JULIA VALLADAO - Professional Development Director and Secretary
Julia is an ITL who is passionate about the inclusion of ITLs in the legal market. She has dedicated the last few years to working with legal professionals on their careers and helping them position themselves for success. She has also worked with law firms and companies to assess and improve their hiring practices as a labor market consultant. Julia is Brazilian and has an LL.M. in Business & Finance Law. She has experience both in the Canadian and U.S. job markets.
YONIDA KOUKIO - Memberships and Community Engagement Director
Yonida is a Business and Intellectual Property Lawyer at Oziel Law, a boutique technology law firm in Toronto. She works closely with innovative start-ups at all stages of their business from their inception up to an M&A or go-public transaction. Yonida regularly represents foreign companies in establishing a presence in Canada to access the North American markets with work that includes setting up and structuring subsidiaries, IP transfer and brand protection, and corporate finance. She assists corporations throughout their lifecycle with strategy, as well as the preparation and negotiation of various corporate, technology and IP, privacy, financing, and employment contracts.
Prior to her legal career in Ontario, Yonida practiced law in Athens, Greece. She holds LLB and LLM degrees from Democritus University of Thrace, and more recently an LLM in Business and IP Law from Osgoode Hall Law School, York University.
Hyunju (Crystal) Park - Director
Hyunju (Crystal) Park is an associate in Gowling WLG’s Toronto office. She practices in the firm’s Business Law department. She is developing a practice in the areas of mergers and acquisition, structuring, and general corporate/commercial matters, with a focus on commercial technology transactions. Her practice is uniquely complemented with rigorous training and experience in corporate, commercial and technology.
Crystal started to volunteer for the ITLNCA Networks Association (“ITLNCA”) in September 2020. She has always been passionate about access to justice and mentorship. She truly believes that internationally-trained lawyers bring invaluable experience, and unique and diverse expertise to the Canadian legal community, which undeniably promotes access to justice. Further, in order to foster such talent in the legal profession, mentorship is indispensable. As part of the ITLNCA Board of Directors, she is eager to plan more events focused on mentorship, networking and creating more opportunities for internationally-trained lawyers.
Previously, Crystal was category manager and legal consultant for one of the leading global corporations in the gaming and hospitality industry. She obtained a Global Professional LLM from the University of Toronto, LLM in International Business Law (Thesis Track) from the University of Macau, and an LLB from Yonsei University (South Korea). She also holds a CIPS Level 4 Diploma in Procurement and Supply.
MICHAEL TAM - Policies and Advocacy Director
Michael Tam is the Program Lawyer, Professional Graduate & International Programs at Osgoode Professional Development. In this role he develops degree programs, graduate courses, and non-degree education options for domestic and internationally trained lawyers and law students. He is also the academic and career counsellor to all OsgoodePD students and a career coach to NCA candidates.
Michael holds an Honours B.Sc (Hons) in Psychology, an LL.B. from the University of Leicester, and an LL.M from the University of Toronto with a focus on human rights. He completed the NCA process in 2013 and was called to the Ontario Bar in 2015. Michael is a passionate advocate for diversity, inclusion, and equity initiatives. As of 2023, he has also taken over administration of the Canada wide OCIs for ITL/NCA Candidates initiative.
RACHEL SACHS - Director
Rachel Sachs is a lawyer in North York who focusses her practice on older adult clients in elder law, estates, corporate and civil litigation. Rachel also works as Of Counsel on select litigation matters with Marshall Law Group in Caledonia and on the Pro Bono Ontario Hotline advising low-income clients in civil litigation, housing, consumer protection and powers of attorney matters.
In addition to her role with ITLNCA Networks, Rachel is the President of the Filipino Canadian Lawyers Network, Co-Lead of Communications and Outreach with RODA, a board member of a local daycare and a Past Chair of the OBA Women Lawyers Forum.
Called to the Ontario bar in 2017 after completing the Law Practice Program, Rachel also holds her Executive MBA degree from Quantic School of Technology in DC, her Masters of Science from the University of Edinburgh Business School in Scotland, her law degree from Sheffield Hallam University in England, and bachelors degree in law from Carleton University in Ottawa.
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ANTONIO F. URDANETA - President
Antonio is a marathon and ultra-marathon runner and an employment lawyer focused on Workplace and Institutional Investigations. He brings years of employment litigation experience before the Superior Court of Justice and administrative tribunals to his investigations.
Throughout the years, he has served in different boards of not-for-profit organizations, including the Canadian Hispanic Bar Association, where he volunteered for approximately eight years, first as its Memberships Director and then as its President.
Antonio is a dual lawyer (Canada and Venezuela), and holds the Global Professional Master of Laws (GP LL.M.), and an Employment and Labour Master of Laws from the University of Zulia.