Osgoode Hall Law School Professor Poonam Puri has been awarded what many consider the “Pulitzer Prize” of legal writing.

Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey has named Puri the recipient of the David W. Mundell Medal in an announcement made on Oct. 8. Established in 1986 by former attorney general Ian Scott, the award recognizes a legal writer whose literary craftsmanship and clarity of expression work together to make ideas come alive. It honours the memory of David Walter Mundell, a renowned constitutional lawyer and the first director of the Ministry of the Attorney General’s Constitutional Law Branch.

Puri was chosen for the honour on the recommendation of a selection committee chaired by George Strathy, the chief justice of Ontario.

“Professor Puri’s writing has left an influential mark in the fields of financial market regulation, corporate governance and business law,” noted Strathy. “She deftly tackles these complex areas to make her legal writing widely accessible to a broad range of audiences, including legal professionals, academics and policy-makers. Professor Puri brings vision and clarity to pressing public policy discussions on issues such as corporate responsibility and diversity.”

A world-leading expert in corporate governance, corporate law and securities regulation, Puri’s groundbreaking scholarship skillfully blends theoretical, empirical and policy frameworks to distill complex ideas into clear, nuanced, practical and innovative policy solutions.

Her vision, interdisciplinary approach and broad-based community engagement lends strength to her scholarship, making her a guiding light in her fields. Her scholarship has earned her the respect of her peers. 

Despite the pandemic, 2021 has been a banner year for Puri. Less than a month ago, she was awarded the Royal Society of Canada’s Yvan Allaire Medal for excellence in contributions to the governance of public and private institutions in Canada. Earlier this year, she was awarded the Law Society Medal for public service in the highest ideals of the legal profession. Puri’s wide-reaching expertise and impact were also recognized in 2015 and again in 2017, when she was named one of the top 25 lawyers in Canada by Canadian Lawyer magazine. A beloved professor, she is the recipient of two Osgoode teaching awards, among many other recognitions. Prior to joining Osgoode in 1997 at the age of 25, Puri practised at leading law firms in Canada and the U.S.  She is a graduate of the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law and Harvard Law School.