Sean Doussept
Deputy Registrar of Motor Vehicles
Registrar of Shortline Railroads
Carrier Sanctions and Investigations Office
Commercial Safety and Compliance Branch
Ministry of Transportation
With more than 30 years of experience at three levels of government, Sean is a leader who values both being a public servant and the work of the public service for the people of Ontario. Sean started his career in law enforcement and has always found his career path leaning towards those opportunities that support and engage people on a daily basis. In his current role as both Deputy Registrar of Motor Vehicles and the Registrar of Shortline Railroads with the Ministry of Transportation, Sean works with underperforming transportation businesses to influence change and balances economic realities with government priorities and critical safety requirements. The experience Sean brings to these roles allows the Ministry of Transportation to see contentious situations more holistically, apply the right resources and approaches and generate better outcomes for the government, the people of Ontario and the client being engaged.
Sean leads a large team in the Carrier Sanctions and Investigations Office that brings together expertise and experience that ranges from Registered Professional Engineers to former Transportation Enforcement Officers to deliver the oversight of more than 60 000 carrier currently registered in Ontario. This places Ontario as the number one jurisdiction in Canada for registered commercial carriers and constitutes 43% of all transportation companies domiciled in Canada. This reality allows Ontario to be a leader in road safety and to drive evolutionary change for the transportation sector to create efficiencies in the sector and to protect the people and the infrastructure in Ontario. Sean is always willing to meet with stakeholders and has made it a priority for his office and his team to be available to clients that want or need support to be a successful business in Ontario.
Sean is married and lives in the GTA and enjoys his time completing the many renovations around his home when not working for the province of Ontario.
Hylton Levy
Hylton Levy is a Senior Managing Director at B. Riley Farber. He co-leads the firm’s Restructuring practice. His practice focuses on corporate restructuring, financial advisory services, turnaround management, cross-border restructuring, and business strategy.
Working in restructuring and turnaround for over 17 years, Hylton has experience in representing corporate clients and their management, shareholders, board of directors, secured lenders, and other stakeholders in both formal and informal restructurings.
Hylton is regularly recommended for his entrepreneurial and business-like approach to complex business problems. He is engaged to assist clients in developing and executing on strategic, human, and operational plans for businesses in distress. Hylton has also negotiated, facilitated, and completed numerous business and asset divestitures throughout his career.
Hylton’s in-depth experience includes acting as: court-appointed receiver and interim receiver; monitor or financial advisor in Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act proceedings; monitor or financial advisor in Chapter 11 and 15 proceedings in the US; Licensed Insolvency Trustee for proposals under the Bankruptcy & Insolvency Act; Licensed Insolvency Trustee for corporate bankruptcy under the Bankruptcy & Insolvency Act.
His experience includes a wide range of industries including real estate, retail, distribution, pharmaceutical, industrial manufacturing, automotive parts, car dealerships, advertising, logistics, and consumer products.
Mike Proska
Mike is a former member of the highly recognized Peel Police Auto/Cargo Crime Unit. After policing he was President of a prominent Canadian investigation company for 26 years. He was a certified fraud examiner for over 20 years. Mike is currently proud to be a Director of Consulting, Investigations, Executive Protection and Commander of the National Cargo Crime Unit for GardaWorld. He has over 35 years investigative experience.
His private investigation experience includes:
Working for public and private companies and for Canadian and American government entities.
His cases have included working in-country in; Thailand, Malaysia, Czech Republic, Spain, Indonesia, England, Wales, Mexico and throughout USA.
Cases have included, murder, kidnapping, secret commissions, breach of trust, ethics, major thefts and frauds involving organized crimes, cargo crime, wrongful death, shareholder and partnership issues, poison pen and HR issues.
Mike and his team have recovered well over $300,000,000.00 of stolen property so far during his career. Mike is passionate about investigating cargo crime. He has current knowledge of criminal organizations currently involved in the theft and fraud throughout the supply chain. He is well respected among law enforcement cargo theft units and works closely with them.
JEAN-JACQUES RUEST
Jean-Jacques Ruest, commonly known as JJ Ruest, is best known for his role as the President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Canadian National Railway (CN), one of the largest railroads in North America, where he retired in 2022.
Ruest's career with CN began in 1996. He held various leadership positions within the organization, including Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer. His extensive experience in the transportation and logistics industry, coupled with his deep understanding of CN's, made him a natural fit for the role of CEO.
Under Ruest's leadership, CN has achieved remarkable success and growth and CN ranked among top 5 market cap value on the TSX. He is credited with implementing strategic initiatives that have enhanced the company's growth and customer focus, financial performance and operational efficiencies. Ruest is known for his focus on innovation, technology adoption, and sustainability.
JJ Ruest's contributions to the transportation industry have earned him numerous accolades and recognition. He is widely respected for his strategic vision, market focus, and commitment to driving success in rapidly evolving global market.
