What kind of law does Flaherty McCarthy practice?

Flaherty McCarthy is an insurance litigation firm in Markham that handles motor vehicle tort claims, statutory accident benefits disputes, coverage matters, and class action litigation. The firm represents both insurers and individuals, including people who have been seriously injured, in matters across Ontario and the United States.

I was hurt in a car accident. Can the firm help me with an accident benefits claim?

Flaherty McCarthy handles Statutory Accident Benefits claims, including loss transfer and priority disputes. The firm's lawyers represent claimants before the Licence Appeal Tribunal as well as in court, and have worked in this area since Ontario's original accident benefits regime.

Is Flaherty McCarthy involved in any class action lawsuits?

Flaherty McCarthy represents class members in active proceedings that have covered matters such as a privacy breach claim and a medical device case. The firm keeps a running list of its active class proceedings on its website, with a dedicated page for each case.

Where is Flaherty McCarthy's office and how do I reach the firm?

Flaherty McCarthy's office is in The Origin building at 179 Enterprise Boulevard in Markham, in the Downtown Markham retail and dining district. The firm can be reached at 416-368-0231 or through the contact form on its website.

Does the firm only represent insurance companies?

No, Flaherty McCarthy represents both insurers and individuals. Its personal injury team acts for seriously injured people and their families in tort claims and in accident benefits and disability claims arising from motor vehicle, ATV, boating, and snowmobile accidents, slip and falls, and defective products.

Flaherty McCarthy LLP | LawOnline Directory

About Flaherty McCarthy LLP

Flaherty McCarthy LLP is an insurance litigation firm with its office in Markham, Ontario. It was founded in 1994 by James M. Flaherty and Justice Grant R. Dow, who left an established insurance defence firm to start their own practice. The firm's roots and original head office were in Toronto. Today it has 15 lawyers who represent both insurers and individuals, including seriously injured people, in motor vehicle tort claims, statutory accident benefits disputes, coverage matters, and class proceedings across Ontario and the United States.

The firm has changed its name twice since it opened. It became Flaherty Dow Elliott & McCarthy in 2000, then took its current name, Flaherty McCarthy LLP, in 2015. Frank Benedetto, Sean Brown, and Michael Chadwick joined the partnership in 2006, and Sophia Chaudri was admitted to partnership in 2019. Every lawyer at the firm works across its core areas of motor vehicle tort, occupiers' liability, and statutory accident benefits rather than a single narrow specialty, and Canadian Lawyer magazine has named the firm a Top 10 Insurance Defence Boutique Law Firm in Canada in every ranking it has published since 2015.

Practice areas

Insurance Law

Personal Injury

Civil Litigation & Dispute Resolution

Class Actions

Milestones & recognition

Founded in 1994 by James M. Flaherty and Justice Grant R. Dow, who left an established insurance defence firm to start their own practice, with roots and a head office in Toronto.
Expanded to Whitby in the mid-1990s, taking space in the former Carnegie Library, a building constructed in 1917 that had housed the Whitby Public Library's collection for 59 years.
Co-founder James Flaherty served as MPP for Whitby-Ajax from 1995 to 2005 and as Ontario's Deputy Premier, Minister of Finance, and Attorney General, then as Canada's federal Minister of Finance from 2006 to 2014.
Co-founder Grant R. Dow was appointed a judge of the Superior Court of Justice at Toronto in 2015.
Todd J. McCarthy, the firm's namesake, received the Ontario Trial Lawyers Association's leadership award in 2019, and is on a leave of absence from the firm after being elected MPP for Durham in 2022.
Canadian Lawyer magazine has named the firm a Top 10 Insurance Defence Boutique Law Firm in Canada in every ranking it has published since 2015.

In the community

The firm sponsors and supports Lawyers' Feed the Hungry, local toy drives, and the Community Association for Riders with Disabilities.
It supports local hospitals, including the Hospital for Sick Children, along with the Abilities Centre, the Heart and Stroke Foundation, and the Canadian Cancer Society.
Lawyers at the firm volunteer with minor sports clubs and teams, the Ontario Bar Association, and the Thomas More Lawyers' Guild of Toronto.
A lawyer at the firm authors and edits Accident Benefits in Ontario, published by Canada Law Book, and writes a monthly Accident Benefits Newsletter read in the insurance industry.
The firm has taught Insurance Law at Queen's Law School, taken part in the Insurance Law practicum at Osgoode Hall Law School, lectured for Canadian Defence Lawyers, the Ontario Bar Association, and the Advocates' Society, and volunteered in mock trials at the elementary and high school level.

Good to know

Wheelchair accessible

Lawyers 15

This firm’s lawyers at a glance

Called to the bar: 1985–2020 · median 21 years in practice 14 of 15 lawyers
Law schools: Osgoode Hall Law School (6), University of Windsor (2), BPP University, Dalhousie Law School, Queen's University, Queen's University Faculty of Law and 3 more 15 of 15 lawyers

Who handles what

The neighbourhood

The firm's office is on the second floor of The Origin, a mixed-use development at 179 Enterprise Boulevard in Downtown Markham. The building anchors the district's retail and dining strip, with a Cineplex VIP Cinemas, a 24-hour GoodLife Fitness, more than 10 restaurants, and York University's YSpace startup incubator among its tenants, and it won a 2016 ICSC Maple Leaf Gold Award for its design. A contractor built out the firm's roughly 8,500-square-foot suite, adding new offices and reworking the space's open-concept ceiling and lunchroom to fit the layout.

Frequently asked questions

What kind of law does Flaherty McCarthy practice?: Flaherty McCarthy is an insurance litigation firm in Markham that handles motor vehicle tort claims, statutory accident benefits disputes, coverage matters, and class action litigation. The firm represents both insurers and individuals, including people who have been seriously injured, in matters across Ontario and the United States.
I was hurt in a car accident. Can the firm help me with an accident benefits claim?: Flaherty McCarthy handles Statutory Accident Benefits claims, including loss transfer and priority disputes. The firm's lawyers represent claimants before the Licence Appeal Tribunal as well as in court, and have worked in this area since Ontario's original accident benefits regime.
Is Flaherty McCarthy involved in any class action lawsuits?: Flaherty McCarthy represents class members in active proceedings that have covered matters such as a privacy breach claim and a medical device case. The firm keeps a running list of its active class proceedings on its website, with a dedicated page for each case.
How long has the firm been practicing law?: Flaherty McCarthy was founded in 1994 and has practiced under its current name since 2015. Canadian Lawyer magazine has named the firm a Top 10 Insurance Defence Boutique Law Firm in Canada in every ranking it has published since then.
Where is Flaherty McCarthy's office and how do I reach the firm?: Flaherty McCarthy's office is in The Origin building at 179 Enterprise Boulevard in Markham, in the Downtown Markham retail and dining district. The firm can be reached at 416-368-0231 or through the contact form on its website.
Does the firm only represent insurance companies?: No, Flaherty McCarthy represents both insurers and individuals. Its personal injury team acts for seriously injured people and their families in tort claims and in accident benefits and disability claims arising from motor vehicle, ATV, boating, and snowmobile accidents, slip and falls, and defective products.

Where to find them

The Origin Building, 179 Enterprise Blvd. 2nd Floor, Suite 200, Markham, Ontario L6G 0E7 · 416-368-0231

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Listing compiled from the firm’s public website in September 2026. Verify licence status in the Law Society of Ontario directory ↗