General Meeting - Speaker: Robin-Lee Norris

Topic: Communication and Future Planning for Seniors

Robin-Lee Norris, LLP, is a native of Guelph.  She graduated from John F. Ross CVI and went on to complete an undergraduate degree in sociology at the University of Guelph and her law degree at Osgoode Hall Law School.  Robin-Lee was called to the Ontario Bar in 1982 and practiced law with the Guelph law firm of Kearns, McKinnon until 2003, taking a year off in 1985 to work on an MBA in Adelaide, Australia thanks to a scholarship through Rotary.  Kearns McKinnon merged with the national law firm of Miller Thomson LLP in 2003 and Robin-Lee continued with Miller Thomson LLP until her retirement from the practice of law in 2018.  She is married to David Halls and is an avid curler, scuba diver, and hiker.

Together, Robin-Lee and David have raised over $60,000 for our local shelter for abused women through three challenging 5-day hikes in Machu Picchu, Peru, the mountains in Iceland and last December in the Sahara Desert in Morocco.

Today she teaches a business law course to undergraduates at Ivey Business School at Western University and runs a consulting business focused on mediation and succession planning.  Robin-Lee assists families work through the often emotional and divisive minefields triggered by the transfer of wealth, including businesses, farms, and cottages, from one generation to the next.  She will be speaking about the role of communication and transparency in the planning process, along with providing tips and tools you can use to avoid the minefields.