Norton Barristers

About Norton Barristers

Norton Barristers is a criminal and regulatory defence practice in Toronto, led by principal lawyer Philip Norton and also operating under the name Philip Norton Criminal Defence. The firm handles criminal and quasi-criminal litigation at trial and on appeal, along with professional discipline and conduct hearings in health law and policing. Norton clerked for judges of the Superior Court of Justice before being called to the bar, and has since appeared as counsel at every level of court, including the Supreme Court of Canada.

On the regulatory side, the firm represents lawyers, paralegals, health care workers, and police officers who face investigations or hearings before their professional regulators, in matters that can touch on employment law, occupational health and safety, and professional licensing. The firm also takes appellate referrals from other trial lawyers, focusing on identifying legal errors that led to a conviction or an excessive sentence. Norton belongs to the Law Society of Ontario, the Toronto Lawyers' Association, the Criminal Lawyers' Association, the Ontario Bar Association, and the Advocates' Society, and the firm is listed with Legal Aid Ontario as accepting certificates for criminal matters, extremely serious matters, and Gladue related proceedings.