Bennett Jones LLP — Canada

About

- Chief Executive Officer: Dominique Hussey - Chairman: John Mercury Managing Partners: Harinder Basra (Calgary), Preet Gill (Toronto), Barbara Stratton (Edmonton), Kwang Lim (Vancouver), Pascale Dionne-Bourassa (Montreal), Melanie Aitken and Gordon Cameron (USA) - Number of lawyers and advisors: 500 ### Firm Overview Bennett Jones is one of Canada’s premier business law firms. With deep experience in complex transactions and litigation matters, the firm is well equipped to advise businesses and investors with Canadian ventures, and connect Canadian businesses and investors with opportunities around the world. In addition to providing unparalleled strategic legal advice, what also sets the firm apart from competitors is the ability to deliver an outstanding client experience, deep knowledge of clients’ businesses and industries, a history of building longstanding relationships and a roster of highly skilled lawyers. Find out more at BennettJones.com. - Main Areas of Practice ### Energy Bennett Jones is widely recognized as the leading Canadian law firm in energy and natural resources. Bennett Jones has been intimately involved in virtually every major energy development project in Canada in the past 20 years, representing project proponents, investors and other stakeholders. This history means that clients have access to knowledge of the energy industry and related legal experience that no other firm in Canada can match. The firm has helped shape the Canadian energy industry and has a desire to shape the industry's future. - Contact: Harinder Basra & Ashley White ### Infrastructure & Capital Projects Given the increasingly complex nature of today’s construction and procurement agreements, infrastructure development, financing structures, detailed legislation and aggressive competition, Bennett Jones provides indispensable, competent and timely legal support. The firm's Infrastructure & Capital Projects group has acted on transformative, complex and highly innovative public-private infrastructure projects across Canada and internationally, including power, oil and gas, pipeline, utilities, nuclear power facilities, telecommunication, health care, education, roads, airports, public transportation and a range of "smart city" facilities. - Contact: Geoffrey Stenger ### Mining Bennett Jones is one of the few Canadian law firms with expertise to service all the needs of mining clients, from capital markets and corporate matters to regulatory and environmental issues. The firm's mining lawyers are practice leaders, known for their extensive industry experience and excellence. They are trusted advisors to their clients, which include mining companies of all sizes, investment banks and investors. The Bennett Jones Mining group counsels mining companies of all sizes and stages on the full range of financing activities in equity and debt markets globally. In mining project development, the firm has strong experience in federal and provincial environmental assessment and permitting and offers best practices in environmental and safety risk management, enhancing corporate social responsibility and reputation management. - Contact: Andrew Disipio ### Private Equity & Fund Formation Bennett Jones is a leading private equity law firm representing Canadian and U.S. investment funds, financial sponsors and their portfolio companies in all areas of their business, with a principal focus on mergers and acquisitions, public and private treasury investments and the formation of private investment funds. The firm's strengths in private equity spans a number of industries—including natural resources, industrial services, food and beverage, hospitality, consumer products, energy services, technology and transportation—providing familiarity with particular regulatory regimes, industry dynamics and capital structures. - Contact: Matthew Hunt & James McClary ### Mergers & Acquisitions The Bennett Jones M&A and Corporate Finance practice advises and provides strategic counsel to international companies investing and operating in Canada, and Canadian companies growing domestically and internationally. The M&A group's clients include many Canadian and global Fortune 500 companies that drive the Canadian economy including energy, oil and gas, mining, consumer products, technology, utilities, agribusiness, financial services and cannabis, among others. Bennett Jones considers client's risk appetites and commercial realities in order to guide negotiation strategy and structuring. Contact: Richard Burgos, Curtis A. Cusinato, Christian P. Gauthier, Kristopher R. Hanc, Jeffrey Kerbel, Brent W. Kraus & Jean Tessier ### Litigation Bennett Jones lawyers have appeared before all levels of courts and administrative tribunals in Canada, bringing to each case a practical and thorough knowledge of litigation, mediation and arbitration strategies, tactics and procedures. The firm's work has resulted in hundreds of reported decisions from provincial trial and appeal courts, the Federal Court, the Tax Court and the Supreme Court of Canada, as well as significant experience in private arbitrations and mediations including ICC and AAA arbitrations. Bennett Jones' litigation lawyers works closely with colleagues throughout the firm to provide the background and resources required for each client's needs, also tapping the resources of external experts such as accountants, forensic