OTTAWA, Ont. — Catherine A. Pawluch, from the national Canadian law firm of Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP, has become the first Canadian to be elected as president of the Transportation Lawyers Association in over 60 years.

Pawluch is the second woman to hold this post and the only person to serve both as president of the North America-wide TLA and the Canadian Transport Lawyers’ Association.

TLA is a professional association of lawyers who represent shipping and transportation industry interests – providers and users of all modes of transportation and logistics services, including air, rail, truck and maritime companies.

Founded in 1937, the Association is made up of nearly 800 lawyers in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. It is a legal resource network available to transportation companies across North America.

Pawluch has 20 years of experience advising clients in the transportation industry. She is a partner in the Gowlings’ Business Law Group and heads the firm’s Transportation National Practice Group. She has been recognized by Lexpert Canadian Legal Directory as a leading practitioner in the transportation area and is identified among the most frequently recommended transportation lawyers in Canada. She has served as the Editor of The Transportation Lawyer, a journal devoted to the latest legal developments affecting transportation which is co-published by the TLA. Pawluch served as President of the Canadian Transport Lawyers’ Association in 1992-93.