Brown Dryer
7 lawyers · City of Toronto
One of 2,345 law firms listed in Toronto, and one of 697 handling Real Estate Law.
About Brown Dryer
Brown Dryer is a small law firm in Toronto with a team of five lawyers and two associates, working from an office at 40 Holly Street in the city's Yonge and Eglinton area. The firm was known for decades as Sherman Brown. Several lawyers' biographies still describe joining Sherman Brown as summer or articling students, one as recently as 2022, and staff email addresses still carry the shermanbrown.com domain even though the practice now operates under the Brown Dryer name. The firm concentrates on four areas: alternative dispute resolution, civil litigation, planning and land development, and real estate.
Alan B. Dryer, one of the firm's namesakes, was called to the Ontario bar in 1987 after earning a law degree from the University of Toronto and winning the Borden and Elliott Prize, the Canada Law Book Prize, and other academic honours there. Adam Brown, the firm's other namesake, earned a law degree from the University of Western Ontario in 1988 and has practised planning and administrative law since then, including official plan amendments, zoning approvals, and Ontario Municipal Board hearings. Across the rest of the team, bar admissions span from 1982 to 2019, and the group includes lawyers who mediate in both English and French.
Practice areas
Milestones & recognition
- Alan B. Dryer, a namesake of the firm, graduated from the University of Toronto's Faculty of Law in 1985 with the Borden and Elliott Prize, the Canada Law Book Prize, the Michael John Eccles Prize, the Cary S. Stern Prize, and Honours List standing, before being called to the Ontario bar in 1987.
- The firm practised under the name Sherman Brown for decades before adopting the Brown Dryer name; lawyer bios describe joining Sherman Brown as students as recently as 2022, and the firm's own domain and staff email addresses still reflect that earlier name.
- The team's bar admissions span more than three decades, from 1982 to 2019, reflecting several generations of lawyers who trained and stayed at the firm.
- One of the firm's lawyers was appointed a Deputy Judge of the Toronto Small Claims Court in 2015 and completed mediator certification in 2021.
In the community
- One of the firm's lawyers serves as a Deputy Judge of the Toronto Small Claims Court, an appointment held since 2015.
- A firm lawyer has mediated collective bargaining disputes between the federal Treasury Board and groups including the Public Service Alliance of Canada, conducted in both English and French.
- The firm has provided mediation on appointment by Ontario's Ministry of Labour under the Labour Relations Act (Ontario).
Good to know
Wheelchair accessibleLawyers 7
Adam Brown
Lawyer
Administrative & Regulatory Law
Alan B. Dryer
Lawyer
Civil Litigation & Dispute ResolutionReal Estate Law
Daniel Gold
Lawyer
Real Estate LawCivil Litigation & Dispute Resolution
Jake Newton
Associate
Civil Litigation & Dispute ResolutionReal Estate Law
Jessica Smuskowitz
Lawyer
Administrative & Regulatory Law
Orly Kahane-Rapport
Associate
Civil Litigation & Dispute ResolutionEmployment & Labour Law
Sean Brown
Lawyer
Administrative & Regulatory LawReal Estate Law
This firm’s lawyers at a glance
- Called to the bar
- 1982–2019 · median 32 years in practice 5 of 7 lawyers
- Law schools
- Western University (5), Osgoode Hall Law School, University of Toronto 7 of 7 lawyers
- Languages on the roster
- English, French, Hebrew
Who handles what
The neighbourhood
Brown Dryer's office sits at 40 Holly Street, inside the Yonge and Eglinton node in midtown Toronto. It's a business district in its own right rather than a downtown satellite; corporate head offices in the immediate area have included Canadian Tire, TVOntario, and the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario. That corporate and commercial character fits a practice built around real estate, planning, and commercial litigation work rather than a courtroom-adjacent one.
The intersection has been a transit hub since the Yonge subway line first opened north to Eglinton in 1954, and it now also connects to the Line 5 Eglinton light rail. For a firm whose real estate and planning clients range across the Greater Toronto Area and beyond, that mid-town, well-connected location keeps the office reachable without being tied to the downtown core.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Brown Dryer handle residential real estate purchases and sales in Toronto?
- Yes. The firm represents investors and individual clients acquiring, financing, and selling residential properties, including single family homes, condominium units, multi-unit buildings, and recreational properties.
- Can Brown Dryer help with a boundary or property dispute with a neighbour?
- The firm's civil litigation practice covers various real estate and corporate/commercial related civil litigation matters. Contact the firm directly to discuss a specific boundary or property dispute.
- Does Brown Dryer offer mediation or arbitration instead of going to court?
- Yes. The firm provides mediation for commercial, personal injury, wrongful dismissal, and family court matters, plus accredited arbitration in real estate, commercial leasing, and employment law. It has also mediated collective bargaining disputes in both English and French.
- Can Brown Dryer help get a rezoning, minor variance, or site plan approved?
- Yes. The firm runs a planning and land development practice that handles applications for official plan amendments, rezonings, minor variances, and site plan and subdivision approvals, and represents clients at Ontario Municipal Board hearings when a matter can't be resolved with the municipality directly.
- Is a free consultation available at Brown Dryer?
- The firm's website offers a free consultation request through its lawyer profile pages.
- Where is Brown Dryer located and is the office easy to reach?
- The office is at 40 Holly Street in Toronto's Yonge and Eglinton area, a midtown business district served by both the Yonge subway line and the Line 5 Eglinton light rail.
Where to find them
40 Holly Street, Suite 802, Toronto, Ontario M4S 3C3 · 416-222-0344
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