Juris Doctor (JD)
Tax Lawyers
Cris Best
BA, JD, LLM (Tax)
Senior Tax Lawyer
Juris Doctor (JD)
Masters in Tax Law (LLM)
CPA In-Depth Tax Program (IDTP)
Cris Best has been practicing Tax Law for approximately 15 years. He has a Bachelor Degree (BA) from Simon Fraser University and a Juris Doctor (JD) and Masters in Tax Law (LLM) from Osgoode Hall Law School. He has also completed the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA) In-Depth Tax Program (IDTP).
Cris has practiced tax law his entire career, starting with a tax law firm his second year of law school. He finished all but one of the available Tax Law courses while completing his Juris Doctor at Osgoode Hall Law School.
Cris has appeared before the Tax Court of Canada, Federal Court of Appeal and provincial courts. He lead the legal practice for multiple tax firms including as Director of Objections & Appeals at Canada’s largest independent Scientific Research & Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax consulting firm. He then co-founded and served as Legal Counsel for a SR&ED tax consulting firm.
Cris believes in ensuring taxpayers are treated according to the government’s published standards including CRA’s Taxpayer Bill of Rights. Accordingly, he was one of the lawyers who assisted Mr. Irvin Leroux pro-bono in his struggle to hold CRA to a duty of care obligation to taxpayers.
He completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science at Simon Fraser University, receiving multiple scholarships for high academic achievement.
Prior to his legal career Cris was a Software Developer & Systems Analyst for a large multi-national corporation.
Cris was born and raised in Newfoundland.
Daniyal Ahmad
HBSc, JD
Tax Lawyer
Juris Doctor (JD)
Honours Bachelor of Science (HBSc)
Daniyal Ahmad is an Associate Lawyer at SpenceDrake Tax Law. He has a Juris Doctor (JD) from Queen’s University and a Honours Bachelor of Science (HBSc) with Distinction from the University of Toronto with minors in Mathematics and Applied Statistics.
Daniyal completed his articling term at SpenceDrake Tax Law.
During his legal studies, Daniyal completed courses in the law of Individual and Corporate Taxation, International Taxation and Trusts.
During his undergraduate studies Daniyal was a Teaching Assistant for courses in Differential & Integral Calculus and Calculus for Life Sciences.
Daniyal served as an executive for the Queen’s University Tax Law Society. He also worked for the Queen’s University Legal Aid Clinic, was a member of the Law Student Society as the Vice President of Finance, editor for the Queen’s Law Journal and part of the executive team for the Queen’s Muslim Law Students Association.
Caroline McPhail
BA, MSc, JD
Tax Lawyer
Juris Doctor (JD)
Bachelor of Arts (BA)
Master of Museum Studies (MSc)
Caroline McPhail is an Associate Lawyer at SpenceDrake Tax Law. She has a Juris Doctor (JD) from the University of Toronto, a Bachelor of Arts (BA) from the University of Alberta and a Masters of Museum Studies (MSc) from the UK’s University of Leicester.
Caroline completed her articling term at another Toronto Tax Law firm prior to joining SpenceDrake.
While completing her Juris Doctor (JD) at the University of Toronto, Caroline studied both individual and corporate taxation, corporate law, trusts, and real estate law.
While at U of T, Caroline volunteered for Artists Legal Advice Services, a clinic providing summary legal advice to artists and creators living in Ontario.
During her time in the United Kingdom, Caroline also had the opportunity to work in the collections departments and archives of several heritage organizations, including the National Theatre, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and Shakespeare’s Globe Library and Archive.
Caroline was born and raised in Manitoba.
Brandy Sommer Wood
Legal Assistant
Brandy is a Legal Assistant at SpenceDrake Tax Law. She assists with administrative and legal support matters. She is dedicated to helping clients navigate their often stressful tax disputes. With an empathetic and attentive nature, she ensures our clients are supported.
Tammy Jian, LLB, LLM
Law Student
Juris Doctor (JD) 2026
Master of Laws (LLM)
Bachelor of Laws (LLB)
Tammy is a student at Osgoode Hall Law School currently completing her third and final year of the Juris Doctor program. She also has a Master of Laws from Case Western University in the United States. She began her legal studies with the East China University of Political Science and Law. She graduated with a specialization in Intellectual Property Law and was awarded a scholarship to study in the US.
