BREANNA NEEDHAM
Founder
“See something? Say something.
Don’t like it? Do something about it.”
Breanna is a commercial litigation lawyer with a focus on matters where misconduct is an element. She has extensive experience working on cases involving investigations and injunctions, as well as strategic analysis, legal research, written submissions, and opinions in confidential, high-profile, and high-stakes matters.
Breanna has consistently been recognized for her work in the commercial litigation space. She represents companies and individuals in a wide variety of proceedings, investigations, and disputes, including in matters involving fraud, misappropriation, conversion, restrictive covenants, breach of confidence, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, and other complex disputes involving shareholders, employees, directors, officers, and nuanced business relationships.
She has successfully represented clients before all levels of court in Ontario, as well as in mediations and commercial arbitrations. Breanna also has experience advising on ethical compliance and conflicts of interest, including legal obligations in the political sector.
Part of Breanna’s approach to practice includes preventing problems before they happen including through offering risk management services to clients so that issues can be addressed before they become emergencies. In addition to working directly with her own clients, Breanna also offers bespoke of counsel and freelance services to other lawyers, law firms, and in-house legal departments to assist with litigation, investigations, injunctions, trials, appeals, and other complex matters.
Breanna founded Luceo Legal after practicing law at two of the largest law firms in Canada, one of the leading litigation boutiques, and the Toronto office of an international law firm.
In addition to her work, Breanna is a frequent speaker at legal conferences and educational seminars on litigation practice and procedure, as well as professionalism, equity, diversity, and inclusion in the legal profession.
Contact Breanna:
Email: bneedham@luceo.legal
To speak with Breanna, call (647) 265-9998
AWARDS & RECOGNITION
Listed in the Lexpert® Special Edition: Litigation
2023
Lexpert Rising Stars:
Leading Lawyers Under 40
2022
Best Lawyers,
Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in Canada™
(Corporate and Commercial Litigation)
2022 - 2025
Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory,
Leading Lawyer to Watch
(Litigation – Corporate Commercial)
2021 - 2023
Lexpert Zenith Award:
Change Agent in Law
2019
Precedent Magazine
Precedent Innovation Award
2019
Canadian Law Blog Awards (“Clawbies”)
Winner in the “Best Innovative Projects” category
2019
CREDENTIALS
Ontario Bar
2016
J.D., University of Saskatchewan College of Law
(with distinction)
2015
B.Sc. Ag., University of Saskatchewan
College of Agriculture and Bioresources
(with distinction)
2010
Professional Communication Certificate
(technical writing and persuasive rhetoric), University of Saskatchewan Ron & Jan Graham Centre for the Study of Communication
2009
Team Advisor, University of Saskatchewan Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Team
Volunteer Judge, Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot, qualifying and international rounds
Executive Member: Member-at-Large (2021-2022), The Advocates’ Society, Commercial Litigation Practice Group Leaders
Executive Member: Technology Liaison (2021-2022), Ontario Bar Association,
Civil Litigation SectionExecutive Member , Technology Liaison (2020-2021), Member at Large (2019-2020), Ontario Bar Association Women Lawyers Forum
Executive Member, Technology Liaison (2020-2021), Member at Large (2019-2020), Ontario Bar Association, Class Actions Section
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
SELECT REPRESENTATIVE EXPERIENCE
Prosecuting investment scam proceedings.
Leading civil fraud investigations and forensic audits into kickback schemes.
Prosecuting various proceedings against employees, business associates, and accomplices in respect of schemes to operate competing businesses through the solicitation of clients and misappropriation of confidential information.
Successfully prosecuted a claim for recovery of proceedings of a multi-million dollar invoicing fraud committed against an international manufacturing company by a long-term employee, including international asset recovery proceedings.
Successfully advanced a fraud claim on behalf of a financial institution against a former employee in respect of a long-running scheme to skim funds from various accounts.
Successfully represented an individual executive defendant in a $30M claim for fraud and breach of fiduciary obligations, as well as a proposed worldwide Mareva injunction seeking to freeze assets.
Obtaining injunctive relief, including Mareva (asset-freezing), Anton Piller (civil search and seizure), and Norwich Pharmacal (third party disclosure) orders, as part of investigations into invoicing fraud schemes.
Obtaining injunctive relief (Anton Piller) for the civil search and seizure of evidence related to extensive internet streaming piracy of the creative content of a major telecommunications company.
RECENT EVENTS & PANELS
Speaker, “Maximizing LinkedIn and Social Media to Enhance Your Career,” Ontario Bar Association Young Lawyers Division, May 29, 2024
Speaker, “Advocating for Yourself in the Workplace,” Ontario Bar Association Young Lawyers Division, April 19, 2024
Speaker, “Knowledge Exchange: Enabling Growth Through Sponsorship and Mentoring,” Canadian Lawyer Women in Law Summit, April 17, 2024
Speaker, “#InspireInclusion: If Not Her, Then Whom?” Canadian Technology Law Association (CAN-TECH), March 7, 2024
Speaker, “Paths in Law: A Conversation with Three of Canada’s Top Young Lawyers,” University of Saskatchewan College of Law: McKercher LLP Lecture Series, January 16, 2023
Speaker, “Combining Lawyering and Living in the Face of ‘Professionalism’,"Authentic Lawyer Summit, November 10, 2022
Moderator and Program Co-Chair, “Attracting, Retaining and Championing Diverse Advocates,” The Advocates’ Society, May 19, 2022
Panelist, “Top Cases in Commercial Litigation," The Advocates' Society, February 3, 2022
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Featured, “Commercial Litigator Launches Her Own Firm,” Robyn Doolittle, The Globe and Mail (print), March 31, 2024
Featured, “Inspired by other women in law, Breanna Needham launches her own firm to serve smaller companies,” Robyn Doolittle, The Globe and Mail (online), March 31, 2024
Contributing Author, “Creating a Seat at the Table: Reflections from Women in Law,” University of Regina Press, October 2023, with foreword by Right Honourable Beverley McLachlin, retired Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada
Co-Author, “Supreme Court of British Columbia grants Mareva injunction in aid of pending foreign civil proceeding,” CanLII Connects, April 11, 2023
Co-Author, “Think the limitations clock has run out? Think again; it may not even be ticking,” CanLII Connects, July 13, 2022
Co-Author, “Calling on the Code: Civil Consequences for Cryptocurrency”, Internet and E-Commerce Law in Canada, vol. 23, no 3, July 2022
NOTABLE PUBLICLY REPORTED CASES
Tar Heel Investments Inc v H.L. Staebler Company Limited, 2022 ONCA 842, on the application of the tort of conversion to intangible property.
Stedfasts Inc v Dynacare Laboratories, 2020 ONSC 8008, successful motion to strike a $40 million claim for damages against a medical services laboratory.
HZC Capital Inc v Lee, 2019 ONSC 4622, successfully resisted a motion for a proposed worldwide Mareva injunction seeking to freeze the assets of an individual executive in a $30 million claim alleging fraud and breach of fiduciary obligations.
Ridel v Goldberg, 2018 ONSC 3113; 2019 ONCA 636, successfully represented a former director of a bankrupt corporation in resisting an action for breach of duties brought by creditors standing in the shoes of the bankrupt entity.
McGoey, Re, 2019 ONSC 80, successful motion on behalf of a trustee in bankruptcy invalidating sham property trusts established by the bankrupt by using expert evidence on the provenance of the fonts in the documents.