She has been co-managing partner of the firm since 2022
WeirFoulds co-managing partner Denise Farmer has stepped up as the firm’s new chair as of January 1.
In her new role, she will spearhead the progression of strategic initiatives, strengthen client relationships, and cultivate legal services delivery innovation. She will juggle the leadership position with her current municipal and land use planning law practice.
Baker has tackled issues involving the Heritage Act and the Development Charges Act. She has advised municipalities and land developers., and for six years, she worked with the town of Oakville in an in-house capacity.
She handled land use planning matters for Oakville, helping to resolve appeals and secure approval of its Livable Oakville Official Plan. She has prepared and negotiated heritage easement agreements.
Baker worked on appeals to municipal official plan “conformity exercises” in the Halton, Waterloo, and Durham regions as well in York and Halton local municipalities. She reviewed Educations Development Charge by-laws and by-law amendments.
She also tackled challenges to and approvals of interim control by-law matters in Oakville and the city of Windsor. She worked on infill residential zoning and subdivision matters in Oakville, Toronto, and GTA municipalities.
Baker has handled employment and commercial development applications in the Halton, Durham and Peel municipalities. She has appeared before the Ontario Land Tribunal, the Ontario Court of Justice, and the Divisional Court.
She is a Lexpert-ranked lawyer in the area of real estate – property development. She was called to the Ontario Bar in 2003 and is part of the Ontario Bar Association, the Canadian Bar Association, and the Simcoe Chapter of Lambda Alpha International.
Baker has taught as a sessional professor at the University of Waterloo’s School of Planning. She instructs new planners on the role of the expert witness before the Ontario Land Tribunal.
Baker was appointed co-managing partner of the firm in 2022. She has also co-chaired the Cambridge Forum for Land Use Planning and was once chair of the Ontario Bar Association’s municipal law section.
Baker described her chair appointment, which comes in WeirFoulds’ 165th year, as a “tremendous honour.”
