Originally from Brampton, Ontario, Philip obtained his Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from the University of Toronto, and his law degree from the University of Western Ontario.  

During law school, Philip had the opportunity to represent Western's Faculty of Law at the prestigious Laskin Moot in Winnipeg, Manitoba.  The Laskin Moot is an annual national moot competition in administrative and constitutional law between Canadian law schools.  

Philip articled with Seabrook Miller & Trudell, a full service litigation firm in London, Ontario. Following his call to the Ontario Bar, Philip practised extensively in the areas of criminal defense and immigration litigation in Toronto, advocating on behalf of clients before the Ontario Court of Justice, the Immigration and Refugee Board, and the Federal Court of Canada.  After spending several years in London and Toronto,  Philip decided to return to his home town of Brampton, Ontario.