Cybersecurity in Canada: A Guide to Best Practices, Planning, and Management, 2nd Edition

Imran Ahmad, LL.B., D.E.S.S. (Common Law), LL.M. is a partner and chair of the Technology and Innovation group at Norton Rose Fulbright LLP and specializes in the areas of cybersecurity, privacy and technology law. He has an active technology practice. He advises on licensing, outsourcing and service-provider arrangements, as well as on other commercial matters with respect to carrying on business over the internet, the cloud and the digital environment.

As part of his cybersecurity practice, Imran works closely with clients to develop and implement practical strategies related to cyber threats and data breaches. He advises on legal risk assessments, compliance, due diligence and risk allocation advice, security, and data breach incident preparedness and response. In addition, Imran acts as “breach counsel” in the event of a cybersecurity incident, such as a data or privacy breach. He also provides representation in the event of an investigation, an enforcement action or a litigation.

In his privacy law practice, he advises clients on compliance with all Canadian federal and provincial privacy and data management laws. He has a particular focus on cross-border data transfer issues and enterprise-wide governance programs related to privacy and information governance. Imran is an adjunct professor at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law, where he teaches cybersecurity and privacy law. He is also the former chair of the Executive Committee of the Ontario Bar Association’s Privacy and Access to Information Law Section. He is also the author of Canada's first legal incident preparation and response handbook titled Cybersecurity in Canada: A Guide to Best Practices, Planning, and Management, 2nd Edition (LexisNexis Canada Inc., March 2021). Prior to his call to the bar, Imran was a political advisor to Lieutenant-General the Honourable Roméo A. Dallaire (Ret'd), Senator, and clerked for Justice Edmond P. Blanchard at the Federal Court of Canada and Competition Tribunal in Ottawa.