MacDonald & Associates is thrilled to announce two nominations this year for Canadian Lawyer's Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers award. Founder Natalie MacDonald has been nominated in the Human Rights, Advocacy and Criminal category, and Associate Tara Vasdani in the Young Influencer category.

Cast your vote before May 22nd, 2018

Natalie C. MacDonald

Human Rights, Advocacy and Criminal

This category encompasses lawyers who practise in the area of criminal law, human rights, constitutional law, and related areas, either in-house or in private practice as well as judges who have made an impact in those areas.

Owner and founder of MacDonald & Associates, MacDonald's recognition comes from winning the biggest employment case in Canadian law last year: Galea v. Wal-Mart Canada Inc., in which she achieved the highest amounts of extraordinary damages in employment law, and her client was awarded $750,000 in damages. Selected as one of the leading labour and employment law practitioners in the world by her peers, she is the author of Extraordinary Damages in Canadian Employment Law and a leading authority the matter. In addition, she serves on the Employment Advisory Board of Directors for Practical Law in Canada, the founding Co-Chair of the Employment Law Practice Essentials' annual Conference, an on-line course hosted by the Law Society of Upper Canada, a program director of Osgoode's Professional Development HR Law for HR Professionals course, and an instructor since its inception and the program director of Osgoode's Certificate in Advanced HR Law for Experienced HR Professionals.

Tara Vasdani

Young Influencer

This is for lawyers born in 1978 or after.

An associate lawyer at MacDonald & Associates, Vasdani's most recent accolade is being the first lawyer to serve a pleading via Instagram and being a great promoter of technology in litigation as a result. Experienced, innovative and visionary, Vasdani argued her first trial in December 2017 and by January 2018, she was renowned throughout the legal realm by colleagues. Prior to joining Macdonald & Associates, she worked for a large downtown boutique firm and wrote a book critiquing the federal government's "CSIS" Bill. As one of the 19 students in her class to obtain two law degrees in three years, Vasdani continued to build a reputation despite her age and is additionally affiliated with the Law Society of Ontario, the CBA, the OBA and the Advocates' Society.