About Jack

Jack was appointed as Chair of the Board of Directors at McInnes Cooper in 2019.

Jack is a senior Partner in the Halifax office and practices labour and employment law throughout Atlantic Canada. He has extensive experience in in all areas of employment law including employment litigation, labour arbitration, collective bargaining, labour relations, human rights and workers compensation. In both 2019 and 2020 Jack was named Labour and Employment Law “Lawyer of the Year” in Halifax Best Lawyers® and was also repeatedly recommended in the Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory. He has also been ranked in the Chambers Canada 2024 in Band I Legal Rankings for Employment & Labour.

Jack is recognized as a leading labour and employment lawyer in Canada. He is known for having outstanding strategic abilities and has represented clients in some of the most complex public and private sector labour matters in Atlantic Canada for many years.

Jack is a Past President of the Canadian Association of Counsel to Employers, which is the leading management side labour and employment lawyers’ organization in Canada. In 2017 he received the Heenan-Ross award for outstanding contributions to CACE.

Jack also has extensive Board governance experience having served in leadership roles on several regional, national and international boards. He also has significant experience in national and international sport governance and dispute resolution. He recently completed the Institute for Corporate Directors, Directors Education Program and received his ICD.D designation in December 2021.

He is a Past Chair of the Board of Tennis Canada. Jack also serves on the Board of the International Tennis Federation. He is currently the longest serving member of this world-wide sport governing body, having been elected on 6 occasions since 2009. He chairs the ITF Constitutional Committee, which is responsible for governance and legal issues at the ITF, for the past 15 years. He is also Vice Chair of ITF Licensing.

Jack is also the Founder and Chair of the Board of the Sobeys Atlantic Tennis Center.

In 2020 Jack was chosen to be inducted into the Tennis Canada Hall of Fame as a Builder. In 2012 and 2013 Jack’s contributions to tennis were also recognized by his induction into the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame and by receiving the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for outstanding contribution to Canadian sport from the Canadian Olympic Committee.

Awards & Recognitions

  • Honourary Doctor of Laws, Cape Breton University (2023)
  • Ranked by Chambers Canada 2024 for Employment & Labour [Atlantic Canada – Band 1]
  • Repeatedly Recommended by The Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory for Labour Relations (most recently in 2024)
  • Recognized by Best Lawyers® Canada for his practice in Labour and Employment (since 2006) and in Workers' Compensation Law (since 2012)

Education

  • LL.B., Dalhousie University (1988)
  • B.Ed., Dalhousie University (1985)
  • B.A., Acadia University (1978)

Bar Admissions

  • Nova Scotia (1989)

Languages

  • English