Practice Summary
Adil is an associate in our litigation department. Prior to joining Sotos, he worked on privacy class actions at a boutique in Ottawa, then summered and articled at a leading litigation firm, working on product liability, digital technology, and public interest class actions for both plaintiffs and defendants.
He has published peer-reviewed articles on class actions and access to justice, among other topics. He also sits on the executive of the class action section of the Ontario Bar Association, among other sections.
While in law school, he was the top oralist at the Davies Corporate/Securities Moot, the Editor-in-Chief of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law Review, a Senior Editor of the Critical Analysis of Law Journal, and an Associate Editor of the Indigenous Law Review and the Journal of Law and Equity.
In his spare time, he enjoys playing chess, coding, and learning about technology. He has credentials in cybersecurity, data analytics, automation, and artificial intelligence.
Adil is proficient in French and Spanish.
BAR ADMISSION
2021
EDUCATION
Juris Doctor (J.D.), University of Toronto, 2020
M.A. (Econ.), University of Toronto, 2020
B.A. (I.R. & Econ.), University of Toronto, 2016
More About Adil Abdulla
Practice Areas
- Class Actions
- Franchise, Licensing and Distribution Litigation and Arbitration
- General Commercial Litigation
Professional Associations
- Canadian Bar Association
- Law Society of Ontario
- Canadian Franchise Association
- International Franchise Association
- Executive committee member (2020-2024), Ontario Bar Association Civil Litigation Section
- Executive committee member (2020-2024), Ontario Bar Association Class Actions Section
- Executive committee member (2020-2023), Ontario Bar Association Information Technology & Intellectual Property Section
- Executive committee member (2021-2022), Ontario Bar Association Young Lawyers Division
- Executive committee member (2019-2021), Ontario Bar Association Students Section
- Vice Chair, Demand Inclusion
- Treasurer and Director, West Scarborough Community Legal Services
- Volunteer, Pro Bono Ontario
- Member, Canadian Muslim Lawyers Association
- Member, South Asian Bar Association
- Member, The Advocates’ Society
Selected Works
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- “Optimal Enforcement of Abuse of Dominance: The Case for a Private Cause of Action” (2023) Can Competition L Rev (forthcoming) (co-written with Julie Rosenthal and Arash Rouhi)
- “A Justice as Fairness Framework for a Revised Efficiencies Defence” (2023) Can Competition L Rev (forthcoming) (co-written with Kenneth Jull)
- “Incomplete Justice: The Costs of Partial Indemnity” (2022) 38 Windsor Y B Access Just, 2022 CanLIIDocs 1376
- “The Limits of Case Management: A Review and Principled Approach to the Court’s General Management Powers” (2021) 16:2 The Canadian Class Action Review (co-written with Paul-Erik Veel and Angela Hou)
- “The Circumstances of Change: Understanding the Bedford/Carter Exceptions to Vertical Stare Decisis” (2020) 78:1 University of Toronto Faculty of Law Review 1
- “Correcting Corrections: Resolving Confusion over the Public Correction Requirement in the Ontario Securities Act” (2019) 62:3 Canadian Business Law Journal 310
Textbook Chapters
- Civil Procedure and Practice in Ontario, chapter on rule 53, 2021 CanLIIDocs 2046 (co-written with Paul-Erik Veel and Jessica Roher)
- Civil Procedure and Practice in Ontario, chapter on rule 17.06, 2021 CanLIIDocs 2004 (co-written with Paul-Erik Veel, Madison Robins, and Efua Gyan)
Blog Posts
- “Two Many Steps: What Is The Test For Establishing A Common Issue?” (2023)
- “Who You Gonna Call? Not Former Executives” (2023) (co-written with Denna Jalili)
- “Dispensing Justice: Spina v. Shoppers Drug Mart” (2023) (co-written with Liisa Kaarid)
- “Now We Know It Works: A New Special Advantage for Selection Patents” (2022)
- “Culture Shocks of Joining the Plaintiff Bar” (2022)
- “Economic Duress” (2022) (co-written with John Sotos)
- “Reverse Class Actions: A New Frontier in Copyright Enforcement?” (2021)
- “AI Inventors: Do they Exist, and Does It Matter?” (2021)
- “Instructions to Spies: Are They Privileged?” (2021) (co-written with William McDowell)
- “The Battle Over TikTok” (2020)
Newsletters
- “OBA Civil Litigation Section Insider: Unconscious Bias” (2023)
- “OBA Civil Litigation Section Insider: Burnout” (2023)
- “OBA Civil Litigation Section Insider: Retired Judges” (2022)
- “OBA Civil Litigation Section Insider: Legal Organizations” (2022)
Panels
- Chair, “Avoiding Pitfalls in Solicitor-Client Privilege” (forthcoming in 2024)
- Co-Chair, “Avoiding Pitfalls in Common Interest Privilege” (2023)
- Co-Chair, “14th Annual Class Actions Colloquium” (2022)
- Chair, “Avoiding Pitfalls in Litigation Privilege” (2022)
- Co-Chair, “Divine Discoveries: Building a Great Case” (2022)
- Co-Chair, “Enhance Your Social Media Profile and How to Do It Ethically” (2021)
- Co-Chair, “Fireside Chat with Class Actions Bench and Bar” (2021)
Personal Statement
I am committed to helping clients get access to justice, especially in complex cases with power imbalances between the parties. In my spare time, I enjoy playing chess, coding, and learning about technology.