Catherine Bate joined Ad Standards in 2019 as the Chief Legal & Policy Officer. She is a recognized leader in the field of marketing, advertising and consumer product regulatory law in Canada. Previously, Catherine chaired the marketing and advertising law groups of two national law firms.  While in private practice, Catherine advised clients on issues ranging from consumer marketing and advertising strategies, promotions and sweepstakes, and data privacy practices. She also advised clients on consumer protection matters, product claims, labelling compliance, and navigating the rules around specially regulated products. Catherine holds a J.D. from the University of Toronto and is a member of the Canadian Bar Association.

Yamina Bennacer joined Ad Standards in 2015. In her current role as Director, Standards (National) she is responsible for coordination and response to complaints and questions from both the public and advertisers. She is a subject matter expert related to the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards. In this capacity, she provides guidance to advertising content creators and also responds to public concerns regarding advertising content in Canadian media. She also provides advisory support to the non-partisan advertising programs of the Government of Canada and Government of British Columbia. Yamina is also responsible for delivering reporting metrics to various teams within Ad Standards with respect to public feedback on advertising campaigns.

Astrid joined Ad Standards in 1996 as a receptionist. In her first few years, she held a variety of supporting positions, touching almost every area of the organization, including Standards, Clearance, Membership and Finance. In 2019, Astrid was promoted from Administrative & Accounting Assistant to Accounting Manager, and again in 2024 to Senior Accounting Manager & AR/AP Specialist.

Astrid takes great pride in keeping the finance department organized and up-to-date. Always forward-looking, she finds the growth she has witnessed over her tenure at Ad Standards to inspire and motivate her each day.

Astrid has a degree in Humanities from Chittagong Mohilla College, Bangladesh. In her spare time she enjoys cooking and spending time with her family, especially her grand-daughter.

Jean currently reviews advertising for food and non-alcoholic beverages, alcoholic beverages and children’s advertising. He is fully bilingual and has been with Ad Standards since 1999. Through the Institute of Communication Agencies, he holds a Communications and Advertising Accredited Professional (CAAP) designation. Jean attended the University of Ottawa where he studied History and Communications.

Danielle has studied communications and advertising and is responsible for consumers’ complaints, public and media relations as well as industry relations in French Canada. Danielle previously worked as an Ad Standards analyst from 1995-1998. Since then, she has worked for Radio-Canada and its all-news channel (RDI) in media relations, communications and program promotion.

Ruta is a licensed pharmacist with more than 18 years of pharmacy experience. She is a graduate of the Pharmacy (BSc. Pharm) program at the University of Toronto and is a member of the Ontario Pharmacists' Association and the Canadian Pharmacists Association.

Shelley Samel joined Ad Standards in 2022 as Senior Legal Counsel. Shelley has been practising advertising and marketing law for over twenty years – she started her own boutique firm in 2014, prior to which she was a partner in the marketing and advertising law group of a Canadian-based international law firm. Shelley advised some of Canada’s largest and most respected companies and their agencies in all matters relating to advertising and marketing, promotions and data privacy. She is a recognized leader in the field, having received numerous prestigious awards for her expertise. Shelley received her law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to the bar in Ontario in 2000.

Jessica is a marketing communications specialist who has been in the field for over 15 years. She joined Advertising Standards in 2022 as Communications Manager. She brings to the position an in-depth knowledge of the Canadian advertising industry, acquired during her eight years with the Association of Canadian Advertisers (ACA). She is a graduate of Seneca College in Creative Advertising and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from York University.