Dickson Appell LLP
7 lawyers · Established 1987 · City of Toronto
One of 2,345 law firms listed in Toronto, and one of 579 handling Family Law.
About Dickson Appell LLP
Dickson Appell LLP is a Toronto law firm that began in 1987 as a partnership of nine women lawyers working out of shared midtown offices, and it still practises in just two areas: family law and estates law. The firm is structured as a limited liability partnership in which each lawyer runs an individual sole practice, with its own staff and trust account, while sharing office space and administration with the others. It has nine lawyers today at 10 Alcorn Avenue in midtown Toronto, near the Summerhill subway station.
Two of the current partners carry the firm's name. Mary Louise Dickson joined as a partner in 1990 and practised there until 2024, after being called to the Ontario bar in 1966, appointed Queen's Counsel in 1983, and elected a Bencher of the Law Society. Dickson also served as President of the Estate Planning Council of Toronto and co-authored texts on Ontario estates practice. Cheryl Appell, called to the bar in 1975, holds a permanent adoption licence from Ontario's Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services and served on the province's Expert Panel on Infertility and Adoption, which produced the 2009 report Raising Expectations. Six of the firm's partners over the years have gone on to become judges.
Practice areas
Milestones & recognition
- Six of the firm's partners over the years have gone on to become judges.
- Mary Louise Dickson, one of the firm's namesake partners, was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1983, elected a Bencher of the Law Society, and later received the Order of Ontario and the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.
- Dickson co-authored two texts on Ontario estates law, Ontario Estates Practice and The Wills Book, and the firm notes its estates lawyers continue to write textbooks and articles in the field.
- Cheryl Appell, the firm's other namesake partner, served on Ontario's Expert Panel on Infertility and Adoption, which produced the province's 2009 report Raising Expectations, and holds a permanent adoption licence from Ontario's Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services.
- In November 2022, Post City Magazine named two of the firm's family lawyers among Toronto's top family law and divorce lawyers.
In the community
- One of the firm's family lawyers is a founding member and longtime board member of Collaborative Divorce Toronto, and a past President of New Directions, a nonprofit that supported bereaved and separating women before it became part of United Way.
- One of the firm's estates lawyers serves on the board of the Toronto Lawyers' Association, writes a legal column for ALZlive.com, a website sponsored by the Alzheimer's Society of Toronto, and hosts a podcast, One Great Case, about notable court decisions.
- Firm lawyers have taught as adjunct or sessional instructors at Queen's University's law school and the University of Toronto's Faculty of Law, and lecture regularly for the Ontario Bar Association, the Law Society of Ontario, and the Toronto Lawyers' Association.
Good to know
Wheelchair accessible
By appointmentLawyers 7
This firm’s lawyers at a glance
- Called to the bar
- 2012 · median 14 years in practice 1 of 7 lawyers
- Law schools
- University of Calgary 1 of 7 lawyers
Who handles what
The neighbourhood
The firm's office is a converted brick building at 10 Alcorn Avenue, just west of Yonge Street in Toronto's Summerhill neighbourhood. Built in the 1930s and restored in 1991, the building has held a pair of hardware wholesalers, a publisher and printer, and another hardware company over the decades before being converted to professional offices. It now sits around a landscaped interior courtyard, home to legal, travel, and marketing firms.
Summerhill grew up around the old North Toronto Railway Station, built on Yonge Street in the 1880s. The station's clock tower now houses an LCBO store a short walk from the firm's door, and the Summerhill subway station sits at the same spot. It's a mostly residential stretch of early 1900s houses and small shops rather than office towers, which suits a firm built around one-on-one family and estate meetings rather than courtroom traffic. Clients driving in can use the metered lot on nearby Price Street or metered street parking around the building.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Dickson Appell handle divorce and separation, or only litigation?
- The firm's family lawyers handle separation and divorce, parenting and support arrangements, and property division, and several practice as negotiators and collaborative divorce practitioners rather than taking every matter to court.
- Can Dickson Appell help with an adoption, or a surrogacy or donor agreement?
- Yes. One of the firm's partners holds a permanent adoption licence from Ontario's Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services and has represented adoptive and biological parents, adoption agencies, and licensees, and the firm also drafts assisted reproductive technology agreements involving egg, sperm, or embryo donors.
- Does Dickson Appell handle will challenges and estate or guardianship disputes?
- Yes. The firm's estates litigation practice covers will and trust challenges, executor and trustee removal, guardianship applications, capacity disputes, and passing of accounts, along with estate planning and administration.
- How is Dickson Appell structured, since the name lists two lawyers but the firm has more?
- It's a limited liability partnership in which each lawyer runs an individual sole practice, with separate staff and trust accounts, while sharing office space and administration with the other partners at the firm.
- How long has Dickson Appell been practising family and estates law in Toronto?
- The firm was established in 1987 and has practised only family law and estates law from its midtown Toronto office since then.
- Is there parking near the Dickson Appell office, or can I get there by transit?
- The office is a short walk from the Summerhill subway station on the Yonge line, and metered street parking and a metered lot on nearby Price Street are both available.
Where to find them
10 Alcorn Avenue, Suite 306, Toronto, Ontario M4V 3A9 · 416-927-0891
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