The Honourable J. Douglas Cunningham, Q.C. was appointed to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in 1991. During his more than two decades on the bench, Mr. Cunningham presided over hundreds of complex, high-stakes trials, first as Regional Senior Judge for the East Region (2000-2002) and then as Associate Chief Justice of the Superior Court of Justice (2002-2012). He also regularly sat on civil appeals as a Judge of the Ontario Divisional Court. Throughout, Mr. Cunningham earned the respect of counsel and parties for his sound judgment and ability to quickly and effectively cut to the heart of disputes.

Mr. Cunningham’s broad experience gained during his years on the bench and in private practice includes corporate and commercial matters, professional liability, construction, critical injury and insurance, employment, product liability, class actions, and estates.

Mr. Cunningham left the Court in 2012 and founded Cunningham Dispute Resolution Services. Since then he has been a highly-successful commercial arbitrator and mediator based in Toronto and Ottawa, with retainers across Canada and internationally. In this role, Mr. Cunningham leverages his extensive experience in the service of counsel and parties looking for fair, creative, and efficient resolutions to their disputes.

In addition to his busy arbitration and mediation practice, Mr. Cunningham has regularly been called upon by both the Federal and Provincial governments to conduct important and timely assignments. These include the Mississauga Judicial Inquiry, the review of Tarion Corporation, a review of the dispute resolution mechanisms under the Insurance Act, a review of elevator availability problems in Ontario, and most recently as a member of a three-person panel reviewing issues within the Ontario Provincial Police force.

A graduate of Queen’s University Faculty of Law, Mr. Cunningham was called to the Bar in Ontario in 1969, and was awarded Queen’s Counsel designation in 1980. In 2013, he received an honourary LL.D. from the Law Society of Upper Canada.

• Advocates Society, Past Director
• International Academy of Mediators
• Canadian Academy of Distinguished Neutrals
• Canadian Transportation Agency
• Toronto Commercial Arbitration Society
• ADR Institute of Ontario 
• ADR Institute of Canada
• Harvard and Cornell University Mediation Programs
• Chambers Nationally Ranked Mediator

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