Lee Villar, Owner of Nelson, Watson PC

Born in Bath, England, Lee came to Canada with his parents when he was 10 and at 15 moved to Guelph, Ontario. Since then he has always considered Guelph his home. 

After attending Osgoode Hall Law School, Lee was called to the Bar in 1983. Lee worked in downtown Toronto for six years before making the decision to return to his hometown and practice in Guelph. Next to marrying his wife, it was the smartest move of his life. Lee joined Nelson, Watson LLP in 1992, and remains its current owner. 

While Lee has many interests including travel, wine and food, Lee's real passion is golf. Fortunately his wife shares his enthusiasm and they love to combine all these activities by travelling to fun golf destinations.

Message from Lee:

"In the practice of law I have tried to follow two basic rules. First: solve the problem, not add to it. My mentor when I started to practice always referred to himself not as a lawyer but as a problem solver. I have always followed that mantra and focus on determining the possible solutions to whatever the problem might be. I apply this philosophy to all my clients although if a fight is necessary I am quite prepared and willing as I have appeared in every level of trial court as well as most of the appellate courts.

Second: help people move forward with their lives. Whether someone is buying a home, developing a business or separating from their spouse, I want clients to look to the future and not be stuck in the quicksand of legal disputes. It means moving forward looking for solutions not grudge matches. A reasonable and cost effective solution requires a practical and common-sense approach. Battling over who is right does not always advance the interest of the client; it only serves to satisfy the ego of the lawyer and that is not what I call servicing the client.

I have extensive advocacy experience, have practiced litigation for over 25 years and I share that experience consulting on more complex litigation files handled in our office. I now practice primarily in transactional work including providing corporate and commercial legal services to a number of local business people and their business interests, as well as individual families."