Stephen Gleave

Early life

As a young man, Stephen Gleave studied law at Queens University in Kingston, Ontario, where he earned an LL.B., before moving on to pursue graduate work at Oxford University in Oxford, Great Britain. After completing his formal education, Gleave was admitted to the Canadian Bar Association and the Law Society of Ontario.

Also a farmer and gardener, he lives on the Gleave family farm in Ancaster, where he raises livestock and bees and tends to his orchards.

Career

Upon entering the working world, Stephen Gleave joined Hicks Morely, a notable Canadian law firm. There, found success in various avenues of the law, including but not limited to shareholder disagreements, restrictive covenants, and executive compensation issues. In the past, he has secured injunctions in sensitive employment disputes and litigated challenging shareholder cases involving allegations of improper financial conduct. He also defended major institutions in executive compensation disputes and achieved the dismissal of large-scale class actions involving employee benefits. In the corporate sphere, Gleave distinguished himself by arguing cases that helped clarify the legal framework surrounding earn-out provisions and claims of commercial oppression. He was eventually named a partner with the firm.

In 2019, Stephen Gleave left Hicks Morley after 35 years, accepting a role as partner at DLA Piper (Canada) LLP. He currently works out of their Toronto offices, with increased representation of clients and presence in the firm’s Calgary and Edmonton offices.

Over the course of his career, Gleave has successfully completed over 300 labour and commercial arbitrations, 50 labour and civil injunctions, and 50 trials. He has been named to The Best Lawyers in Canada guide, Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory, and The Best Lawyers Global Business list in acknowledgment for his many legal accomplishments, and he is often asked to speak at legal conferences and asked for comment on legal issues by media outlets.

Although his major concentration is in the realms of labour, employment, and commercial law, Stephen Gleave has also become a widely sought-after authority in the forensic examination of digital media devices, including smartphones, tablets, laptops, and desktop computers. He studies the collection, preservation, and integrity of digital evidence found on such devices—a skill that has become increasingly valuable in the legal profession as the world has become more digitally integrated. Gleave now teaches seminars on this subject to other lawyers.

Beyond his legal career, Stephen Gleave is a competitive runner, an avid fly fisherman, and, of late, a farm owner and operator, having recently purchased a hundred-acre plot of land in Ancaster, Ontario. On his working farm, he raises Scottish Highland cattle and honeybees, as well as plum, apple, pear, and cherry trees. He also preserves and tends to the old-growth forests of Carolinian trees, Kentucky coffee trees, and tulip trees located on the property. 

Net Worth

Stephen Gleave’s net worth is not a matter of public record.