Profile
Karima Kanani leads the corporate/commercial practice in the Health Industry Group. She advises public and private sector healthcare organizations of all sizes on corporate governance, corporate structuring and reorganizations, mergers and program transfers, infrastructure development, procurement of goods and services, government relations, joint ventures and other general commercial matters. Ms. Kanani’s experience in the industry enables her to also provide her clients with strategic advice on funding considerations and opportunities for revenue generation. In addition, she has been actively involved in primary healthcare renewal initiatives in Alberta, Ontario, and Newfoundland.
Karima brings a broad range of corporate/commercial law experience to her corporate health practice. Prior to joining Miller Thomson’s Health Industry Group, she was with the firm’s Securities and Corporate Finance group. Karima is also a member of the Bar in Massachusetts, USA and practiced in the Business Practice group of a firm in Boston.
Prior to beginning her legal career, Karima was educated in the social sciences and worked in the healthcare sector. She mediated end-of-life treatment disputes in the Intensive Care at the Toronto Western Hospital and worked as an assistant to the Deputy Registrar of the Health Services Appeal and Review Board of the Ontario Health Boards Secretariat. Ms. Kanani’s education and experience enables her to identify and appreciate clients’ needs and develop client strategies and solutions that are sensitive to the nuances of the healthcare industry.
Karima is also an author and has published nationally and internationally on the intersection of law and the provision of social services. Most recently, she co-authored a book entitled “Essential Law for Social Work Practice in Canada”, which has been adopted by several Canadian post secondary institutions.
In 2011 Karima was named as one of the “Best of the New Generation” of lawyers, receiving the prestigious Precedent Setter Award from Precedent Magazine for excellence and leadership in her practice and the community.
Education
- J.D., University of Toronto, 2002
- M.S.W., University of Toronto, 2002
- B.A., McGill University, 1998
Memberships
- Member, Core Committee, International Strategic Partnership Program, National Health Board, Aga Khan Council for Canada
- Member, South Asian Bar Association
- Past Member, Research Ethics Board, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
Presentations
- Procurement – A Review of Key Contract Terms and Conditions, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (2011)
- Governance Changes on the Horizon – the New Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporations Act, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (2011)
- Information Sharing Initiatives, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (with Frelick, K., Miller Thomson LLP) (2010)
- Legal Issues and Incorporation, Hospital Auxiliary Association of Ontario, Annual Convention, Toronto, Ontario (2010)
- Your Legal Setup & Preparing for the RHPA, Ontario Association of Naturopathic Doctors (OAND), Business Excellence Symposium, Toronto, Ontario (with Frelick, K., Miller Thomson LLP) (2010)
- Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) – Implications for the Health Industry, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (with Xilinas, K., Miller Thomson LLP) (2010)
- The Procurement Process: A Workshop for the Health Industry, Toronto and Ottawa, Ontario (with Pigott, W. and Bulat, D., Miller Thomson LLP) (2010)
- Revenue Generation for Hospitals, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (2009)
- Leasing Space: The Do’s and Don’ts, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (with Holmes, D., Miller Thomson LLP) (2009)
- Regional Initiatives: A Legal Perspective, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (2008)
- Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon: Negotiating Technology Purchase and Service Arrangements, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (2008)
- Lawyering and Social Work: Legal Professionalism in a Multicultural Context (panel), alumni seminar series entitled “Religion, Law and Society” at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Toronto, Ontario (with Executive Director, Downtown Legal Services and Executive Director, South Asian Legal Clinic of Ontario) (2007)
- Contracts Between Industry and Healthcare Institutions, presented at MEDEC's Annual Legal and Regulatory Affairs Conference, Toronto, Ontario (2007)
- Procurement and Contracting, Legal Panel, presented at the Association of Family Health Teams of Ontario (AFHTO) Conference entitled “Challenges and Foundations of Leadership in FHTs”, Toronto, Ontario (2007)
- Alternate Levels of Care – Systems Issues and Challenges (panel), presented at an Insight Conference entitled “Long Term Care and Seniors Care”, Toronto, Ontario (with Director of Quality and Patient Safety, London Health Sciences Centre and Executive Director, Mississauga Halton Community Care Access Centre) (2007)
- Essential Law in Social Work, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario (2007)
- Legal Considerations When Outsourcing, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (2007)
- Constructing an Outsourcing Contract, presented at the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) Annual Nutrition and Food Services Conference, Toronto, Ontario (2006)
- Navigating an Assessment by the Canada Revenue Agency, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (with Hutchinson, J., Miller Thomson LLP) (2006)
- Hospital Physicians – Employees or Independent Contractors?, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (with Hutchinson, J., Miller Thomson LLP) (2006)
- Anatomy of a Contract, Coffee Talk: A Miller Thomson LLP Health Industry Seminar Series (2006)
- Legal Considerations for Clinical Trials in Quebec, presented at a conference entitled “Maximizing the Outcome of your Clinical Trials”, Newark, New Jersey (with Dugas, A., Miller Thomson LLP) (2006)
- Hospitals Doing Business, presented at the 2005 Ontario Hospital Association Convention, “Health Achieve”, Toronto, Ontario (with Liswood, J., Miller Thomson LLP) (2005)
Publications
- Hospital Physicians: Employees or Independent Contractors?, Risk Management in Canadian Health Care, 2012
- Canada Not-for-Profit Corporations Act Proclaimed in Force, Health Communiqué, October 18, 2011
- Future Changes for Ontario Not-For-Profit Corporations Act, Health Communiqué, December 15, 2010
- Essential Law for Social Work Practice in Canada, Second Edition, Oxford University Press, 2010
- Bill C-4: Future changes for federally incorporated Not-for-Profit Corporations, Health Communiqué, September 3, 2009
- Restructuring Primary Healthcare Delivery: The Canadian Experience, briefing note circulated at a meeting on Patient-Centered Healthcare held by the International Alliance of Patient Organizations (IAPO) at the United Nations, 2007
- Essential Law for Social Work Practice in Canada, Oxford University Press, 2006
- E-Therapy, Ontario Association of Social Workers News Magazine, 2005
- Liability for Child Welfare Workers: Weighing the Risks, Bala, N., Zapf, M.K., Williams, R.J., Vogl, R. & Hornick, J.P. Canadian Child Welfare Law: Children, Families and the State, Thompson Educational Publishing, Inc., 2004
- Clinical, Ethical and Legal Issues in E-therapy, Families in Society: The Contemporary Journal of Human Services, 2003
- Talisman in Sudan: A Critical Look at Corporate Social Responsibility, First place prize paper in the William Hanley Memorial National Essay Competition sponsored by Canadian Lawyers for Social Responsibility, 2003
- Liability Considerations in Child Welfare: Lessons from Canada, Child Abuse & Neglect, 2002
- Transgenic Animal Patents: The Harvard Mouse on the Canadian Frontier, Canadian Intellectual Property Review, 2002
- Liability for Child Welfare Social Workers: Weighing the Risks, Canadian Social Work, 2002
Industry Expertise
Key Practice Expertise
Areas of Focus
- Infrastructure Development
- Joint Ventures / Regional Initiatives
- Research and Commercialization
- Funding and Accountability
Year of Call
- Ontario Bar, 2004
- Massachusetts Bar, 2002