A York law professor and a York law grad are among Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 for 2005, The Globe and Mail is announcing today.
Osgoode Hall Law School’s legal expert on white-collar crime and securities regulation reform Poonam Puri (right) and Jordon Banks (LLB ’94) of eBay Canada made this year’s list and are profiled today in the national newspaper.
“It comes as no surprise to us to learn that Professor Puri, one of Canada’s most respected scholars and commentators on issues of corporate governance, securities regulation and corporate law, was chosen to receive this prestigious national award,” said Osgoode Hall Law School Dean Patrick Monahan in a letter of congratulations yesterday to York’s Osgoode community.
Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 is a national program founded and managed by The Caldwell Partners to celebrate leaders of today and tomorrow who have reached a significant level of success but have not yet reached the age of 40. The program is designed to promote mentorship and professional development by introducing these leaders to the established business community and by promoting them as role models for young Canadians.
In 11 years, more than a dozen York professors and alumni have made the prestigious list. Most recently , they include corporate governance expert Richard Leblanc, of the Atkinson School of Administrative Studies, in 2005 and four alumni in 2004: Daniel Joseph Naviau (MBA/LLB ’89), Michael D. Moskowitz (BA Hons. ’93), David A. Sugarman (MBA ’92) and Hana Zalzal (MBA ’92). The annual contest started by The Caldwell Partners is also sponsored by The Globe and Mail, Certified General Accountants of Canada, Air Canada and Privilege Magazine.
Puri, 33, was chosen from among 1,200 nominees based on five criteria: vision and leadership; innovation and achievement; impact; community involvement and contribution; and strategy for growth. She and 39 others were selected from private, public and not-for-profit sectors by an independent panel of 29 Canadian business leaders.
After graduating as a silver medalist from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Puri went on to do her master’s degree at Harvard Law School. Her research focus lies in corporate law, securities law, corporate governance, and corporate and white-collar crime. She was recently a visiting professor at Cornell Law School.
Puri is in demand by governments and regulators, and the media – especially about white-collar crime and securities regulation and reform. She has been commissioned to write reports for Industry Canada, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC), the Canadian Senate, the Wise Persons Committee on Securities Regulation, the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank, and the Fraser Institute. A proponent of securities regulation reform who has argued for a national securities regulator and stronger criminal prosecution against financial market abuses, Puri was appointed one of two research directors for the task force to modernize securities legislation in Canada and was made a member of the OSC’s newly created investor advisory committee. Later this year, she will become president of the Canadian Law & Economics Association for a two-year term.
The award-winning teacher gives courses on advanced securities, business associations, corporate governance and the corporation as criminal. She is also a prolific scholar. In 2004 alone, she co-wrote and co-edited three books: Corporate Governance and Securities Regulation in the 21st Century; Canadian Companies’ Guide to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; and Cases and Materials on Partnerships and Canadian Business Corporations. Her recent articles have appeared in the Cornell Law Review, the Osgoode Hall Law Journal, the Canadian Business Law Journal, the Canadian Bar Association Review, and the Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics.
Puri is currently researching auditor liability in Canada, funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and dual class share structures and family controlled corporations in Canada, funded by the Schulich Program on Financial Services.