Overview
Belinda Rossi is a seasoned legal expert with nearly 20 years of experience specializing in high net worth separations and wealth protection. Her practice centers on complex family law matters involving corporate interests, trusts, income determination, and sophisticated valuation issues. Known for her expertise in tackling complicated financial matters, Belinda excels at resolving legal matters that intersect with family law, including shareholder disputes, trust claims, real estate issues, tax matters, and estate planning.
A powerhouse in high-conflict cases, Belinda has a proven track record of achieving favorable outcomes for her clients both in and out of the courtroom. She has been ranked as a leader in her field and has been the recipient of numerous, prestigious awards. Multiple legal sources have reported decisions in which Belinda has been counsel. In addition to serving her clients, she is a trusted advisor to other lawyers and financial professionals when family law issues arise.
Strategic advocacy is the cornerstone of Belinda’s practice. She is dedicated to working tirelessly to secure successful outcomes for her clients. With a strong emphasis on timely resolutions, Belinda actively explores avenues for settlement through negotiation, mediation, arbitration and litigation. Adding further depth to her family law expertise, Belinda brings a strong background in corporate law and fraud recovery, enhancing her ability to navigate complex financial cases. At the heart of her practice lies a steadfast commitment to professional excellence and exceptional client service.
Key Practice Areas:
- Litigation, mediation, and arbitration
- Domestic contracts (cohabitation, marriage, and separation agreements)
- Income determination (forensic analysis, income imputation, corporate attribution)
- Spousal and child support
- Security for financial obligations (vesting, non-depletion/preservation orders)
- Equalization of net family property and complex valuation issues (businesses, real estate, collections, trusts)
- Trust claims, including those affecting non-party interests
- Property division and tax implications
- Corporate and personal disclosure
- Parenting issues (parenting time, decision-making, mobility)
- Divorce
Professional achievements & leadership
- Lexpert Ranked – Leading Family Law Lawyer – Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory
- Recipient of the Granger Award in Family Law
- Recipient of the C.C.H. Canadian Limited Prize (Family Law)
- Recipient of the Genest, Murray Award in Advocacy
- Guest Lecturer on business valuation and income determination issues in family law
Notable matters
- Successfully defended against efforts to set aside marriage contracts.
- Negotiated contracts for high net worth individuals, including agreements involving assets valued over $75 million and discretionary family trusts.
- Secured substantial monthly support orders and lump sum spousal support awards, including a lump sum award over $5 million, despite the payor being in his sixties and the recipient receiving an equalization payment exceeding $8 million.
- Advocated successfully for the material reduction and termination of support, including obtaining an award to terminate spousal support after a long-term marriage where the recipient spouse had not worked and the payor was a high-income earner.
- Secured a court order for support for a spouse following a 10-month marriage.
- Argued effectively for significant imputation of income for support purposes, including the attribution of corporate income.
- Challenged a business valuator's conclusions, preventing a valuation that would have inflated the corporation's worth by $6 million for equalization purposes.
- Secured orders permitting a substantial equalization payment to be made over time.
- Represented clients in cases where a spouse had interests in multiple corporations.
- Obtained vesting orders for the transfer of real estate and investments.
- Achieved non-depletion/preservation orders for personal and business assets.
- Secured orders for security for financial claims in the millions.
- Obtained disclosure orders for litigants with significant assets in Canada and abroad.
- Successfully secured the production of expert income and business valuation reports.
- Obtained orders for non-party disclosure, including from corporations.
- Secured interim disbursement orders enabling parties to retain experts.
- Defended against a motion to transfer a matter to the Ontario Court of Appeal.
- Achieved significant costs orders, including one of the highest made by the Divisional Court in a reported case.
- Obtained orders striking parties' pleadings for non-compliance with court orders and successfully defended against appeals related to these orders.
- Secured orders for the sale of property and for occupation rent.
- Achieved orders for exclusive possession of a matrimonial home.
- Obtained orders for equal parenting time, including in cases involving very young children.
- Secured orders implementing significant restrictions on parenting time and safeguards when necessary.
- Obtained orders for clinical assessments related to parenting issues.
