Patricia Virc practices with our litigation group and specializes in commercial litigation. Her practice includes investor disputes, oppression and other shareholder remedies, fiduciary duties, executive dismissal, defamation, contracts, professional negligence, misrepresentation, unjust enrichment, conspiracy and other economic torts. Her expertise includes shareholder rights, corporate governance, executive and professional duties and director and officer liability and indemnification.

Patricia has appeared at all levels of court in Ontario and in the Supreme Court of Canada.

Some cases of note in which Patricia has acted as counsel include:

• Conn v. Goldstone Resources Inc. (2011) Patricia’s clients were sued for defamation based on material they had circulated over the internet. They moved for summary judgment dismissing the claim against them on the basis that the statements were true. The Court of Appeal for Ontario found there was sufficient evidence to support the motions court judge’s finding that the statements were true, and they upheld the judgment dismissing the claim.
• Echo Energy Canada Inc. v. Lenczner Slaght Royce Smith Griffin LLP (2010) (leave to appeal to the SCC dismissed) The Court of Appeal for Ontario set out the circumstances under which a corporation could have its former lawyers’ paid accounts assessed. In this case payment of the lawyers’ bills was authorized by out-going management and there were findings that raised the spectre that former management was not acting in the best interests of the corporation.
• Blair v. Consolidated Enfield Corp. (1995) The Supreme Court of Canada set out the circumstances under which a corporation is obliged to indemnify its officers and directors. Patricia’s client had been removed as the president of a public company after a hostile take-over. The corporation refused to indemnify him for litigation costs awarded against him during his tenure as president. The SCC ordered that the corporation indemnify its former president and awarded costs to him on a solicitor and client scale.
• Consolidated Enfield Corp. v. Blair (1996) Patricia’s client was a shareholder and former officer of a public company. The client obtained an order under the Business Corporations Act appointing an inspector to investigate the business and affairs of the corporation where the evidence showed that, following a change of control, the corporation carried out over $300 million of related party transactions without disclosure, review or approval.

• Automodular Assemblies Inc. v. Shields (1999) Patricia represented a non-unionized automotive supplier in a law suit against the CAW. The supplier, who had lost a multi-year multi-million dollar contract with General Motors because of illegal strike activity by the CAW, sued the union leaders by way of a representative action alleging induced breach of contract and interference with economic relations. The representation order was sustained on appeal, leading to a quick settlement.

Patricia graduated with an LL.B. from Osgoode Hall Law School and articled with Torys LLP. Following her call to the bar she joined the Toronto litigation firm of Lockwood & Associates and then started her own corporate-commercial litigation practice. She obtained an LL.M. specializing in securities law from Osgoode Hall as well as formal accreditation as a corporate director (C.Dir.) from the DeGroote School of Business. Patricia meets the enhanced suitability requirements established by the Toronto Stock Exchange for directors of corporations in the TMX Capital Pool Program and she has served as a director of a CPC from Initial Public Offering through to completion of its Qualifying Transaction. Prior to joining our firm Patricia was in-house legal counsel to a publicly traded energy company.