Dionysios Rossi

Partner

Vancouver
DRossi@blg.com
604.640.4110
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Dionysios is the Regional Group Manager for Specialized Disputes in the Vancouver office of BLG, and practices primarily in the areas of transportation & shipping law, environmental law, and energy law. He is widely recognized as a leading advocate in these fields.

Dionysios has acted as counsel before the Federal Court and the Federal Court of Appeal, all levels of court in British Columbia and before a number of administrative tribunals.

After graduating from the Faculty of Law at the University of British Columbia, he served as a judicial law clerk to several justices of the British Columbia Supreme Court.

Testimonials

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Experience

  • Overview

    • Counsel to shipping and transportation clients in dispute-related matters (vessel arrest and sale, cargo arrest, casualty incidents, spill response, regulatory investigations, insolvency proceedings, blockade injunctions and judicial reviews); transactional matters (the negotiation of charterparty agreements, contracts of affreightment, terminal services agreements, tug service agreements, confidential railway contracts, and trucking contracts); and regulatory matters (permits, licenses, authorizations).
    • Counsel to major project proponents (including TransLink, Woodfibre LNG, Ridley Terminals, B.C. Hydro, Petronas, and Apache Corporation) on matters involving environmental assessments, regulatory approvals, and the allocation of environmental risks and liabilities in infrastructure projects.
    • Counsel on a wide range of environmental law matters, including: the environmental assessment process (federal and provincial), civil cost-recovery proceedings, the contractual allocation of environmental risks and liabilities, pollution-related matters (air, water and soil), spills, and regulatory compliance and enforcement (including criminal prosecutions).
    • Counsel to energy industry clients in proceedings before the National Energy Board (now the Canada Energy Regulator), the British Columbia Oil and Gas Commission, the British Columbia Oil and Gas Appeal Tribunal, the British Columbia Utilities Commission, and the British Columbia Surface Rights Board.

Beyond Our Walls

Professional Involvement

  • Chair, National Maritime Law Section, Canadian Bar Association
  • Director and Chair, Environment Committee, Canadian Maritime Law Association
  • Member, Canadian Bar Association
  • Member, Law Society of British Columbia
  • Member, Vancouver Bar Association
  • Past chair and director, Maritime Law subsection, Canadian Bar Association (B.C. Branch)
  • Past director, Environmental Law subsection, Canadian Bar Association (B.C. Branch)
  • Past director, Canadian Transportation Lawyers Association
  • Past vice-president (communications) and former director, Environmental Managers Association
  • Past director, British Columbia Civil Liberties Association

Community Involvement

  • Supervising Lawyer, Pro-Bono Students of Canada & UBC Law Homeless ID Clinic
  • Volunteer, UBC Law School Moot Court judge
  • Volunteer, UBC Law School mentor program

Awards & Recognitions

  • Recognized by The Best Lawyers in Canada as the 2025 'Lawyer of the Year' for Maritime Law.
  • Recognized in the 2025 edition (and since 2018) of The Best Lawyers in Canada® (Environmental Law, Maritime Law, Railroad Law and Transportation Law).
  • Recognized in the 2025 edition (and since 2018) of Chambers Canada — Canada's Leading Lawyers for Business  (Environment and Transportation: Shipping).
  • Recognized in the 2025 edition of Chambers Global – The World's Leading Lawyers for Business (Environment).
  • Recognized in the 2025 edition (and since 2016) of The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory (Shipping and Maritime Law; Environmental Law, and Energy).
  • Recognized in the 2025 edition (and since 2018) of Benchmark Litigation — The definitive guide to litigation firms and attorneys in Canada as a “Litigation Star" (Energy, Environmental and Shipping).

Bar Admission & Education

  • British Columbia, 2007
  • LLB, University of British Columbia, 2005
  • MA (History), Simon Fraser University, 2004
  • BA (History), Simon Fraser University, 2001