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About Natalie

Natalie dedicates her practice to employment and labour law, as well as pension, benefits and executive compensation. She has represented clients in litigation concerning surplus assets of a pension plan, the validity of contribution holidays taken by employers party to a pension plan and in litigation contesting the legality of clauses found in rules and regulations of pension plans. Natalie also counsels various boards of trustees, pension committees and plan sponsors, and acts as Quebec counsel for a few multi-employer pension plans.

Natalie has worked extensively in the field of labour relations, negotiating employment contracts, collective agreements and other agreements, including issues related to the application of the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms. She also advises on the transfer, hiring or termination of upper management and employees.

Additionally, Natalie is closely following developments on environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors, including with respect to employee relations and benefits management, and she advises clients in this regard.

Natalie has pleaded before the Supreme Court of Canada, the Court of Appeal, the Superior Court, the Federal Court and the Labour Tribunal, as well as before many specialized administrative tribunals.

Natalie sits on the Board of Théâtre Petit à Petit, a theater which mission is to create new work and also on the Board of Université de Montréal.

Natalie is a member of Cercle Force Femmes, an initiative of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts to support the presence of women at the Museum through the acquisition of work by women artists and to promote access to the Museum for disadvantaged women.

Select Experience

Recent representative matters include advising:

  • Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. on its acquisition of 73.17% of the interests in Wabush Mines joint venture held by U.S. Steel Canada Inc. and ArcelorMittal Dofasco Inc.

  • Comvest Investment Partners Holdings, LLC on its acquisition of Lennox Hearth Products from Lennox International

  • Standard Life on the sale of its Canadian business to Manulife for C$4-billion

Awards & Recognition

Natalie is recognized as a leading lawyer in the following publications:

  • The Legal 500 Canada 2025 (Pensions – Leading Partner; Labour and Employment)

  • Chambers Canada: Canada's Leading Lawyers for Business (2025: Employment & Labour – Quebec; 2023–2024: Employment & Labour; 2018–2025: Pensions & Benefits)

  • The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory (2023–2024: Employment Law – Employer; 2019–2024: Pensions & Employee Benefits – Employer)

  • Thomson Reuters Stand-out Lawyers 2024 – Independently Rated Lawyers (As nominated by senior in-house counsel)

  • The Best Lawyers in Canada 2024 (Labour and Employment Law, Employee Benefits Law)

  • The Legal 500 Canada – 2019–2024 (Pensions)

  • Who's Who Legal: Global 2023 (Labour, Employment & Benefits)

  • Best Lawyers: "Lawyer of the Year" 2023 (Employee Benefits Law, Montréal)

  • Who's Who Legal: Canada – 2023, 2020–2021 (Labour, Employment & Benefits)

  • The Best Lawyers in Canada – 2021–2023 (Employee Benefits Law, Labour and Employment Law)

  • Who's Who Legal: Labour, Employment & Benefits 2020

  • Who's Who Legal: Arbitration 2020

Professional Activities

Natalie is a member of the Bar of Montreal, the Quebec Bar Association, the Canadian Bar Association and the Canadian Pension and Benefits Institute. Between 1998 and 2002, she was a member of the Joint Committee of the Bar of Montreal and the Labour Tribunal. Between 2002 and 2008, she sat on the Joint Committee of the Bar of Montreal and the Labour Relations Commission.

Natalie has taught labour law and introduction to international law for several semesters at McGill University (continuing education). During the past several years, she has been a speaker on numerous occasions on the subject of pension plans and employee benefits as well as labour and employment law.

Professional Appearances
  • Speaker : Quebec Bill 96 —What Plan Administrators Need to Know
    Key Topics and Developments in the Pensions and Benefits Sector, Blakes Business Class Seminar, November 28, 2023.
  • Speaker : What in the World is Going on with Pensions?
    CLHIA Legal Section Annual Meeting, CHLIA, Vancouver, British Columbia, September 13, 2023.
  • Co-speaker : Terminations and Layoffs of Employees: Best Practices for Canadian Employers
    Blakes Webinar on Employment and Labour, Montréal, Quebec, May 16, 2023.
  • Co-speaker : Trends and Developments in Employment Relationship Management
    Blakes Webinar on Employment & Labour, Montréal, Québec, February 22, 2023.
  • Co-speaker : Ask Us Anything - Employment & Labour
    Blakes Webinar on Employment & Labour, Montreal, Quebec, June 16, 2022.
  • Co-speaker : Overview of Recent Developments in the Employment and Labour Sector
    Blakes Webinar on Employment & Labour, Montreal, Quebec, June 16, 2022.
  • Co-speaker : New French Language Requirements for Employers: Are You Ready?
    Blakes Webinar on Employment & Labour, Montreal, Quebec, June 14, 2022.
  • Co-speaker : Pensions Webinar Series: Key Topics and Developments in the Pensions and Benefits Sector
    Blakes Webinar on Pensions, Benefits & Executive Compensation, Toronto, Ontario, June 9, 2022.
  • Co-speaker : Employee Benefit and Pension Issues in the Post-COVID
    Lex Mundi Conference - Pensions, Benefits & Executive Compensation and Employment & Labour – Dublin, Ireland, June 2 and 3, 2022.
  • Co-speaker : Key Updates and Trends in Pensions for 2022
    Blakes and Bell Webinar on Pensions, Benefits & Executive Compensation, Montreal, Quebec, June 1, 2022.
  • Co-speaker : Recent Developments in the Pension Sector
    Blakes Webinar on Pensions, Benefits & Executive Compensation, Montreal, Quebec, May 19, 2022.
  • Co-speaker : Overview of Québec Pension Law – in Pensions Law
    Osgoode Webinar on Professional Development, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Toronto, Ontario, March 23, 2022.
Education

MBA, HEC Montréal – 2002
Admitted to the Quebec Bar – 1994
LLB, Université de Montréal – 1993

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