About Me

Jennifer Samara Shuber B.A., LL.B., M.S.W., C.S.

Called to the Ontario bar in 1997
Certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada as a Specialist in Family Law

Download my CV

• I received my B.A. from the University of Western Ontario in 1991, and my LL.B. and M.S.W. from the University of Toronto in 1995. I completed full service articles with Borden and Elliott and practiced in their family law department after being called to the Bar in 1997. Before joining Basman Smith in 2006, I practiced family law with a well-known Toronto boutique for nearly ten years.
• I became a partner at Basman Smith in 2007. I was certified as a specialist in family law by the Law Society of Upper Canada in 2009.
• My practice is focused exclusively on family law. I advise clients on all types of property, support and child-related issues. I have appeared at all levels of court in Ontario, including the Court of Appeal. I have extensive family law experience, including in high conflict cases and complex custody and access matters.
• I represent children at the centre of contested custody and access cases. As counsel to children, I provide independent information to the parties and the decision-maker (judge or arbitrator) on the children’s interests, views and preferences. I also prepare Voice of the Child Reports to document children’s wishes. By bringing the voice of the child into the process in these ways, I ensure that the result reached is child-focused.
• I am trained as a comprehensive family mediator and accredited by the Ontario Association of Family Mediation (AccFM). I regularly combine my legal and mental health knowledge to assist clients in creatively resolving their family law disputes. I conduct mediations and arbitrations and also represent clients in alternate dispute resolution processes. I have trained in collaborative law and parenting co-ordination.
• In addition to representing clients in my private practice, I lecture in the combined J.D./M.S.W. Program and am cross-appointed as a lecturer at the University of Toronto Faculties of Law and Social Work. I teach family mediation to law and social work students as well as instruct in the University of Toronto Continuing Education Mediation Certificate Program.
• I have authored and co-authored numerous papers and articles on family law issues, particularly on mediation/arbitration and custody and access. I am actively involved in continuing education programs and speak regularly on various family law and mediation topics. I am a member of the family law sections of the Ontario and Canadian Bar Associations, Family Mediation Canada (Ontario), the Association for Conflict Resolution, the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts and the Ontario College of Social Workers.
• I am mother to an amazing and hilarious son. I think tattoos can be an art form. I am proud to be a bit of a nerd. Music is a must. I admit to being a fiction fanatic. I am happiest when I have a pile of new novels to dive into. I love to travel and enjoy the great outdoors. On a recent canoe trip in Kawartha Lakes Provincial Park, the night sky and stars absolutely took my breath away.