Please see below for speakers from last year’s conference. Speakers for the 2024 conference will be updated shortly.
Baher Abdulhai
Baher Abdulhai has been a professor at the University of Toronto since 1998. Born in Cairo, Egypt in 1966, and earned his Ph.D. in engineering from the University of California Irvine, Irvine, California, USA, in 1996.
Prof. Baher Abdulhai has 35 years of experience in transportation systems engineering and Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). He is the founder and Director of the Toronto ITS Centre and the founder and co-Director of i-City Centre for Automated and Transformative Transportation Systems (iCity-CATTS). Abdulhai received several awards including IEEE Outstanding Service Award, Teaching Excellence award, and research awards from Canada Foundation for Innovation, Ontario Research Fund, and Ontario Innovation Trust. He served on the Board of Directors of the Government of Ontario (GO) Transit Authority from 2004 to 2006. He served as a Canada Research Chair (CRC) in ITS from 2005 to 2010. The ITS Centre won the Ontario Showcase Merit Award of Excellence and the National GTEC Bronze Medal Award in 2005. His research team won international awards including the International Transportation Forum innovation award in 2010 (Hossam Abdelgawad), IEEE ITS 2013 (Samah El-Tantawy) and INFORMS 2013 (Samah El-Tantawy). In 2014, he won the University of Toronto Inventor of the Year Award. In 2015 he has been inducted as a Fellow of the Engineering Institute of Canada (EIC). In 2018, he won the prestigious CSCE Sandford Fleming (Career Achievement) Award for his contribution to transportation in Canada. He has been elected Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering in 2020. In 2021, he won the Ontario Professional Engineers Awards (OPEA) Engineering Medal for career Engineering Excellence.
Areas of Expertise: Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), modelling and simulation of large-scale dynamic transportation networks, Artificial Intelligence (AI) based street and freeway traffic control, emergency evacuation optimization, dynamic congestion pricing, smart cities under automated and transformative transportation systems.
Chris Cheney
Chris is a shareholder at the firm Mortensen & Milne in Salt Lake City, Utah. Mortensen & Milne is a premier plaintiff’s catastrophic injury and wrongful death litigation firm. Chris, along with his partners Lance Milne and Alan Mortensen, have represented injury victims and their families across the United States in numerous high-profile and complex litigation cases including obtaining a $25 million jury verdict for the death of a three-year-old against the manufacturer of defective corded window-covering products; a $16 million judgment for child-bride victims of a fundamentalist polygamy sect; and numerous eight-figure settlements for the victims of major trucking accidents, aviation disasters, and mining accidents. Chris also represents the families of school shooting victims, and the victims of sexual and physical abuse at troubled-youth treatment centers.
Chris first gained a passion for helping injury victims during law school while serving as a law clerk to Mr. Mortensen and Mr. Milne. Because of this experience, Chris was able to witness firsthand the life-changing feeling of empowerment and relief that excellent legal representation could bring to grieving clients and their families. After graduating law school, Chris spent several years at a firm specializing in interstate trucking law and complex business litigation. During these years, Chris primarily represented and advised trucking companies, freight brokers, and shippers on issues of interstate commerce, contracts, and freight claims. However, Chris’ desire to help injury victims never faded, and his career came full circle when he returned to Mortensen & Mr. Milne as an attorney. Chris is now able to do what he loves every day, which is helping provide his clients with that same feeling of relief and empowerment he witnessed those many years ago.
Chris currently resides in West Bountiful, Utah with his wife and three children. He received his bachelor’s degree in economics from Brigham Young University and his law degree from the University of Utah, where he served as an extern clerk in the United States District Court for the District of Utah to the Honorable Magistrate Judge Dustin Pead. Chris is admitted to practice in Utah State Courts, the Federal District Court for the District of Utah, and the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Dave Forrest
Senior Director, Vehicle Operation, Fleet Sales and Sponsorship.
Dave has an Honours Bachelor of Commerce and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Strategic Management. During his 32 years in the industry, Dave has held a variety of Sales, Marketing, Operations and finance positions. He has had the pleasure of leading the Vehicle Operations team at Subaru Canada since 2018.
Brian Hook
Brian Hook is responsible for the planning and execution of ICL's global sales, marketing, and product development initiatives as the VP, Sales, Marketing, and Products. Prior to his current role, Brian served as ICL's VP, Operations, where his responsibilities included managing ICL's customer support teams, as well as the project and technical teams. Brian has played a key role in implementing ICL's logistics management software solutions for all customers and integrating their logistics service providers on to the ICL platform. He has more than 22 years of Finished Vehicle Logistics experience, all with ICL. Prior to joining ICL in 2000, Brian worked as a Process Engineer for Fluor Daniel. Brian holds an MBA in Finance from Pepperdine University (2002), as well as a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Michigan (1995).
