Philippe Frenette

About Philippe

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Phil is an experienced litigator with a passion for finding novel ways to resolve complex multi-party disputes, especially those that may initially seem impossible to resolve. He prides himself on approaching each conflict with integrity and professionalism. His clients range from individuals, insurers, family run businesses and corporations of all shapes and sizes.

Since his call to the bar in 2007, Phil has represented clients on a wide variety of legal issues, including professional liability, commercial litigation, insurance defence and coverage matters, construction disputes, commercial general liability, estate litigation, property disputes, environmental contamination, expropriation matters and various other disputes. His clients appreciate his pragmatic approach to complex issues, his ability to understand the technical aspects of their operations, and his ability to reduce the impact that litigation can have on personal lives, employment, and business operations.

In addition to his years of experience in private practice, Phil amassed significant experience in professional legal liability during a decade of employment as in-house defense counsel with the Law Society of New Brunswick’s insurance department, the Professional Liability Reserve Fund. Phil’s work with the Law Society defending claims that involved all aspects of legal practice has given him a unique understanding and perspective on how to advise his clients on the topic of litigation prevention and risk management, with a specific focus on discretion and the reputational considerations of confidential disputes.

Fluently bilingual in French and English, Phil has had the opportunity to argue in both languages at all levels of Court in New Brunswick.

An avid supporter of legal education, Phil has presented on issues related to professional responsibility, ethics, and civil procedure. He taught for many years at the Bar Course and was a longstanding member of the examination committee for the Law Society of New Brunswick. Phil recently sat on the Bar Course Task Force which was charged with modernizing the Law Society of New Brunswick’s bar admission curriculum. Phil considers his involvement from the planning through to implementation of this new bar admission program to be one of the major accomplishments in his career and is proud of his role in furthering the integrity of the practice of Law in New Brunswick.

Phil has a passion for cooking all types of food, but he especially enjoys making New York-style pizza. When not attending one of his children’s sporting events, Phil is mapping out his next travel adventure. A goal of Phil’s is to hike each of the New England 4,000 footers, a list of 67 mountains taller than 4,000 feet in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.