Ryan Baxter

About Ryan

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Ryan’s practice is primarily focused in the areas of health law and the regulation of professions, extending to administrative law and litigation. He currently serves as a member of McInnes Cooper’s Board of Directors.

As general counsel to a number of regulators, Ryan provides opinions on professional conduct processes, including investigations, complaints and discipline, and is often involved in the drafting and interpretation of governing legislation, regulations, by-laws and policies. He also provides advice with respect to Board governance and Board members’ fiduciary responsibilities. Additionally, Ryan presents and offers training on professional conduct processes and other important aspects of self-regulation.

Further demonstrating his expertise, Ryan recently assisted in the development of the regulatory framework for a new professional health regulator, providing support with the drafting of by-laws and acting as general counsel. He also has a unique perspective of regulators’ internal operations, having recently worked in-house on a secondment basis with a leading health regulator.

Ryan is a previous Chair of the Canadian Bar Association-Nova Scotia Health Law Section and a prior member of the Discipline Committee of the Law Society of Nunavut. Ryan has  adjudicated matters as a member of the Review Board under the Involuntary Psychiatric Treatment Act, the provincial Motor Vehicle Appeal Board, and the Halifax Regional Municipality’s License Appeal Committee. Ryan is an engaged participant in McInnes Cooper’s pro-bono, collective social responsibility, and diversity and inclusion efforts. Ryan is also a part-time Lecturer in the School of Health Administration at Dalhousie University’s Faculty of Health.

Ryan is a published author, having most recently co-authored a chapter entitled “Regulation of Dental Professionals” in the third edition of the leading Canadian dentistry text Dental Law in Canada, LexisNexis, 2019.

In 2023, Ryan was named as a Lexpert Rising Star: Leading Lawyers under 40.

An avid world explorer, Ryan has volunteered with the Canadian Civil Liberties Association and interned with an HIV/AIDS NGO in Swaziland, Africa. Most recently, he spent a month in Mongolia, providing training and advising on human resources issues. Ryan has lived on four continents and travelled to over 40 countries.