CRIMINAL LAWYERS - Key Persons
Amanda Ross graduated with First Class Honours from the University of Alberta in 2008 with an Honours degree in Philosophy. She completed her Juris Doctor at Osgoode Hall Law School in 2012 and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 2013. While at Osgoode Hall Ms. Ross was the recipient of numerous awards, including prizes for excellence in criminal law and social justice, and a Dean's Gold Key award in 2012. She worked in the Criminal Division of the law school's Legal Aid clinic (CLASP), and in 2011 served on the clinic's Board of Directors.
Ms. Ross's practice focuses on criminal, constitutional, regulatory and professional discipline defence litigation at both the trial and appellate levels. She has appeared before all levels of court, including at the Supreme Court of Canada. Ms. Ross also acts as prosecution and appellate counsel for various professional regulatory bodies.
Ms. Ross acts as appellate counsel for the Summary Conviction Appeal Court Pro Bono Program at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Toronto. She is listed as Special Duty Counsel to assist individuals dealing with serious mental health issues at a downtown Toronto courthouse. Ms. Ross is a Teaching Advisor for the University of Toronto Faculty of Law's Trial Advocacy course and lectures at the Toronto Police College in relation to the investigation and prosecution of sexual assault offences.
Ms. Ross also acts as counsel for complainants, witnesses and third parties to criminal litigation both before and at trial, including as court appointed counsel for the purpose of s. 276 and 278 applications in sexual assault cases. Ms. Ross is a member of the Diversity Committee of the Criminal Lawyers' Association, and is currently a member of the Executive Committee of the Ontario Bar Association's Criminal Justice Section.
Practice Areas
Homicide
Job Titles:
- Founding Partner
- Its Founding Member and Leader
Our firm is very saddened to announce the passing of its founding member and leader, Austin Cooper, Q.C. Austin was a passionate and celebrated lawyer, who was justly regarded as one of the finest criminal lawyers this country has ever seen and "The Dean of the Criminal Bar". He was well known for his integrity, impeccable judgment and civility. He brought tremendous dignity to the criminal bar.
Austin practiced for 60 years, first as a sole practitioner, and ultimately with the firm of Cooper, Sandler, Shime and Bergman LLP. His contributions to the Canadian public and the legal community were widely recognized, most recently when the Law Society of Upper Canada bestowed an honourary Doctorate of Laws upon him. He was also the recipient of the G. Arthur Martin Medal, the Criminal Lawyers Association's highest honour, the Advocates' Society Medal for his mastery of the art of advocacy and countless other awards. Austin was a strong believer in the right of all people, regardless of their background or income, to have a zealous defence to criminal allegations. He defended many indigent people pro bono and strongly advocated for the introduction of legal aid in Ontario. He also defended the first murder case under the new Legal Aid Plan.
But Austin was much more than a brilliant lawyer. He was a wonderful person, who remained the paragon of humility and modesty despite his remarkable accomplishments. He was remarkably kind and gentle, always offering his advice, encouragement and a kind word. Over the course of his lengthy career, he shared his knowledge and acted as a mentor for innumerable criminal lawyers, many of whom have become leaders of the Bar themselves thanks to his mentorship. He taught all of us how to be zealous advocates for our clients while maintaining the highest standards of ethics and professionalism. His example serves as an inspiration to us all. He will be sorely missed every day.
Austin was a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School, and was called to the Bar of the Province of Ontario in 1953 and practiced as defence counsel in the field of criminal law since that date. He was appointed Q.C. in 1964. He was certified by the Law Society as a Specialist in Criminal Law and had extensive experience as both a trial and appellate counsel. From 1997 to 1998, he served as Commission Counsel to the Commission on Proceedings involving Guy Paul Morin. He was a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the recipient of a number of professional awards: the Douglas Laidlaw Medal for Excellence in Advocacy, the G. Arthur Martin Award from the Criminal Lawyers' Association of Ontario for his contribution to criminal justice (2000), the J.J. Robinette Medal for Excellence from the Osgoode Hall Law School Alumni Association (2003) and the Award of Excellence from the Metropolitan Toronto Lawyers' Association for significant contribution to the growth of jurisprudence and the rule of law (2003). In 2005, he was awarded the Advocates' Society Medal for his mastery of the art of advocacy. In 2013, he was awarded an Honourary Doctorate from the Law Society of Upper Canada.
Austin wrote and lectured widely at law schools and legal conferences in the areas of advocacy, evidence and substantive criminal law. He was a founding member of the Advocates Society in Ontario and served as a Director of that Society. He was a member in good standing of the Canadian Bar Association and was, for several years, the Chair of the Civil Liberties Subsection. Austin was elected by his peers as a Bencher of the Law Society of Ontario (the governing body of the legal profession in Ontario), and after serving from 1971 to 1987, was appointed as ex-officio Bencher for his lifetime. For 16 years, he was a director of the Tarragon Theatre, Toronto, and was a member of the Board of Governors of Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto.
Job Titles:
- Professional Integrity Underlies Every Decision the Firm Makes on a Client 's Behalf
Cooper, Sandler, Shime & Schwartzentruber LLP has been practising criminal law in the trial and appellate courts since 1953. The firm was founded by the late Austin M. Cooper, Q.C., recipient of the Douglas K. Laidlaw Medal for Excellence in Advocacy (1992) and a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. Mark J. Sandler, the senior partner of the firm, is a former Bencher of the Law Society of Ontario and also a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. Mr. Sandler is certified by the Law Society of Ontario as a Specialist in Criminal Law. Today it is a dynamic, seven-member firm based in downtown Toronto, Ontario.
