Marie-Claude Martel

I have been working with the founding partners of Forseti for over 15 years. I myself became a partner at Forseti in 2022. Over time, we have developed a chemistry and an efficient working method based on the strengths of each team member. Teamwork is definitely one of our firm’s greatest strengths.

personally stand out for the rigour of my analyses, my in-depth knowledge of each of the cases on which I work, my attention to detail, my integrity, my creativity and my frankness. I enjoy the challenge of developing strategies to achieve our clients’ goals.

I place great importance on alternative dispute resolution methods and have specialized in these areas in during my practice, being an accredited arbitrator and mediator. These are additional tools in my kit to help me properly guide our clients towards the mode of settlement that best suits their needs while being competent to act in each of these forums. I have appeared before most of the courts in Quebec, including the Court of Appeal of Quebec, and have acted as counsel in major arbitrations and mediations and as an arbitrator in other cases.

Professional involvement and recognition

• Lecturer in conventional arbitration at the master’s program in alternative dispute resolution at the Université de Sherbrooke (2016 to present)
• Recipient of the Women in Law Award in the Arbitration/Canada category from Lawyer Monthly magazine (August 2021 to 2025)
• Member of the Institut de Médiation et d’Arbitrage du Québec (IMAQ); more specifically, member of the ADRIC’s arbitration committee and national commercial arbitration rules review committee (2012 to 2015)
• Chair of the Table sectorielle Arbitrage de l’IMAQ (2020 to date)
• Founder of the Forum des arbitres de l’IMAQ (2020)
• Member of the Canadian Bar Association and member of the Executive Committee of the ADR Section of the Quebec Division of the CBA (2018 to present)
• Lecturer in contract law at the Université de Sherbrooke’s bachelor of law program (W2011 and W2014)
• Representative of the Comité d’arbitrage de l’IMAQ who took part in the presentation of the IMAQ’s brief to the Commission des Institutions, at the National Assembly, as part of the hearings on Bill 28 to establish the new Code of Civil Procedure (September 10, 2013)

Representative mandates

• I represented a real estate developer in a major construction and design defect case, dealing with numerous technical experts and multiple opposing parties.
• I have litigated precedent-setting cases, including regarding substitution and reduction of the basis of multi-million dollar legal construction mortgages.
• I represented an individual in a contract fraud dispute involving over $1 million.
• I have served as an arbitrator and mediator in contractual disputes, construction matters, shareholder disputes, and condominium law cases.​
• I have acted in several cases that have set precedent in arbitration law.​

PUBLICATIONS AND CONFERENCES

• Speaker – 50 Shades of Clauses… to Advance Your Case – Tactical Toolbox Series, Institute of Mediation and Arbitration of Québec (June 11, 2026).
• Instructor – Incident Management Arbitration – Institute of Mediation and Arbitration of Québec (December 10, 2025).
• Panelist – Innovations in ADR – Canadian Bar Association (December 9, 2025).
• Speaker – Drafting Clauses to Advance Your Case – Tactical Toolbox Series, Institute of Mediation and Arbitration of Québec (December 4, 2025).
• Panelist – Practical Tips for Launching an Arbitration Practice – Canadian Bar Association (May 30, 2025).
• Panelist – Everything You Always Wanted to Know About ADR and Construction… But Were Afraid to Ask – Open Forum Conference, Strategic Construction Issues Conference (November 5, 2024).
• Speaker – Third Parties in Arbitration: Current Landscape and Recent Case Law – Arbitrators’ Forum, Institute of Mediation and Arbitration of Québec (September 26, 2024).
• Panelist – Facilitating Settlement in International Arbitration – International Chamber of Commerce (April 9, 2024).
• Panelist – Choosing an Arbitral Procedure That Suits Your Case – Canadian Bar Association, Construction and Infrastructure Section (September 18, 2023).
• Panelist – Arbitration Matters from Coast to Coast: What’s New? – CanArb Week 2022.
• Panelist – Effective Arbitration in 2022 and Beyond – CanArb Week 2022.
• Contributor – Arbitration Matters blog (arbitrationmatters.com), reviewing Canadian arbitration case law (2021–present).
• Moderator – Spotlight on Med-Arb! – Canadian Bar Association (Québec Branch), ADR Section (February 17, 2021).
• Panelist – ADR to the Rescue! – Canadian Bar Association (Québec Branch), ADR Section (September 28, 2020).
• Panelist – IAMC Annual Conference 2018: ADR in the Service of Justice – Next Generation of Arbitration (November 21–23, 2018).
• Panelist – Commercial Arbitration Conference, Institute of Mediation and Arbitration of Québec Arbitration Committee: How Can Commercial Arbitration Be Made More Cost-Effective and Efficient? (May 24, 2013).
• Research Paper – How Do Québec Courts Give Effect to the Ideals of Consensual Arbitration? (2011) – Université de Sherbrooke.

What you should know about me