investigators, valuators and other consultants when necessary. - Contact: Pascale Dionne-Bourassa, Richard B. Swan & Michael P. Theroux KC ### Banking & Secured Transactions Bennett Jones offers clients a broad spectrum of legal and advisory services geared toward the changing needs and demands of the financial services industry. The firm routinely advises on the structuring and documentation of domestic and cross-border loan facilities. The firm's broad experience and expertise in this area ranges from large, syndicated cash-flow senior debt financings arranged by both domestic and foreign banks to mid-market asset based and senior and mezzanine commercial loan transactions. - Contact: Karen Dawson & Simon Grant ### Real Estate From development, construction and land-use planning to commercial leasing and property management, Bennett Jones' property development and real estate lawyers are proactive, deal-oriented advisors who understand the cyclical nature of the business and can anticipate and respond to the market and its players. The firm also brings particular expertise to energy-related land use, providing zoning, environmental and construction-related advice to multi-year, multi-phase projects ranging from oil sands extraction facilities to refining and upgrading sites. Contact: Ronald M. Barron, Richard Burgos, Simon P. Crawford, Jane C. Helmstadter, Mark V. Lewis, S. Paul Mantini & Alixe A.L. Cameron ### International Trade & Investment Bennett Jones has ranked the highest number of ranked international trade/WTO lawyers in Chambers Canada, a recognition and testament by clients and peers of its depth and breadth in all aspects of international trade and investment law. The firm has a proven track record of expertise in all of the elements that comprise the regulation of international business, including market access for goods, services, intellectual property and investment. The practice is also fully integrated with the firm's extensive cross-border commercial, transactional, tax, banking and dispute settlement services. - Contact: Sabrina A. Bandali ### Restructuring & Insolvency Bennett Jones has one of the largest, most experienced and most active restructuring and insolvency practices in Canada. The firm is recognized nationally and internationally as a pre-eminent Canadian law firm and as one of the leading Canadian restructuring practices with special expertise in cross-border restructurings. It is also known especially for the representation of foreign bondholders, foreign banks, insurance companies and other foreign lenders in Canadian restructurings. The firm's lawyers have played significant roles in most major Canadian restructurings and, in addition to being involved in restructuring proceedings in every province of Canada, have advised on restructurings across Europe, Central America, Australia and the United States. - Contact: Sean Zweig ### Competition/Antitrust As the only Canadian law firm with competition law capability in Washington, DC, Bennett Jones advises U.S. and international clients and law firms on the Canadian aspects of North American and global competition regulation and antitrust enforcement, reviews under the Investment Canada Act and litigation matters including class action proceedings. The Bennett Jones Competition/Antitrust group includes the most recent former Commissioner of the Competition Bureau, several former Bureau and Department of Justice officials and the foremost competition counsel in the country. The firm's experience and credibility with the Bureau has fostered a deep, seasoned understanding of the Bureau's priorities, concerns and enforcement orientation, as well as unique insights into how the Bureau conducts its investigations. - Contact: Melanie Aitken ### Tax Bennett Jones' corporate tax practice provides sophisticated tax planning advice and creative, incisive approaches to stewarding tax-efficient transactions and solving tax controversies. The practice includes all aspects of sales tax, GST, anti-dumping and other trade and commodity taxes. This commodity tax expertise is brought to bear both in connection with transactions involving cross-border flows of manufactured goods, financial services and commodities, and in tax controversy work. The firm's tax lawyers have a broad range of significant experience on both the Canadian and cross-border aspects of transactions in the resource, manufacturing, financial services, communications, technology, real estate, transportation, power (conventional and alternative) sectors. Bennett Jones advises private equity investors, pension funds and sovereign wealth funds and have been involved in the conversion of income trusts and royalty funds to corporate form. - Contact: Thomas Bauer & Anu Nijhawan ### Technology & IP The Bennett Jones technology law team provides a focused, industry-sensitive approach to the legal issues governing the development, protection, exploitation, use and enforcement of technology and the special legal issues affecting technology businesses. The firm also has one of the largest intellectual property groups in a full-service, top-tier business law firm in Canada. With public and private sector clients who operate or rely on technology of all types, we offer boutique-styled intellectual property advice supported by the collective strength of a broad and diverse practice. - Contact: Stephen Burns & Dominique Hussey