The firm has extensive experience defending allegations of white-collar crime. It also has wide experience in the defence of homicide, drug, and sexual assault cases. Its aim is to provide expert legal advice and skilful representation of its clients' interests in the criminal courts. All of the lawyers at Cooper, Sandler, Shime & Schwartzentruber LLP have assisted clients before every level of court in Ontario, including the Ontario Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada.
Professional integrity underlies every decision the firm makes on a client's behalf.
Lysandra Moreno is Métis and Anishinaabe, and a member of the Métis Nation of Ontario. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Honours degree in Criminology at the University of Toronto Mississauga. Ms. Moreno completed her Master of Arts in Criminology at the University of Toronto with a research focus on the over-representation of Indigenous peoples in the criminal justice system and the use of Gladue reports at sentencing.
Ms. Moreno completed her law degree at Osgoode Hall Law School in 2021 and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 2022. While at Osgoode Hall, Ms. Moreno was awarded the Community & Legal Aid Services Programme (CLASP) award for social justice in 2020 and was one of the recipients of the Dean's Gold Key award in 2021. She worked as a Criminal Division Leader of CLASP and served on the clinic's Board of Directors in 2021. Ms. Moreno also worked as a caseworker at Osgoode's Innocence Project clinic.
Ms. Moreno joined Cooper, Sandler, Shime & Bergman LLP as an articling student in July 2021 and became an associate lawyer with the firm as of April 2022. Ms. Moreno represents individuals charged with all criminal offences with a specific focus on representing Indigenous accused. She is an Indigenous committee member with the Criminal Lawyer's Association and is one of the Association's Toronto Gladue court representatives.
Practice Areas
Homicide
Mr. Sandler is widely recognized as one of Canada's leading criminal defence lawyers. He holds an AV Pre-eminent Rating (the highest level of professional excellence) from Martindale-Hubbell; is listed in the Best Lawyers in Canada (2016) for criminal defence work; is recognized as one of the world's leading lawyers for investigations and business crime defence in Who's Who Legal; and is included in ExpertGuides as a peer-selected world's best lawyer in white collar crime. Mr. Sandler is also a recipient of the G. Arthur Martin Criminal Justice Medal for his outstanding contributions to criminal justice.
Mr. Sandler received his LL.B. from the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto in 1978. He was called to the Bar in 1980. He is certified by the Law Society as a Specialist in Criminal Law. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He completed three terms as a Bencher of the Law Society of Ontario, and served as Chair, Appeals Panel for a number of years, and then as the Vice-Chair of the Appeal Division with the appointment of a full-time Chair of the Tribunal. He also served for a number of years as Chair of the Law Foundation of Ontario. His practice is primarily devoted to appellate and trial criminal and regulatory litigation.
He has served as counsel or senior advisor for or at over 20 public inquires or systemic reviews, including the Goudge Inquiry (Pediatric Forensic Pathology), the Kaufman Inquiry (Guy Paul Morin), the Robins Review (Sexual Misconduct by Teachers), and the Minister of Justice's s. 696 review into the Stephen Truscott case (Hon. Fred Kaufman Q.C.). He was lead counsel to the Hon. Gloria Epstein respecting an independent civilian review into how missing persons investigations are conducted in Toronto, and was chair of the independent committee examining the culture and values at St. Michael's College School in the wake of allegations of sexual and physical abuse at the school. He served as counsel to the Office of the Independent Police Review Director's systemic review of the Thunder Bay Police Service and its relationship to Indigenous communities..
He has served as a member of the Criminal Law Specialty Committee, Law Society of Ontario, Specialist Certification Programme; was an Adjunct Professor at Osgoode Hall Law School from 1992 to 2005; previously co-chaired the Criminal Lawyers' Association Annual Convention and Educational Programme for three years; and has written and lectured extensively on criminal law, evidence, procedure and advocacy. He co-authored (with the Honourable Madam Justice F. Weinper) Criminal Procedure: Cases, Notes and Materials, Butterworths 2nd Edition 2004. He has served as a Faculty member of the National Judicial Institute and of the Federation of Law Societies annual Criminal Law Programme.
Mr. Sandler was formerly a part-time member of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario. He is former National Chair and former Senior Counsel, B'nai Brith League for Human Rights, and as such, has appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada on issues relating to hate propaganda and hate-motivated crime.
Practice Areas
Investigations
Since 1953 Cooper, Sandler, Shime & Schwartzentruber LLP has been specializing in all areas of Criminal Law in the Toronto area. Our Toronto criminal lawyers at Cooper, Sandler, Shime & Schwartzentruber LLP serve the Greater Toronto Area and Ontario, Canada.
Wayne Cunningham completed his Juris Doctor at the University of Toronto in 2011 and was called to the Ontario bar in 2012. While at the University of Toronto, Mr. Cunningham focused exclusively on Criminal Law. This included volunteering at both the University of Toronto's legal clinic (Downtown Legal Services), where he represented low-income clients who faced criminal charges, and at the Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted (AIDWYC), reviewing murder files for a basis on which to overturn potential wrongful convictions.
Upon completion of his degree Mr. Cunningham joined Cooper, Sandler, Shime and Bergman LLP as an articling student in 2011, became an associate in 2012 and partner in April 2022. Mr. Cunningham has represented clients with many types of criminal charges (both Criminal Code offences and Controlled Drug and Substance Act offences) and quasi-criminal matters, including charges under the Income Tax Act, the Occupational Health and Safety Act and the Extradition Act. Mr. Cunningham has appeared at every level of court in Ontario, including the Ontario Court of Appeal, and at the Supreme Court of Canada.
Practice Areas
Homicide