Vania
Draguieva

Barrister & Solicitor

contact me

Procurement Law

Contract Law

Construction Law

13+

years

in the legal, professional

regulation, and consulting

industries.

Summary

I am a lawyer admitted to the Ontario Bar in 2013, with over 13 years of experience in industries as diverse as law, consulting, environmental services, professional regulation, and water and wastewater industries. I have gained experience in several areas of law, including environmental law, construction, contracts, civil litigation, health and safety, privacy, procurement, regulatory, technology, and class actions. Along with drafting legal pleadings, memoranda, and opinion pieces, I also appear in court and settle cases. As a licensed professional, certified risk manager, and published legal author, I deliver excellent general counsel support in identifying and preventing multi-area legal risks to minimize loss exposure and optimize performance.

BIO


Legal Counsel, Ontario Clean Water Agency, Toronto, 2021-2023

Corporate/Commercial Law and procurement

  • Performed research and provided strategic legal advice to senior management in the following areas of law: contracts, construction, environmental law, health and safety, international law (CETA and CFTA) IP, insurance, privacy (FIPPA and CASL), procurement, regulatory, statutory interpretation, technology, water and wastewater, and among others
  • Interpreted OCWA’s enabling statute, the Capital Investment Plan Act, the Environmental Protection Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Ontario Water Resources Act, the Ontario Health and Safety Act, and other existing and proposed legislation to devise a risk management strategy
  • Negotiated, drafted, or amended over a hundred agreements, whether with suppliers, municipal or industrial clients, or First Nations, including agreements pertaining to operation and maintenance, project management, construction management, commercial leases, consulting, IT, engineering services, and research agreements
  • Prepared and advised on Request for Proposals, Request for Tenders, and Request for Quotations
  • Drafted successful legal representations before the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario
  • Successfully drafted approximately a hundred applications to the Treasury Board Secretariat under section 28 of the Ontario Financial Administration Act to mitigate legal risks for the Province of Ontario

Legal Officer, The Law Society Referral Service, The Law Society of Ontario, Toronto, 2015-2020

Administrative law

  • Drafted legal memos and performed research in privacy, administrative, constitutional, and human rights law
  • Drafted memos to examine the referral service’s history and acquired goodwill to maintain members’ loyalty
  • Drafted emails in response to members of the public to refer them to a lawyer
  • Expertly interviewed thousands of potential clients to refer them to an appropriate lawyer
  • Interpreted the Law Society’s enabling statute and drafted legal memos to ensure compliance
  • Applied de-escalating techniques and empathy in managing people in crisis

Barrister and Solicitor, The Advantage Group International, Inc., Toronto, 2013-2015

Corporate/Commercial Law

  • Reported directly to the CFO, oversaw, managed, and identified the legal issues in all departments
  • Drafted and managed the execution of contracts, pleadings, policies, and corporate records
  • Led successful legal contract negotiations with global manufacturing companies’ C-suite teams
  • Advised in corporate governance, IP, data protection (PIPEDA), technology (SaaS), marketing and advertising (CASL), competition law (Competition Act), and human rights
  • Appeared at a pre-trial settlement conference and successfully settled the matter
  • Monitored competition law compliance at the Annual Board Meeting

Student-at-Law, MAG, Ontario Ministry of Education, Toronto, 2013

Class Actions

  • Examined evidence to determine relevance to the issues in a class-action lawsuit against the Crown
  • Performed legal research in the area of employment law
  • Managed the workload and set realistic goals with the team for completion of the evidence review
  • Administrative Law
  • Anti-Spam Legislation and Policies
  • Civil Litigation Contracts- licensing agreements, end-user license agreements, NDAs, etc.
  • Competition Law 
  • Criminal Law and the Charter
  • Human Rights and Occupational Health and Safety in the workplace
  • Intellectual Property Protection
  • Privacy Law and Policies
  • Professional Regulation
  • Statutory Interpretation
  • Technology Law
  • Workplace Investigations 
  • Public Procurement Law: The Rules in Practice, Osgoode Professional Development, 2023
  • Environmental Compliance 101, The Ontario Clean Water Agency, 2023
  • Foundations in Judicial Competences Certificate, The Ontario Bar Association, 2020
  • Civil Litigation Certificate, The Advocates’ Society, 2018-2019
  • Risk Management Certificate, University of Toronto, 2018
  • Dealing with Difficult People Certificate, University of Windsor, 2017

Professional Assessment Of Your Legal Risks

  • Author for Practical Guidance, LexisNexis Canada Inc
  • "Software Acquisition and Grant-Back Licence Agreement” (Annotated)
  • "Cyber Incident Response Plan” (Annotated)

Having been on the Executive of the Canadian Corporate Counsel Association, I chaired events such as the CCCA Ontario Chapter Award of Excellence 2018, the Art and Science of Minute Taking, 2017, the Institute Program, 2015 Legal Trends and Developments: What Corporate Counsel Should Know to Be on the Cutting Edge.


I volunteered for two committees at the Law Society of Ontario, the Charities Committee to support the Lawyers Feed the Hungry Program, and the Diversity and Inclusion Committee to educate employees on topics such as LGBTQ+, Respectful and Inclusive Workplaces, Disability Inclusion Strategies and Diversity and Inclusion in the Legal Profession. I also promoted the French language and culture by participating in French plays such as the Would-be Gentlemen (a play by Molière) at Michael Ignatieff Theatre, University of Toronto. I ran marathons to support our youth at organizations such as Justice for Children and Youth and Big Brother, Big Sister.

  • Master 1, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Droit privé, Private Law, 2019*
  • Juris Doctor, University of Ottawa, 2010
  • International Private Law Class, The Hague
  • Academy of International Laws, 2008 Bachelor of
  • Arts, McGill University, 2007
    *Degree is on hold

Send Me A Message To Learn How I Can Assist You Or Your Team!

  Vania Draguieva | 2023