About Shawn Duguay

Shawn Duguay is a partner in Gowling WLG's Ottawa family law group, and family law is the only thing Duguay practises. That includes high-conflict fights between parents over decision-making and parenting time. It also includes business owners who are separating: Duguay works through the valuation and income questions a company raises in that setting, and also advises businesses whose own interests run into family law issues.

Court is familiar ground. Duguay has argued cases at the Supreme Court of Canada and at every level of Ontario's courts, including oral argument for the appellant in Richardson v. Richardson, a 2021 appeal about whether two children should live mainly in Ottawa or in Niagara. Not every file needs a judge, though, and Duguay also represents clients in family law mediations and arbitrations.

No two families face the same situation, in Duguay's view, so the solutions shouldn't match either. With that in mind, Duguay aims to keep each file practical, strategic and focused on results, whether it's a marriage contract, a cohabitation or separation agreement, child or spousal support, or a tangled division of property.

Best Lawyers listed Duguay in its Ones to Watch in Canada for family law from 2022 to 2025, and The Best Lawyers in Canada 2027 lists Duguay for family law.

Practice areas

Family Law

Domestic contracts

Prepares the domestic contracts couples rely on, from marriage contracts and cohabitation agreements to separation agreements, and negotiates their terms.

Support and property

Advises on child and spousal support and works through complex financial issues in dividing property, including valuation and income questions for business owners who are separating.

Parenting disputes

Handles parenting disputes over decision-making and parenting time, including high-conflict cases.

Mediation, arbitration and court

Represents clients in family law mediations and arbitrations, and has argued cases at all levels of court in Ontario and at the Supreme Court of Canada.

Our guide: How to Hire a Family Lawyer in Toronto

Our guide: How to Get a Divorce in Ontario

Education & credentials

  • JD, Queen's University (2016)
  • BA (Hon.), history and philosophy, University of Ottawa (2011)
  • Called to the Ontario bar (2017)

Notable cases

  • Richardson v. Richardson, SCC file 39123 (appeal from 2019 ONCA 983)

    Counsel for the appellant, Sylvia H.C.C. Richardson, presenting oral argument in a dispute over whether two children should live mainly in Ottawa or in Niagara. The Court dismissed the appeal without costs.

  • Hynes v. Snook, SCC file 39814 (leave from 2021 NLCA 29)

    Counsel of record for the respondent, Sharon Ann Snook, on an application for leave to appeal from the Court of Appeal of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Court dismissed the application with costs.

Decisions where Shawn Duguay appeared as counsel, from public court records. Past cases don't predict future results.

Awards & recognition

Publications & speaking

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This listing was generated by AI from public sources in October 2026. It may contain errors, and we can’t guarantee it’s accurate or complete. Before you rely on anything here, verify it on their firm’s website. Confirm Shawn Duguay’s licence and standing in the Law Society of Ontario directory ↗

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