 
        Overview
David Bronskill is a partner in the Municipal and Land Development Group at Goodmans. His practice focuses on municipal law matters for private and public sector clients throughout Ontario, including planning, environmental and heritage approvals.
His clients include real estate development firms, educational institutions, shopping centres, restaurants, homeowners and ratepayer groups. He has also acted for numerous municipalities and public entities.
David regularly appears before municipal councils and at the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal, the Toronto Local Appeal Body and Ontario Municipal Board hearings. He has appeared before the Assessment Review Board, the Ontario Highway Transportation Board, the Divisional Court of Ontario and the Ontario Court of Appeal.
David is recognized by The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory and The Lexpert/ALM Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada for Property Development, and featured in the Lexpert Special Edition: Infrastructure. He is also recognized by Best Lawyers in Canada for Municipal Law and Real Estate Law and by Chambers Canada for Real Estate: Zoning/Land Use in Ontario. He was honoured as one of Lexpert’s Rising Stars: Leading Lawyers Under 40 in 2013, in 2019 received the BILD Chair’s Award of Merit, and in 2020 named "Lawyer of the Year" for Municipal Law by Best Lawyers in Canada.
Expertise
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Development Changes and Infrastructure Financing
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Expropriation
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Municipal and Land Development
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Real Estate
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Student Housing
Awards & Recognition
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Chambers Canada Band 1, Real Estate: Zoning/Land Use Ontario 2026
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Best Lawyers in Canada Recognized, Municipal Law, Real Estate Law 2026
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Chambers Canada Band 1, Real Estate: Zoning/Land Use Ontario 2025
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Lexpert Special Edition: Infrastructure Canada's Leading Infrastructure Lawyers 2025
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The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory Most Frequently Recommended, Property Development 2025
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Best Lawyers in Canada Recognized, Municipal Law, Real Estate Law 2025
Credentials
Professional Involvement
David is the past chair of the Trinity College Board of Trustees and a former chair of the Executive Committee of the Alumni Association of Trinity College. He is a former chair and president of the Toronto Humane Society (THS) and returned to the THS Board in 2019. He also served as secretary on the board for the Artscape Foundation. On Sunday mornings, David supervises the Law Society of Ontario’s Feed the Hungry Program.
Credentials
- University of Toronto, LL.B., 2000
- University of Toronto, M.A., 1997, History
- University of Toronto, B.A., 1996, History and Political Science with high distinction
Professional Affiliations
- Law Society of Ontario
- Canadian Bar Association
- Ontario Bar Association
- Lambda Alpha International Land Economics Society
Call to Bar
- Ontario
Insights
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Municipal and Land DevelopmentMajor Transit Station Areas Approved – With Major ImplicationsOn August 15, 2025, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing (the “Minister”) approved, with modifications, several City of Toronto official plan amendments, simultaneously bringing into effect a…
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Municipal and Land DevelopmentTweaks to the Planning System Continue: Bill 17 Seeks to Expedite Housing and Transit ProjectsOn May 12, 2025, the Province of Ontario introduced the Protect Ontario by Building Faster and Smarter Act, 2025, also known as Bill 17, the provincial government’s first suite of legislative…
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Municipal and Land DevelopmentToronto’s Growth Funding Exercise: Proposed Community Benefits Charge By-law, Development Charges By-law and Parkland Dedication Planning Instruments ReleasedOn April 12, 2022, the City of Toronto released a series of documents outlining staff’s proposed approach to the City’s first community benefits charge (CBC) by-law, a new development charges (DCs…
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Municipal and Land DevelopmentMore Homes For Everyone Act, 2022: A First Step to Address Housing Affordability?On March 30, 2022, the Ontario government introduced the More Homes For Everyone Act, 2022, also known as Bill 109, intended to implement certain recommendations from the Ontario Housing…
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Municipal and Land DevelopmentToronto Releases Draft Instruments to Implement Inclusionary ZoningOn Friday October 8, 2021, City of Toronto staff released draft official plan and zoning by-law amendments they intend to recommend to City Council to implement inclusionary zoning. The proposed…
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Municipal and Land DevelopmentToronto Unveils Proposed Approach to Inclusionary ZoningOn September 22, 2020, the City of Toronto’s Planning and Housing Committee endorsed for consultation purposes draft amendments to the City’s official plan and zoning by-law that would represent the…
News & Events
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Aging and HealthcareGoodmans Honoured Again with Top-Tier Recognition from Chambers and PartnersWe are delighted to announce Goodmans LLP continues to receive top-tier recognition from Chambers and Partners in the Chambers Canada 2026 Guide.Recognition from Chambers and Partners is based on…
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100+ Goodmans Lawyers Once Again Recognized in The Best Lawyers in Canada: 2026 EditionWe are delighted to announce Goodmans LLP has once again been recognized in the 2026 edition of The Best Lawyers in Canada with 106 lawyers featured across 45 practice areas.Congratulations to Neill…
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Municipal and Land DevelopmentDavid Bronskill Quoted in “Bill 17 - Implications on Development of Housing in Ontario”, UrbanizeGoodmans Partner David Bronskill shares his insights in a recent article in Urbanize, entitled "Bill 17 - Implications on development of housing in Ontario"."Some of these provisions may not reduce…