Jonathon Barnett

About Jonathon Barnett

Jonathon Barnett handles the deals that shape farmland, companies and development sites. Working from McKenzie Lake's London office, Barnett's business and real estate practice centres on agri-business, buying and selling privately held companies, corporate reorganizations and land development, both commercial and residential.

In the farm sector, the people Barnett advises range from farmers and suppliers to lenders and other professionals. The questions cover a lot of ground: buying land, supply management, construction, financing, governance and who'll take over the operation. Plenty of family-owned enterprises also lean on Barnett when it's time to plan a succession or an exit, and that farm succession theme runs through Barnett's recent writing, including a getting-started guide co-written with colleague Ashley Podolinsky that also appeared in Country Guide.

On development files, Barnett's work runs from the paper to the public process. That means drafting and negotiating purchase agreements, subdivision and site plan agreements and loan and security documents, whether the client is buying, selling, lending or borrowing, as well as handling zoning amendment applications and appearing at committee of adjustment meetings.

Called to the Ontario bar in 2013 after earning a JD at Western, Barnett joined McKenzie Lake as a partner in 2022. Barnett builds the practice on trusting client relationships, aiming for advice that's prompt and to the point. Away from the office you'll find Barnett mountain biking, playing hockey, cheering the kids on at the rink and the soccer field, or working through a list of home projects.