Edona Vila is a trusted advisor to national and multinational companies navigating complex disputes and regulatory challenges in Canada. Her practice spans domestic and cross-border matters covering a range of industries, including automotive, transportation, life sciences, technology, retail, consumer products and energy.
Edona leads a robust product law practice, defending clients in high-stakes disputes—ranging from individual claims and class proceedings to arbitrations—and advising on regulatory compliance and enforcement throughout the product lifecycle. She represents some of the world's largest companies in insured and non-insured matters, including in respect of claims involving consumer products, medical devices, drugs, automotive products, as well as heavy machinery product failures occurring in plants and critical infrastructure sites including manufacturing, transportation, and nuclear generation facilities. She appears at all levels of court in Ontario and manages litigation across Canada.
In her product regulatory practice, Edona provides strategic guidance to companies entering or operating in the Canadian market, including on product compliance, labelling, warnings, warranties, recalls and responding to enforcement action. Edona has experience advising on matters before Canada's key regulators, including Health Canada, Transport Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, and Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada. Edona's products practice is also focussed on advising on emerging technologies including internet of things, artificial intelligence and automated systems. Edona is often retained to align Canadian regulatory strategies with global operations, ensuring consistency across jurisdictions including the US, UK, EU, Latin America and Asia.
Edona is recognized by Chambers, Lexpert, and Lexology (formerly Who's Who Legal) for her expertise in litigation, product liability, product regulatory and commercial insurance. In 2024 and 2025, she was the only Canadian common law lawyer honoured by the Lexology Client Choice Awards for product liability litigation—an international recognition driven exclusively through corporate counsel nominations and highlighting Edona's exceptional client care and legal expertise.
With a background in innovation management and grounded in her product law expertise, Edona is a thought leader on the responsible adoption of emerging technologies in the legal profession, including artificial intelligence. She has served on BLG's Innovation Thought Leadership Committee and Artificial Intelligence Focus Group. She has also served as co-chair of five national programs with The Advocates Society helping to ready lawyers for the responsible adoption of AI.
Edona is a passionate contributor to Canada's tech ecosystem through board and advisory roles with AIoT Canada and the Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network. In 2025, Edona was appointed to serve on the Board of the Ontario Centre of Innovation, which supports commercialization and economic growth in Ontario in key sectors such as life sciences, automotive, technology and energy.
Internationally, Edona is an Officer of the Product Law & Advertising Committee of the International Bar Association and holds leadership roles with the Drug & Device Committee of the Defence Research Institute and the Products Litigation Committee of the American Bar Association.
Experience
- Representing drug manufacturers related to pharmaceutical product litigation as a result of alleged adverse reactions.
- Acting as litigation counsel for automobile manufacturers alleging product defects.
- Representing medical device manufacturer in claims involving design manufacturing, and marketing defects.
- Representing manufacturers in fire loss claims related to alleged product defects.
- Acting as litigation counsel in the defence of professional negligence and breach of contract claims against engineers, architects, and other design professionals.
- Acting as litigation counsel for public institutions, including municipalities, in relation to infrastructure and professional negligence disputes.
- Defending insurers in litigation arising from denials of long term and short term disability benefits.
- Representing insurers and insureds on subrogated and non-subrogated claims.
- Representing drug manufacturers related to pharmaceutical product litigation as a result of alleged adverse reactions.
- Acting as litigation counsel for automobile manufacturers alleging product defects.
- Representing medical device manufacturer in claims involving design manufacturing, and marketing defects.
- Representing manufacturers in fire loss claims related to alleged product defects.
- Acting as litigation counsel in the defence of professional negligence and breach of contract claims against engineers, architects, and other design professionals.
- Acting as litigation counsel for public institutions, including municipalities, in relation to infrastructure and professional negligence disputes.
- Defending insurers in litigation arising from denials of long term and short term disability benefits.
- Representing insurers and insureds on subrogated and non-subrogated claims.
