Keynote Speaker

Thomas Deans Ph.D., Author, Every Family's Business

Tom is also the president of Détente Financial Corp., which specializes in teaching business wealth protection strategies to advisors and business owners. By combining humor and his experience as president of a family-owned multi-national corporation for almost a decade, Tom has shown thousands of business owners how to protect the retained earnings in their businesses. Tom’s best-selling book, Every Family’s Business provides the framework for his public lectures and seminars. His book reveals 12 questions that have guided the financial fortunes of his family who have founded, operated and sold their businesses for a combined value exceeding $100 million.

Tom has worked in banking and in government relations, has been the president of a railway and holds patents. Deans earned a BA from Mount Allison University, a MA from McMaster University and a Ph.D. from the University of Warwick (England). Tom has been featured in numerous magazines and journals including Profit, Money Sense and Investment Executive. A frequent guest on CBC, MoneyLine and BNN, Tom is a highly sought after international public speaker on succession planning, wealth management and philanthropic giving.


Additional Speakers (in order of speaking)

Eric Walker, Partner, Cookson Walker Consulting

Eric has a wide range of experience in the insurance industry in Canada.  In an advisory capacity, he has an established background in providing consulting advice to insurance brokers and other insurance entities over the past 25 years. He is part of an “Insurance Brokers Group” of consultants who provide a broad range of specialty services in accounting, management, financial, mergers and acquisitions, succession planning, valuations, tax, sales and regulatory matters. In addition, he provides advice and assistance to major Canadian insurers.

He has been active in providing due diligence services on behalf of public insurance brokers and Canadian insurers whose acquisition strategies contributed to the consolidation of the brokerage sector of the insurance industry.  His experience includes providing advice for commercial disputes, business valuations and forensic/fraud investigations. He has provided expert testimony on many occasions before Discipline and Complaints Committee hearings conducted by the Registered Insurance Brokers of Ontario, in Alternative Dispute Resolution proceedings and at trial.

Eric conducts seminar presentations for insurance companies and insurance industry groups and has conducted industry surveys on operations, personal lines efficiency, mergers and acquisitions, succession planning and compensation in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia and Quebec. He has been an advisor to the Ontario regulatory body governing insurance brokers in the Province of Ontario and is the resident advisor to two elite groups of brokers located across Canada.  He has been a trustee under the Registered Insurance Broker Act in Ontario and has assisted and advised two international accounting firms in administering Receiverships in and outside of the Province of Ontario.

 

Rick Morris, Director, Broker Financial Solutions, Intact Insurance Company

Rick joined Intact Insurance (formerly ING Insurance) in March 2008 as Director of Broker Financial Solutions. In this role, Rick manages Intact Insurance’s broker financing activities across Ontario, and since joining the Broker Financial Solutions team he has provided funding to a number of brokers throughout the region to assist them with their growth, succession and acquisition objectives.

Prior to joining Intact Insurance, Rick spent over six years with the Bank of Montreal working in both corporate strategy and corporate lending functions. Rick holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons.) degree from Memorial University of Newfoundland and an MBA from the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management.

Bryan Yetman, President-Elect, Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario

Bryan is the manager of special lines for First Durham Insurance & Financial. He is also the incoming President-Elect on the Board of Directors for the Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario.

 

Stephen C. Borlak, Owner and Operator, Borlak Law Offices

Since 1985, (in addition to his general corporate-commercial practice) Steve has chosen to focus his practice by providing extensive and specialized commercial assistance to brokers, producers and insurance companies in the Property and Casualty Insurance industry. As a result, he is recognized as a prominent provider of such services to the industry. As an owner-operator, he prides himself on being sensitive to the needs of most brokers, and is keenly aware of the constantly shifting dynamics affecting the industry. Steve has written many industry-specific articles and has been involved in and produced numerous seminars.

Steve obtained his Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Science (Chemistry) from the University of Western Ontario Law School in 1979 and 1976, respectively.  He received his initial training from a downtown law firm, articled with Borden & Elliot from 1979-1980 (now known as Borden Ladner Gervais LLP) and worked in that firm as an associate after his call to the Bar in 1981.