- Successfully secured permission for a parent to relocate with a child to another country.
- Choate on Discovery, 2nd Edition, Business Records (2024), Di Sabatino v. Di Sabatino, 2021 ONSC 4901 (Ont. S.C.J.)
- Choate on Discovery, 2nd Edition, Costs (2024), Caskie v. Caskie, 2020 ONSC 7010 (Ont. S.C.J.)
- Ontario Family Law Act Manual, 2nd Edition, Recipient’s Need (2024), Di Sabatino v. Di Sabatino, 2022 ONSC 334 (Ont. S.C.J.)
- Ontario Family Law Act: Law and Practice, Revised Edition (2024), Majumder v. Rahman, 2018 ONSC 7445 (Ont. S.C.J.)
- Holmested and Watson: Ontario Civil Procedure, Majumder v. Rahman, 2018 ONSC 7445 (Ont. S.C.J.)
- Canadian Divorce Law & Practice, 2nd Edition: Majumder v. Rahman, 2018 ONSC 7445 (Ont. S.C.J.), “The Compensatory Exception in Short Marriages Without Children (SSAG s.12.5)”
- Canadian Divorce Law and Practice, 2nd Edition s 12:5, § 12:5: Interim Support—Evidence and Disclosure (2024), Pavletic v. Pavletic, 2021 ONSC 7101 (Ont. S.C.J.)
- McLeod & Mamo, Annual Review of Family Law – Spousal Support (2019 – 2022), Majumder v. Rahman, 2018 ONSC 7445 (Ont. S.C.J.)
- Enforcement of Family Law Orders and Agreements: Law and Practice (2024), Pavletic v. Pavletic, 2023 ONSC 2547 (Ont. S.C.J. Div. Ct.)
- Enforcement of Family Law Orders and Agreements: Law and Practice s 1:245, § 1:245: Pleadings Struck—Non-complying party given one final opportunity to comply; otherwise pleadings to be struck (2024), Pavletic v. Pavletic, 2022 ONSC 7608 (Ont. S.C.J.) and Pavletic v. Pavletic, 2023 ONSC 2547 (Ont. S.C.J. Div. Ct.)
- This Week in Family Law, 2023-45, Franks & Zalev, Caskie v. Caskie, 2020 ONSC 7010 (Ont. S.C.J.)
- Legal Memo Summary MacDonald and Partners Supplier Addition 12149, Di Sabatino v. Di Sabatino, 2022 ONSC 334 (Ont. S.C.J.), “In what circumstances, other than considering non-recurring income, will a court, where the determination of a spouse's income under s. 16 of the Federal Child Support Guidelines is not the fairest determination of his or her income, average income over the past three years to determine an amount that is fair and reasonable?”
- Legal Memo Summary MacDonald and Partners Supplier Addition 12669, Caskie v. Caskie, 2020 ONSC 7010 (Ont. S.C.J.), “What are a party's obligations of financial disclosure in order for the court to make an accurate determination of spousal support?”
Thought leadership
MOST RECENT ARTICLE
- “Getting out of the Heartbreak Hotel of Corporate and Family Law Divorces,” Taxes & Wealth Management, March 2024 – Issue 17-1
- “Constructive Trusts and Resulting Trusts: Bringing Order to Chaos”, Continuing Legal Education Materials for the Ontario Bar Association
Community involvement
- Chair of the Board of Directors, Vaughan Chamber of Commerce, 2023 to present
- Director on Board of Directors, Vaughan Chamber of Commerce, 2019 to present
- Finance Committee, Vaughan Chamber of Commerce, 2023 to present
- Women’s Leadership Committee, Vaughan Chamber of Commerce, 2017 to present
- Coach/Advisor, Law Society of Ontario’s Coach and Advisory Network, 2020 to present
Professional memberships
- Law Society of Ontario
- Canadian Bar Association
- Ontario Bar Association
- York Region Law Association
- Vaughan Chamber of Commerce
Bar admissions & education
- Ontario, 2007
- LL.B., University of Western Ontario, Faculty of Law, 2006
- Graduate Studies, York University, 2003
- B.A., (Honours), York University, 2002
