get More Online

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