Matt Judd
Matt is responsible for Transportation strategy, operations, and carrier selection & compliance for Nestlé Canada. Matt has held various roles within the Logistics function, ranging from LEAN Flow Optimization, Warehousing Operations , and Domestic & Crossborder Transportation leadership. He is a passionate sustainability advocate, leading Nestle Canada’s logistics sustainability efforts, working with Nestlé global teams and key suppliers to drive emissions reductions. Matt is also an active contributor with various academic institutions (McMaster University, Smart Freight Centre, etc.), pairing real world business operations with academic and industry leading innovation.
Matt holds his CITT-Certified Logistics Professional (CCLP) designation, and H.B.Com. in Commerce with a minor in Transportation Geography from McMaster University.
John K. Fiorilla
Mr. Fiorilla focuses his practice in the railroad industry and helping to create and present railroad management policy and positions with diversified management and litigation experience as both house counsel and local counsel for Class I and Short Line Railroads. He has specific experience in presenting finance, real estate, operations, engineering, government affairs, and customer service positions. John also served as a Captain in the Transportation Corps, U.S. Army Reserve from 1971-1986.
Robert Lande
Mr. Lande is President of FXCM, a foreign exchange brokerage firm. Formerly, he was managing partner and Chief Operating Officer of Riveredge Capital Partners LLC. Prior to Riveredge Capital, Mr. Lande worked for over 16 years within the BCE/Bell Canada group where his last position was Chief Financial Officer of Telecom Américas Ltd., a joint venture between Bell Canada International, AT&T (then SBC Communications) and America Movil. Mr. Lande is chartered financial analyst and holds an M.B.A. from the John Molson School of Business and a B.A. in Economics from McGill University. Mr. Lande was on the Board of Paladin Labs from 1995 to 2014.
Danny Melo
Danny was appointed to the role of Assistant Vice President Customer & Corporate Services at CPKC in October 2020. Based in Winnipeg, he leads CPKC’s Network Service Center, a shared service unit accountable for Customer Service, Operational, Financial and HR transactional support functions spanning Canada, U.S., and Mexico. Leading a diverse team of approximately 500 management and unionized staff, the Center’s focus is to enhance the customer experience while driving down total cost to serve through process and technology innovation.
Danny joined CPKC in 2008 after gaining several years of experience in project management and service center leadership at Convergys and Ipsos-Reid. His diverse experiences implementing both operational and financial process/technology improvements serves Danny well in this dynamic role. In addition to becoming a qualified management train conductor, Danny holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree in Management Information Systems from the University of Manitoba and is both Six Sigma & Lean trained.
John Oldfield
Put myself through University during the 70’s driving truck in the Hamilton area. Moved into an IT position involving transportation during the 70’s and early 80’s. Drove long haul and managed various fleets during the 80’s & 90’s. 1998, I joined then Dalton Timmis Insurance to develop a speciality transportation insurance division. NFP purchased Dalton Timmmis on December 7, 2017 where I continue to work today.
Marcel E. Pouliot
Marcel Pouliot is a well-known former executive within the North American Trucking Industry (Trimac Transportation).
His professional background and his encompassing experience over the years from Operations to Industrial Services, Purchasing, Safety, Fleet Innovation, Sustainability and Renewable Energy offer a unique and multifaceted expertise.
His comprehensive knowledge of the Transportation Industry reinforces his reputation as a strategic leader, influential collaborator, and key player.
As Co-Founder and President of IQ Trucking Consultants Inc., he is currently assisting numerous public and private companies. Recently, he also joined HTEC as Director, Fleet Services.
He is a regular speaker at national and global transportation conferences, industry associations, and webinars.
Larry rabinovich
As Barclay Damon's Transportation Team leader, Larry is a principal conduit for the firm's communications with insurers of transportation entities. When working with underwriters, he focuses on compliance with state and federal requirements and industry norms, and he assists with drafting policy forms from manuscript endorsements to entire policies. For client claims departments, Larry routinely prepares opinion letters, reservation of rights or declination letters, and tort-litigation monitoring, all of which frequently lead to his representation of insurers in declaratory judgment actions and in appellate cases.
In addition, Larry has litigated many of the leading cases on trucking-coverage law, including decisions on the MCS-90 endorsement, the US Department of Transportation leasing regulations, and the scope of non-trucking policies. With the veteran underwriter Carl Sadler, he wrote The MCS-90 Book, a comprehensive look at the meaning of the MCS-90 as explained by courts around the country and the USDOT itself. Larry also handles complex coverage matters involving general-liability policies and property policies issued to insureds across industries.
Jean-Jacques Ruest
Jean-Jacques Ruest, commonly known as JJ Ruest, is best known for his role as the President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Canadian National Railway (CN), one of the largest railroads in North America, where he retired in 2022.
