He was recently prime minister Mark Carney’s chief of staff
Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP has brought in prime minister Mark Carney’s former chief of staff, Marco Mendicino, as senior counsel and strategic advisor to boost its national advisory offering.
Mendicino commenced with the firm earlier today November 3. In his new role, he will collaborate with the firm’s leadership team and work with clients in the energy, infrastructure, technology, and trade sectors.
He will guide the alignment of business strategy with public-policy priorities, help to navigate complex regulatory environments, and bolster private and public sector partnerships. Cassels deputy managing partner Noble Chummar highlighted Mendicino’s representation of Canada “at the highest levels of diplomacy at home and around the world” in a statement.
Mendicino’s leadership experience in law, government, and public policy spans 20 years. While working with Carney as chief of staff, Mendicino spearheaded the Prime Minister’s Office as it navigated a national election and a watershed transition of government. He managed the implementation of the government’s agenda, helped cultivate bipartisan support to pass major projects legislation, and worked together with premiers and Indigenous leaders.
Mendicino also guided Carney at international engagements at the White House, NATO, and Canada’s G7 presidency in Kananaskis. He was Ontario Caucus Chair and parliamentary secretary to Justice and Infrastructure and was elected as the member of parliament for Eglinton–Lawrence thrice.
While in cabinet, he was responsible for the Immigration and Public Safety portfolios. Moreover, he was Canada’s representative at the Five Eyes and G7 tables to enhance cooperation on national security, cyber resilience, and combatting foreign interference, and human trafficking.
As a federal prosecutor, Mendicino appeared before trial and appellate courts in litigation and tackled high-profile anti-terrorism and national-security cases. He became president of the Association of Justice Counsel and led Law Society of Ontario investigations.
He also became an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall Law School and a senior fellow at the University of Toronto’s Munk School.
