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Amanda
Iarusso, K.C.

Associate

Toronto

Contact by email at [email protected]

t. +1 416 601-7772

4656

Law School

University of Windsor
University of Detroit Mercy

Bar Admission

Ontario, 2018

Amanda Iarusso, K.C. is a litigator in our Toronto office. She maintains a general litigation practice, with a particular focus on class actions and political law. In 2023, Amanda was appointed King’s Counsel, the youngest lawyer in Ontario to receive this prestigious designation.

Amanda brings significant public sector experience to her private practice, most recently serving as the Executive Director of Policy and Legal Affairs to the Attorney General of Ontario, and previously a Legislative Aide to the Minister of Labour of Canada.

Litigation Practice

Amanda has appeared before the Ontario Court of Appeal, Ontario Superior Court of Justice, and various regulatory bodies.

Selected experience includes:

  • Defending a specialty laboratory testing services company in a national data breach class action.
  • Defending a large financial institution in an action involving allegations of delayed sale of shares.
  • Acting for a large bank in the defence of vacation pay class action, and specifically, brought and won a motion to sequence a summary judgment motion prior to certification under section 4.1 of the reformed Class Proceedings Act.
  • Acting for a natural resources company in upholding the first decision on the merits of a class action for secondary market representation under Part XXIII.1 of the Securities Act and the first of its kind in Canada. The decision provides valuable guidance for issuers on the materiality analysis and it expands the availability of the reasonable investigation defence. 
  • Bringing applications on behalf a multi-national technology company regarding breaches of its terms of service.
  • Defending a multi-national technology company regarding personal injury arising from the use of its virtual reality products.
  • Defending physicians in regulatory complaints and investigations, and medical negligence actions.

Political Law, Public Policy & Risk Management

As a key member of the firm’s McCarthy Tétrault | Public Sector group, Amanda helps clients navigate legal issues at the intersection of politics, public policy and business.

Amanda along with her colleagues in this group have elite experience advising on novel regulatory regimes and major commercial projects with government stakeholders. She also regularly advises political parties, corporations, non-profits, and executives on their legal obligations regarding conflicts of interest, election financing, political advertising, and lobbying compliance.

From 2019 to 2021, Amanda was one of the Attorney General of Ontario’s most trusted advisors. She served as a senior leader in Ontario’s justice sector, with a reputation for rapidly transforming and modernizing service delivery. Amanda had the unique role of advising the Attorney General as both a Cabinet Minister charged with strategy, policy, and procurements, and Chief Legal Officer of the Executive Council, managing litigation and legal risk for the government. Amanda played a leading role in the passage of numerous bills; namely the overhaul to the Class Proceedings Act and Election Finances Act.

Having worked with Ontario’s Chief Justices, court services, and other justice sector partners to keep the province’s justice system running through the COVID-19 pandemic and the most significant period of transformation in a generation, Amanda is well-positioned to assist clients in developing innovative, pragmatic, and results-oriented approaches to new and legacy challenges, and to manage risk throughout that process.

Beyond McCarthys

Amanda received her Canadian law degree from the University of Windsor and an American law degree from the University of Detroit Mercy, graduating with distinction from both schools. Before joining the Firm, she interned for Chief Judge Christopher Murray at the Michigan Court of Appeals.

Amanda serves on the University of Windsor Board of Governors’ Human Resources Committee, and was a recipient of the 2021 Alumni Odyssey Award from the University. She is a Paul Harris Fellow for Rotary International, focussed on clean water, women empowerment, and youth leadership projects.

Amanda is able to assist clients in both English and Italian.