Office locations

Practice areas

Lawyers in this office

Aaron Sonshine

Partner · Capital Markets

Abbas Ali Khan

Partner · Corporate / M&A

Adam Kalbfleisch

Partner · Competition & Antitrust

Aldona Gudas

Partner · Employment & Labour

Alison FitzGerald

Partner · International Arbitration

Alixe Cameron

Partner · Real Estate

Allyson Marta

Partner · Pensions & Benefits

Andrew Disipio

Partner and Head of Mining Industry Team · Corporate / M&A

Anu Nijhawan

Partner and Co-Head of Tax Department · Tax

Ashley White

Partner · Energy

Blair Yorke-Slader KC

Vice Chair and Partner · Commercial Litigation

Brent Kraus

Partner and Co-Head of Corporate Department · Corporate / M&A

Brian Reid

Partner · Commercial Litigation

Carl Cunningham

Partner · Labour & Employment

Charlene Hiller

Partner · Infrastructure

Cheryl Woodin

Partner and Co-Head of Litigation and Dispute Resolution Department · Litigation

Christine Plante

Partner · Litigation

Corey Yermus

Partner · Capital Markets

Curtis Cusinato

Vice Chair and Partner · Corporate / M&A

David Bursey

Partner and Co-Head of Aboriginal Law Practice · Aboriginal Law

David Little

Partner · Construction

David Macaulay

Partner · Power & Renewable Energy

David Rotchtin

Partner · Banking & Finance

Dominique Hussey

Chief Executive Officer · Intellectual Property

Emrys Davis

Partner · Litigation

Geoffrey Stenger

Partner and Head of Infrastructure Industry Team · Infrastructure

George Reid

Partner · International Trade

Greg Johnson

Partner · Tax

Harinder Basra

Partner · Energy

Jane Helmstadter

Partner, Co-Head of Commercial Real Estate · Real Estate

Jason Roth

Partner · Construction

Jehad Haymour

Partner · Tax

Jessica Horwitz

Partner · International Trade

John Lawless

Partner · Corporate / M&A

John Mercury

Executive Chair & Chair of the Board · Corporate / M&A

John van Gent

Partner · Commercial Real Estate

Julia Qian Wang

Partner · Tax

Karen Dawson

Partner · Banking & Finance

Kelsey Meyer

Partner · Litigation

Kristopher Hanc

Partner · Corporate / M&A

Larry Sandrin

Partner · Real Estate

Laura Inglis

Partner · Labour & Employment

Lawrence Smith KC

Partner · Energy & Natural Resources

Leanne Krawchuk KC

Partner · Mining

Leonard Griffiths

Partner, Head of Environmental · Environmental

Linda Misetich Dann

Partner · Corporate / M&A

Luke Morrison

Partner · Energy

Mark Lewis

Partner and Co-Head of Commercial Real Estate Practice · Real Estate

Mark Rasile

Partner · Banking & Finance

Martin Ignasiak

Partner · Energy & Natural Resources

Matthew Flynn

Partner · Technology

Matthew Hunt

Partner and Co-Head of Private Equity · Private Equity

Melanie Aitken

Managing Principal, Bennett Jones (US) · Competition & Antitrust

Melanie Teetaert

Partner · Litigation

Michael Eizenga

Partner, Head of Class Actions · Class Actions

Michael Mysak

Partner · Litigation

Mike Theroux

Partner and Co-Head of Commercial Litigation Practice · Litigation

Munaf Mohamed KC

Lead Director and Partner · Litigation

Noriko Shimura

Partner · Aviation

Pascale Dionne-Bourassa

Montréal Managing Partner · Litigation