Nicholas Katsepontes

Nicholas Katsepontes - BA 1982 - is originally from Halifax, Nova Scotia where he was born and raised and attended Dalhousie University where he finished studies in international economics at the undergraduate and graduate level. He graduated from Dalhousie Law School with two degrees a Bachelor of Law (1988) and Master of Law (1993) the latter specializing in international trade and shipping law. He practiced maritime and commercial law in Halifax for a number of years working for Greek shipping interests, fish harvest companies and oil companies undertaking of shore oil development.

He was always active in the Halifax Greek Community and is a former President of the Ahepa Halifax Chapter. He is a member of the Nova Scotia Barrister’s Society and a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada. He moved to Ottawa in 1992 to serve as a Special Advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade working for three different Prime Minsters and four Foreign Ministers providing legal advise for UN maritime law treaties as well as trade negotiations at the World Trade Organization.

He was an active member of the Ottawa Ahepa Chapter. He received a commendation by the Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1994 for his outstanding contribution to the department. Nicholas was previously a Vice President Investment Banking and Legal Counsel to an Ottawa based boutique investment bank where he worked for 7 years and participated in many early ecommerce deals.

As well he served in the past as Vice-President Corporate Affairs and Legal Counsel for JSS Medical Research Inc. a Montreal based clinical research organization for the pharmaceutical industry.

He is the founding partner of Katsepontes Moutsios LLP, an Ottawa and Montreal based law firm, where he still practices part-time.

He is the founder President and CEO of Axios Investments Corporation - a family owned investment firm working in the biotechnology, marine and hi-tech sectors. He has founded or advised a number of successful start-ups including SWIX, Jaded Pixel Technologies Inc., Shopify, Semintha Nutraceuticals Ltd., Central Newfoundland Birch Products Ltd., Anoixi Biotchnology Ltd., Aleta Lifesciences Ltd. and on an ongoing basis mentors business students from the Telfer School of Business, Ottawa University.

He also has volunteered his time as Maritime & Environmental Law Coordinator for the Ocean CleanUp Project (http://www.theoceancleanup.com/) a not-for-profit initiative based out of the Netherlands with the objective to clean and remove all plastic from the oceans. He lead a team of 20 international lawyers in the research and analysis and writing of a report to determine a way to enable the Project in the context of current maritime and environmental laws and making recommendations on required changes. The Ocean CleanUp Project won the award for the Sustainable Entrepreneurship Award for 2014 as one the ten most important environmental initiatives globally.

He has been named in 2016 to the Premier of Nova Scotia’s Advisory Export Counsel advising and mentoring Nova Scotian companies seeking to export internationally.

He has been nominated in 2016-17 for the Manning Award for Innovation for his work with Semintha Nutraceuticals Ltd. in creating new technology and product development approaches for natural and organic products.

He was nominated as Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the year for Atlantic Canada in the biotechnology sector for 2014.

For the past 25 years he has volunteered his legal services to Ahepa and The Ahepa Family Foundation and takes particular pride in the growth of the Foundations scholarship programs to which his family has endowed a scholarship for medical and law students.

He is married to Dr. Tina Sampalis who has inspired him in his business and personal life and who herself is a renown surgeon and medical doctor having founded the global krill oil industry and the founder of Agoo Children Health & Wellness Centre, a leading Canadian pediatric clinc.

Most important he is a proud member of the Montreal Ahepa Chapter and his most important achievements are his daughter Karina who is 20 and Peter who is 7.