The Commission is comprised of up to eight commissioners who are appointed by Order-in-Council, alongside the legal, accounting, and administrative support staff who carry out our day-to-day business.
Operations are conducted under the direction of the Executive Director of Securities, who is the chief administrative officer. Overall responsibility for the Commission—including its administrative, enforcement, policy, law-making, and adjudicative functions—rests with the Chair of the Commission, who acts as the chief executive officer.
Commission Leadership
Valerie Seager
Chair
Valerie Seager was appointed Chair of the Commission in February 2025. She has been a Commissioner since 2012 and served as Vice-Chair from September 2023 until her appointment as Chair. From 2011 to 2021, Ms. Seager was General Counsel and Vice President, Legal and Regulatory Affairs at the Halifax International Airport Authority. Prior to that, she was General Counsel at a publicly traded SEC-registered manufacturing company in British Columbia, and before that, she was General Counsel of a communications and technology startup. Prior to those roles, she practiced securities law for 12 years in private practice in Toronto and Vancouver.
Heidi Walsh-Sampson, K.C.
Vice-Chair
Heidi Walsh-Sampson has been a Commission Member since 2017. She is a senior business lawyer and academic with 25 years of corporate practice experience in three Canadian jurisdictions. She is also a Strategic Contracts Advisor for the National Research Council of Canada.
Current Commissioners
Tom Atkinson
Tom Atkinson served as Executive Director, Enforcement, for the Securities and Futures Commission in Hong Kong, from 2016 until 2022. Prior to joining the SFC, Tom was Director of Enforcement at the OSC, and before that he was President and CEO of Market Regulation Services Inc. Tom began his career as an Assistant Crown Attorney at the Ontario Court of Justice. Tom was appointed as a Commissioner in August 2023.
Jason Cooke, K.C.
Jason Cooke is a lawyer and partner with Burchell Wickwire Bryson LLP in Halifax. He practices extensively in the areas of administrative law, professional regulation, and commercial litigation. Jason was appointed as a Commissioner in March 2025.
Michael Deturbide, K.C.
Michael Deturbide is currently Professor Emeritus, Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University. He is a previous holder of the Purdy Crawford Chair in Business Law, is a co-founder of the Law and Technology Institute, and is a co-founder and editor of the Canadian Journal of Law and Technology. He has served multiple terms as a commissioner of the Nova Scotia Securities Commission.
Rick Gant
Rick is a retired financial executive with over 35 years working in the securities industry. Rick has an MBA in Financial Services from Dalhousie University and is a Fellow of the Canadian Bankers Institute. He most recently worked with Atlantic Central as the Director of Consulting and Loss Prevention. Prior to that, he was Head of Western Canada for RBC Investor and Treasury Services. He has also worked with organizations to educate on issues such as shareholder democracy and responsible investing. Rick was appointed as a Commissioner in June 2025.
Jack Lessel
Jack Lessel is a Wealth Advisor at CIBC Wood Gundy, and holds the Chartered Investment Manager designation (CIM®) and Fellow of the Canadian Securities Institute (FCSI®) designation. Jack was appointed as a Commissioner in November 2024.
John Maxwell
John Maxwell was formerly employed with a commercial lending institution as Managing Director, Ontario Risk Management. Prior to this, he was the Atlantic Region Head with responsibility for teams in NS, NB & NL. John has also worked for Coopers & Lybrand in Saint John and Halifax. John is a CPA. He was appointed as a Commissioner in August 2023.