BE Defended Professional Corporation
Automatically compiled listing. Details may contain errors.4 lawyers · Established 2019 · City of Toronto
One of 2,276 law firms listed in Toronto, and one of 156 handling Administrative & Regulatory Law.
About BE Defended Professional Corporation
BE Defended is a Toronto criminal defence firm that stands beside people from the first bail hearing through pre-trial steps and the trial itself, and that carries cases on to appeal courts at every level in Canada, whether the goal is bail while an appeal is pending or overturning a conviction or sentence. Between them, its lawyers bring more than thirty years of defence work on charges as minor as mischief and as serious as murder. The firm also appears for clients before regulatory and administrative tribunals and takes on a select number of civil cases in the Superior Court of Justice.
Brian Eberdt founded the firm in 2019 after leaving Lockyer Campbell Posner, where Eberdt had started out straight from law school, working alongside James Lockyer, the Order of Canada recipient known for championing the wrongfully convicted. Since becoming a lawyer in 2012, Eberdt has handled every kind of matter in all levels of Ontario court, and now and then outside the province. Alongside running the firm's growth and management, the founder still carries personal files in criminal defence and regulatory discipline, plus some civil litigation.
The founder works with a team whose backgrounds reach across the justice system. Senior Associate Megan Andrews has defended charges from simple assault up to first-degree murder for over a decade. Senior Associate Mayleah Quenneville came to defence work to prevent wrongful convictions, acts on both criminal and quasi-criminal charges, and has argued at the Supreme Court of Canada. Before being called to the bar, Associate Miguel Waltoo worked as a Court and Client Representative at 10 Armoury Street and 2201 Finch in the Toronto Region, helping thousands of accused people at different points in their cases, and is especially committed to clients facing systemic disadvantage and big power imbalances.
The office is at 55 University Avenue, Suite 1100, in downtown Toronto, and there's a toll-free number for anyone calling from custody.
Practice areas
Criminal trials
BE Defended represents individuals from the opening bail hearing and any bail review, through judicial pre-trials, preliminary inquiries and pre-trial motions, to the trial. Megan Andrews brings over a decade of defence experience on charges that range up to first-degree murder.
Criminal appeals
For clients who've already been convicted, the firm appears in appeal courts at every level across Canada, seeking bail pending appeal and arguing appeals of both conviction and sentence.
Regulatory discipline
The firm acts before regulatory and administrative tribunals, among them the Law Society of Ontario, university discipline tribunals and the Licence Appeal Tribunal. Mayleah Quenneville has represented clients before various administrative tribunals and regulatory bodies, as well as in trial and appellate courts in Ontario.
Select civil litigation
In the Superior Court of Justice, BE Defended takes on chosen civil cases, including claims over police misconduct, fights between small businesses, and matters where criminal and civil law overlap.
Good to know
Wheelchair accessible
Parking availableHow BE Defended Professional Corporation works
Preparation and communication sit at the centre of how BE Defended works: the firm treats steadfast preparation and constant contact with clients as the route to success, and it guarantees both to everyone who hires it. Eberdt has built the practice as a collaborative one, pooling the lawyers' different skills and backgrounds on challenging files. Anyone who's been charged, or expects to be, is asked to set up a consultation right away.
Milestones & recognition
- 2019: Brian Eberdt left Lockyer Campbell Posner and founded BE Defended Professional Corporation.
- 2025: Megan Andrews joined as a Senior Associate after several years running a solo practice, and Mayleah Quenneville joined in the same role that September.
In the community
- From 2015 until NOW Magazine's run ended, Brian Eberdt wrote regularly for its Reasonable Doubt column, which set out to make the legal system easier to understand.
- Eberdt contributed to the Toronto Star's investigation into how Ontario's jury lists were flawed, and was asked to comment again a year later when the provincial government moved to a more representative way of building them, a change the investigation helped bring about.
- In 2016, Global News asked Eberdt to comment on whether distracted driving should become a criminal offence.
- Eberdt has taught as an instructor in the Toronto School of Management's NCA Exam Preparation Program.
- Eberdt has spoken at continuing professional development programs for criminal lawyers, including the Ontario Bar Association's Criminal Law Primer Conference and The Law Garage, on subjects such as how to succeed at a bail hearing and how to apply to admit evidence of a complainant's sexual history.
Lawyers 4
The neighbourhood
BE Defended's office sits a block north of Union Station, with a direct connection to St. Andrew subway station, and there's parking under the building, entered from Wellington Street West. University Avenue itself starts near Union Station, at Front and York streets, before swinging north. Farther up the eight-lane avenue are Osgoode Hall and other legal institutions, research and teaching hospitals, the Four Seasons Centre, and office towers that house major financial and insurance firms.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I reach BE Defended if I'm calling from custody?
- BE Defended has a toll-free line for calls from custody: 1 833 500-7053.
- Does anyone at BE Defended know the Law Society of Ontario's discipline process from the inside?
- BE Defended Senior Associate Mayleah Quenneville articled in the Law Society of Ontario's Discipline Department before being called to the bar in 2016.
- My teenager has been charged. Does BE Defended have a lawyer who focuses on youth cases under the Youth Criminal Justice Act?
- BE Defended's Megan Andrews has a particular interest in acting for young clients and knows the Youth Criminal Justice Act in depth. Andrews takes on clients of every age and background from across the Greater Toronto Area.
- Has a lawyer at BE Defended led a challenge to the blood-THC driving limits?
- Senior Associate Mayleah Quenneville has led a constitutional challenge to the Criminal Code and the regulatory scheme that sets acceptable blood-THC levels for drivers, and has brought many pre-trial applications alleging Charter breaches.
Where to find them
55 University Avenue, Suite 1100, Toronto, ON M5J 2H7 · 647-812-1675
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Criminal DefenceAdministrative & Regulatory LawThis 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 the firm’s own website. Verify licence status in the Law Society of Ontario directory ↗
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