Ruest's career with CN began in 1996. He held various leadership positions within the organization, including Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer. His extensive experience in the transportation and logistics industry, coupled with his deep understanding of CN's, made him a natural fit for the role of CEO.
Under Ruest's leadership, CN has achieved remarkable success and growth and CN ranked among top 5 market cap value on the TSX. He is credited with implementing strategic initiatives that have enhanced the company's growth and customer focus, financial performance and operational efficiencies. Ruest is known for his focus on innovation, technology adoption, and sustainability.
JJ Ruest's contributions to the transportation industry have earned him numerous accolades and recognition. He is widely respected for his strategic vision, market focus, and commitment to driving success in rapidly evolving global market.
Hank Seaton
Henry E. Seaton is a graduate of Duke University and Vanderbilt School of Law. He has practiced law for 46 years with the Law Office of Seaton & Husk, LP in the Washington D.C. area representing motor carriers and brokers. The firm specializes in freight claims, freight charge collection, contracting issues, carrier representation before the FMCSA and bankruptcy issues.
He serves as Counsel for the National Association of Small Trucking Companies, the Air & Expedited Motor Carriers Association, The Expedite Alliance of North America, the American Home Furnishings Alliance and the Auto Haulers Association of America.
Mr. Seaton serves as Co-Chair of the TLA’s Federal Regulations Committee and is a frequent speaker and lecturer regarding cargo claims, freight charges, contracting and risk/insurance issues affecting carriers and brokers.
As Counsel for a number of trucking related trade associations and the Alliance for Safe, Efficient and Competitive Truck Transportation (ASECTT) he is a frequent advocate for industry stakeholders on issues of common interest in response to rulemaking and other requests for comments before administrative agencies such as the FMCSA, the Department of Labor, NLRB and SBA.
CARLOS SESMA JR.
Attorney at law by the Escuela Libre de Derecho, Admitted to practice in the Federal Republic of Mexico in 2000. Master’s in business Direction and Administration by the Instituto Panamericano de Alta Dirección de Empresa (IPADE), México, 2005 - 2007. Pre-Law and Finance, Nebraska Wesleyan University 1994-1995 Specialization in American Business Law, University of Michigan - 1998.
Areas of Expertise: Transportation and Logistics; Corporate Law, International Agreements; Negotiation, Crisis Management, NAFTA.
Memberships (having presented several papers and being member of steering committees): Transportation Lawyers Association; Canadian Transportation Lawyers Association; American Chamber of Commerce Mexico; Canadian Chamber of Commerce Mexico; Conference of Freight Counsel; National Importers and Exporters Association of the Mexican Republic
Specific Transportation and Logistics Experience: Thorough experience in the design, implementation and follow through of legal strategy for international transportation and logistics companies in doing business in Mexico and Latin America. Draft, negotiation, implementation and pursuit of international contracts surrounding the activities performed in the industry. Regulatory matters, permits, licenses, neutral foreign investment structures, license plates, inspection and audit management. Complex real estate transactions for the industry. Compliance. Accident and crisis management. High-level negotiation skills. Government contracting and government relations.
William Tackaberry
Graduate of Concordia University, Montreal QC 1969
CITT Graduate 1974
Past Board Member, CITT
Honorary President, CITT 1995
Past Chairman, National Transportation Brokers Association
Member, The Law Society of Ontario (Licensed Paralegal)
Proprietor, TCRC Freight Legal Services
Guido Vildozo
Vildozo has over 15 years of experience at IHS Markit and its predecessor companies. At IHS Markit Vildozo is responsible for managing the automotive vehicle sales forecasts in the Americas. His primary responsibility is oversight of industry trends in the continent and developing forecasts for its markets. His area of expertise is product planning and strategy and their effect on vehicle demand. Vildozo has also worked in the automotive areas of manufacturers' product cycles, production capacity constraints, investment on capacity and import/export strategies. Finally, Vildozo puts his economics background to work by analyzing the political/economical landscapes of the Americas and their role on vehicle demand.
Vildozo is often invited to speak at engagements that cover the state of the industry in the region. He has been quoted by media sources such as Bloomberg, Automotive News, Wards, and the Financial Times, among others. He obtained his bachelor degree in Economics and master's degree in International Economics from Suffolk University in Boston and pursued further graduate studies in Marketing, Business and Finance at Bentley College in Waltham. Vildozo is fluent in English and Spanish and has working knowledge of Portuguese and French.
IHS Markit (Nasdaq: INFO) is a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions for the major industries and markets that drive economies worldwide. The company delivers next-generation information, analytics and solutions to customers in business, finance and government, improving their operational efficiency and providing deep insights that lead to well-informed, confident decisions. IHS Markit has more than 50,000 business and government customers, including 80 percent of the Fortune Global 500 and the world’s leading financial institutions.