Changing of the Guard Bennett Jones Announces New Executive Chair and CEO

The Globe and Mail features Bennett Jones on the front page of its Report on Business section as the firm announces John Mercury as its new Executive Chair and Dominique Hussey as new CEO. They will assume their new roles on January 1, 2024.

John initially practiced M&A and tax law for Wall Street firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. He then worked at investment bank Merrill Lynch before moving to Bennett Jones in Calgary in 2006.

He tells the Globe the change in leadership at Bennett Jones will be more of an evolution and “Our value to clients is to focus on solving their issues, by all rowing together.” He says the firm's tactics for dealing with increased cross-border competition include strengthening ties to U.S. firms that routinely refer business to Canadian lawyers. The firm currently sees no reason to strike formal international alliances, or significantly bulk up offices in New York and Washington.

Dominique spent three years as an intellectual property litigator at Goodwin Procter LLP prior to joining Bennett Jones in 2005. In 2020, she became the firm’s managing partner in Toronto.

“There’s an energy that we bring to our work,” she says. “It’s the result of a culture of collegiality and excellence, and that’s the culture we’re going to preserve.”

Globe and Mail subscribers can read the full story here.