They will sit in Windsor, Kenora, Markham, London, and Hamilton, respectively
The Superior Court of Justice of Ontario has welcomed Scott G. Pratt, Cheryl C.M. Siran, Constance Nielsen, Stephanie J. Ouellette, and Sean D.R. Heeley as judges.
Pratt replaces justice G.W. King (Windsor), who elected to become a supernumerary judge as of November 3, 2025. Pratt will sit in Windsor.
He joined the bench of the Ontario Court of Justice in Windsor in 2019. In his capacity as the local administrative justice, he assisted in leading the court through post-pandemic concerns and supervised protocol development to tackle court backlogs.
Previously, Pratt was an assistant Crown attorney, prosecuting cases in the Ontario and Superior Courts of Justice in Hamilton, Niagara, Brampton, and Windsor. He was also a civil litigator in Toronto and a criminal defence lawyer in Hamilton.
He became the West region director on the board of the Association of Ontario Judges in 2024. He was called to the Ontario bar in 2000 and obtained degrees in psychology and law from the University of Windsor.
Siran replaces justice J.S. Fregeau (Kenora), who elected to become a supernumerary judge as of October 25, 2025. She will sit in Kenora, where she has focused her practice throughout her legal career.
She was a summer student with Legal Aid Ontario and articled with the Crown attorney’s office. She worked in criminal and family law at the start of her tenure with Hook, Seller & Lundin LLP, where she is now partner. She shifted to property, estate and construction litigation and worked on residential and cottage real estate transactions.
Siran chaired the Federation of Ontario Law Associations and was president of the Kenora District Law Association. She was appointed deputy judge of the Small Claims Court in 2018.
She was the northwest regional bencher with the Law Society of Ontario and co-chaired the access to justice committee. She was on the tribunal panel and was an appointed member of the Ontario judicial appointments advisory committee.
Siran was a regional representative of the Ontario Deputy Judges Association.
Nielsen replaces justice M.P. Shelston (Ottawa), who resigned as of May 31, 2025. She went into sole practice after a stint at a family law boutique. She will sit in Oshawa.
She has been a Children’s Lawyer agent, duty counsel, and dispute resolution officer, supporting litigants and the court with the early, principled resolution of complex matters. She sat on the Legal Aid Ontario Domestic Violence Panel.
Nielsen was on the York Region Law Association board and co-chaired the family law committee. She also served as a mentor and pitched in on the education subcommittee.
The vacancy was located in Oshawa as the chief justice transferred justice K.D. Leef (Oshawa) into Shelston’s Ottawa vacancy.
Ouellette replaces justice P.J. Henderson (London), who resigned as of October 31, 2025. She will sit in the Family Court in London.
She started as an associate with Legate and Associates (now Legate Injury Lawyers). She then set up her sole family law practice concentrating on child protection litigation. She has appeared before the Superior Court of Justice on complex and sensitive matters involving children and families.
Ouellette previously presided over the London chapter of the Ontario Association of Child Protection Lawyers. She was also a Legal Aid Ontario panel lawyer.
Heeley replaces Justice D.A. Jarvis (Newmarket), who elected to become a supernumerary judge as of March 1, 2025. He will sit in the Family Court in Hamilton.
As a law student, he worked with Hamilton firm Szpiech, Ellis, Skibinski, Shipton, where he eventually became counsel, partner, and sole owner. He practised in family law, real-estate law, wills and estates, civil litigation, and criminal law.
Heeley has appeared before the Ontario Court of Appeal and has acted as a Hamilton Law Association trustee. He was on the Hamilton Law Association’s family law and history subcommittees.
He was on the community resource liaison committee, the bench and bar committee, and the family law rules committee.
The vacancy is located in Hamilton as the chief justice transferred justice T.W.Y. Law (Hamilton) into Jarvis’ vacancy in Newmarket.
Justice minister and Canada attorney general Sean Fraser announced the appointments on March 27.
