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Giovanni C. Giuga

(Hon.) B.A., M.A., J.D. Lawyer

Called To Bar

2023

Education

  • University of Ottawa, J.D. 2022
  • McGill University, M.A., 2019
  • Wilfrid Laurier University, (Hons.) B.A., 2017

Practice Areas

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Guelph Office T. 519-837-2100 x327 F: 519-837-1617

Giovanni practices exclusively in the Municipal and Planning Law Practice Group. He acts for homeowners, neighbours, businesses, developers, farmers, and other private sector clients navigating the municipal and planning law landscape. He has experience assisting clients as they navigate Ontario’s building code regulatory environment, Line Fences Act disputes, consents, severances, minor variances, and zoning by-law and official plan amendments. 

Giovanni also represents municipalities which includes the review and drafting of by-laws and various agreements, which includes site plan and subdivision agreements, privacy and freedom of information requests, heritage matters, aggregate, and drainage issues (water and wastewater).

He has appeared before the Ontario Land Tribunal and the Ontario Court of Justice.

Giovanni has been published in AMCTO’s Municipal Monitor, Lawyer's Daily (now Law360), Ottawa Law Review Blog (peer reviewed), and co-authored two edited book chapters. He also presented a paper at the Ottawa Law Review’s inaugural Emilio Binavince Student Research Colloquium on affordable housing reforms through municipal legal policy.

Starting in January 2025, Giovanni teaches a third-year undergraduate course at Wilfrid Laurier University on Municipal Law and Politics in Ontario with Eric Davis.  

Prior to being called to the Bar of Ontario, Giovanni articled and summered at a national law firm prior to joining SV Law. He received his law degree from the University of Ottawa. He also obtained his graduate degree from McGill University and his undergraduate degree from Wilfrid Laurier University in Political Science. In 2022, Giovanni also completed the Canadian Securities Course. 

Giovanni brings an awareness of issues facing rural Ontario after being born and raised in the Municipality of Grey Highlands. In his spare time, you can find him hiking, camping, playing squash, collecting records, staying up to date on Canadian politics, or checking out the Waterloo Region’s local history archives at the Kitchener Public Library.  

Outside the practice of law, Giovanni is an active member of the Waterloo Region community. In 2025, he was elected as a Trustee for the Waterloo Region Law Association for a 2 year term. He currently sits as a board member for FRIENDS of the Waterloo Region Museum, Doon Pioneer Park Community Association (as well as in the Vice President position), SPECTRUM: Waterloo Region’s Rainbow Community Space, and Bridges to Belonging. He also sat on the inaugural (and subsequent) Community Change Committee for the Region of Waterloo’s Upstream Fund. Giovanni continues to sit on the Waterloo Region Community Foundation’s Committee for the Racial Equity Fund.

 

Awards & Accolades

  • (Co-Recipient) Clawbies Award – Best Student Projects, Canadian Law Blog Awards, 2020 (Inter Alia Editorial Board Member)
  • (Co-Recipient) Public Interest Fellowship, University of Ottawa, 2020
  • (Co-Recipient) Common Law Summer Student Fellowship, University of Ottawa, 2020
  • Jack and Mary Harper Memorial Scholarship, Wilfrid Laurier University, 2016
  • Arts Undergraduate Society (AUS) Co-Op Award, Wilfrid Laurier University, 2016
  • Dean’s Honour List, Wilfrid Laurier University, 2014-2016
  • Doug and Joyce Lorimer Award, Wilfrid Laurier University, 2016

Articles or Publications:

Eric Davis & Giovanni Giuga, “Gaming a Municipal Election: The Problem with Registered Third-Party Corporations,” AMCTO Municipal Monitor (Q3 2024) 7, online: (pdf) <davisportal.ca/amcto/q3-2024?page=8>.

Michelle Liu, Brittany Singh & Giovanni Giuga, "Pro-Pronouns: Gender Identities on Social Media, Video Conferencing, and Learning Platforms" in Nasma Ahmed, Suzie Dunn & Florian Martin-Bariteau, eds, Can't Compute: Moving Towards an Equitable Digital World, (June 2023).

Giovanni Giuga, "Starving Off Copyright Trolls: An Approach to Non-Commercial Statutory Damages Reform" (24 July 2022), online (blog): Ottawa Law Review Blog <rdo-olr.org/2022/starving-off-copyright-trolls-an-approach-to-non-commercial-statutory-damages-reform/>.

Giovanni Giuga & Michael Piaseczny, "Shareholder activism during COVID-19: Bump in the road" The Lawyer's Daily (30 May 2022), online: <www.thelawyersdaily.ca/articles/3663>.

Giovanni Giuga & Michael Piaseczny, "Shareholder activism during COVID-19: Setting the stage" The Lawyer's Daily (26 May 2022), online: <www.thelawyersdaily.ca/articles/36564/>.

Giovanni Giuga, "A Case for a Refundable Federal Political Contributions Tax Credit" (12 April 2021), online (blog): Ottawa Law Review Blog <rdo-olr.org/2021/a-case-for-a-refundable-federal-political-contributions-tax-credit/>.

Giovanni Giuga & Michael J Piaseczny, “Child access during COVID-19’s first wave in Ribeiro v. Wright: Other variables”, The Lawyer’s Daily (11 January 2021), online: <www.thelawyersdaily.ca/articles/23464>. 

Giovanni Giuga & Michael J Piaseczny, “Child access during COVID-19’s first wave in Ribeiro v. Wright: Expansion and restriction”, The Lawyer’s Daily (22 December 2020), online: <www.thelawyersdaily.ca/articles/23328>. 

Wolfgang Alschner et al, “Plain Language: Automatic Readability Assessment of Statutes” in Serena Villata, Jakub Harašta, Petr Křemen, eds, Legal Knowledge and Information Systems - Jurix 2020:  The Thirty-third Annual Conference Brno, Czech Republic, December 9–11, 2020, (Washington DC: IOS Press, 2020) 207.

Michael J Piaseczny & Giovanni C Giuga, “Why it’s Unlikely that a Ruth Bader Ginsburg – Amy Coney Barrett Scenario Will Happen in Canada” (26 October 2020), online (blog): Ottawa Law Review Blog <rdo-olr.org/en/2020/why-its-unlikely-that-a-ruth-bader-ginsburg-amy-coney-barrett-scenario-will-happen-in-canada/>. 

Memberships & Professional Appointments

  • Member, Law Society of Ontario
  • Member, Waterloo Region Law Association
  • Member, Wellington Law Association
  • Member, Grey Bruce Home Builders & Trade Association 
  • Member, South Grey Chamber of Commerce

Community Involvement

  • Member, Osgoode Legal History Society, 2025 – Present
  • Trustee, Waterloo Region Law Association, 2025 – Present (2 year term) 
  • Board Member and Vice President, Doon Pioneer Park Community Association, 2024 – Present
  • Board Member, Friends of the Waterloo Region Museum, 2024 – Present
  • Member, Waterloo Historical Society, 2023 - Present
  • Board Member, SPECTRUM: Waterloo Region’s Rainbow Community Space, 2022 – Present
  • Board Member, Bridges to Belonging Waterloo Region, 2022 – Present
  • Committee Member, Waterloo Region Community Foundation’s Racial Equity Fund, 2023 – Present (3 year term) 
  • Region of Waterloo’s Community Change Committee for the Upstream Fund, Committee Member, 2022-2023

Blog Posts

Tribunals, Boards, & Levels of Court

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Ontario Court of Justice 

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