Barrister & Solicitor
Registered Estate and Trust Practitioner (TEP)
Year of Call: 2001
Areas of Practice:
Jennifer has provided legal services to the Kingston community for over ten years. She main areas of practice include Wills and Estate Planning, Estate Administration, Corporate Law, and Real Estate Law. Jennifer is a full member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners, and holds the Trust and Estate Practitioner designation (TEP), having fulfilled all the requirements of the STEP Canada Diploma Program.
Jennifer earned her law degree from Queen’s University in 1999 and has been a member of the Ontario Bar since 2001. Prior to practicing in Kingston, Jennifer served as legal counsel for the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, gaining extensive experience in health law, policy, health privacy, and advocacy. She has a demonstrated expertise in the Mental Health Act, Health Care Consent Act 1996, and Substitute Decisions Act, 1992, which she has shared in courses and lectures provided for physicians, health practitioners, health policy makers, and academics.
Jennifer’s expertise in this regard makes her ideally qualified to assist clients in resolving complex legal issues that arise in wills and estate planning and estate administration involving elder, consent, and capacity issues, as well as long-term health care and estate planning. Jennifer will work with your accountant and financial planners in order to ensure the best possible estate plan for your future and family needs.
Jennifer is also an active member of the Kingston community. She is currently legal counsel to the Kingston Writersfest and sits on the board of directors of WEMA, a not-for-profit organization that helps provide awareness and cancer screening for women in developing countries who have limited access to essential health services. She also sits on the board of directors of The Art of Courage, a not-for- profit organization incorporated as a platform for advocacy and fundraising through art, and on the board of directors of the Kingston Community Health Clinic.
If she’s not at the office, you can find Jennifer pushing around heavy things at Stone City Strength and Wellness or at the Kingston Boxing Club, where she trains in Muay Thai Kickboxing with a personal coach.
Member of the Frontenac Law Association: https://cfla.on.ca/
- Location: Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Lawyer
Year of Call: 1994
Areas of Practice:
Gordon Gwynne-Timothy earned his bachelor’s degree (A.B.) at Harvard, where he studied philosophy, rowed on the Varsity rowing team, sang in various ensembles, and graduated magna cum laude. He then attended Cambridge University, England, studying law at St. John’s College and rowing with the Cambridge University Boat Club and for his College. Returning to Canada, he obtained his LL.B. at the University of Toronto and articled with a large multi-service law firm in Toronto. Gordon postponed his return to the practice of law, first completing an M.A. in philosophy and starting a Ph.D. at the University of Toronto. A love of teaching persuaded him to postpone his entry to legal practice yet again, as he accepted a position teaching in the independent school system, first at Upper Canada College and then at Ridley College, where he passed fourteen very enjoyable years starting a family and teaching Philosophy, World Issues, and World Religions; coaching rowing, starting a meditation club, and helping out with the school choir. An interest in yoga blossomed into teacher training and certification, and family reasons drew him with his wife and four children to Prince Edward County. Eventually Gordon realized that lawyers earn more than yoga teachers, and he at long last returned to the practice of law. After spending two and a half years in a small Kingston firm in general practice, with an emphasis on civil litigation, estate litigation and family law, Gordon joined Ryder-Burbidge in May, 2019. He firmly believes that his eclectic background makes him a better lawyer, who can see the big picture as well as the salient details. Outside the office and the courtroom, Gordon enjoys singing as a tenor section lead and occasional soloist with the Melos Choir and Period Ensemble in Kingston, and spending time with his wife and family in Kingston and Prince Edward County.
- Location: Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Lawyer
Year of Call:
Ontario, 2019
New York, 2016
Massachusetts, 2015
Areas of Practice:
A Kingston native, Samantha spent eleven years studying, living and working in the United States. Samantha graduated from New England Law Boston in May 2015 with her Juris Doctor degree and quickly became licensed in both Massachusetts and New York state. Before returning to Kingston, Samantha lived in Santa Monica, California for three years. During her time in California she worked at Creative Artist Agency in business affairs and SAG-AFTRA representing background actors under the collective bargaining agreements.
Prior to law school, Samantha graduated with a Bachelor of Education with a concentration in Sport Management from the University of Connecticut. During her undergraduate studies she worked for the UConn Men’s Basketball program and Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun.
Outside of the office, Samantha enjoys being on the St. Lawrence River and spending time with her husband, son and their two dogs.
Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers: https://www.massbbo.org/
New York Courts: https://www.nycourts.gov/
American Bar Association: https://www.americanbar.org/
New York State Bar Association: https://nysba.org/
Frontenac Law Association: https://cfla.on.ca/
The Canadian Bar Association: https://www.cba.org/Home
- Location: Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Lawyer
Year of Call: 2019
Areas of Practice:
Services in English and French
James McCarthy joined Ryder-Burbidge Hurley Foster in 2019 after articling as a clerk to the Chief Justice of New Brunswick, the Honourable J.C. Marc Richard, assisting with research on cases before New Brunswick’s highest court. Originally from the Maritimes, James completed his B.Soc.Sc. at the University of Ottawa in 2012, and his B.C.L./L.L.B. at McGill in 2016, studying as an exchange student at the University of Hong Kong in 2010-11, and Maastricht University in the Netherlands in 2015. Following Law School, he worked as Education Programs Coordinator, and later Director of Outreach and Program Sustainability, for an HIV/AIDS charity in New Brunswick, travelling throughout the province providing education and workshops. A love of the law brought him to Kingston, where he completed his L.L.M. with Specialization in Political and Legal Thought at Queen’s University, focusing his studies on comparative constitutional law.
James was called to the Bar in Ontario in 2019 and remains a non-practicing member of the Law Society of New Brunswick. He is a member of the Frontenac Law Association, l’Association des juristes d’expression française de l’Ontario (AJEFO), and the Canadian Bar Association, and is a board member for HIV/AIDS Regional Services in Kingston. Fluently bilingual, James practices in both English and French.
Non-practicing member of the Law Society of New Brunswick: http://lawsociety-barreau.nb.ca/en
Member of the Association des jurisets d’expression française de l’Ontario: https://www.ajefo.ca/
Member of the Canadian Bar Association (CBA): https://cba.org/Home and Ontario Bar Association (OBA): https://www.oba.org/Home
Executive Member-at-large, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Section (SOGIC): https://www.oba.org/Sections/Sexual-Orientation-and-Gender-Identity-Law
- Location: Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Lawyer
Year of Call: 2020
Areas of Practice:
Michael joined Ryder-Burbidge Hurley Foster in 2020 as an associate lawyer. Michael provides advice and representation to clients on a wide range of issues including labour and employment, human rights, landlord and tenant disputes, civil litigation, and contractual drafting and review. Prior to joining the firm, Michael completed articling at a leading Ontario law firm specializing in labour and employment advocacy.
Michael completed law school at Queen’s University where he frequently advocated on behalf of Kingston residents, as part of Queen’s Legal Aid, in matters such as tenancy issues, disability claim applications and appeals, Small Claims cases, and minor criminal charges. Before studying at Queen’s he completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree at Carleton University, graduating with High Distinction and completing a specialization in Information Systems. During that time, he worked with organizations in the public and private sectors to better leverage and utilize emerging technology.
Originally from Ottawa, while not at work Michael remains an optimistic but currently beleaguered fan of the Ottawa Senators. He also enjoys exploring local Kingston hiking trails, following baseball, and occasionally gathering the nerve to go skydiving.
- Location: Kingston, Ontario, Canada
