MCCARTHY TÉTRAULT LLP
McCarthy Tétrault LLP is one of Canada’s largest and oldest full service firms. Established in 1855, the firm has grown into a 600-strong practice with six international offices. It is particularly outstanding in the real estate, M&A, capital markets, commercial litigation, competition and corporate tax chapters. With 71 lawyers listed in 24 practice areas, the firm is recognised for the breadth of its legal expertise and established merit.
Six lawyers from the firm feature in the real estate chapter. Keith Burrell QC is a leading real estate practitioner in the Vancouver office, where he advises developers on local and offshore projects. He assists on transactions and presale due diligence matters. James Papadimitriou is the leader of the real property and planning group and the leader of the Quebec practice. He is internationally recognised. In Toronto, a “clear leader in the field” is Abraham Costin who works in the full range of transactions: he has acted for a range of developers including OMERS Realty Management and Oxford Properties Group. He is joined by Gordon Sato who is “at the top of the list for renewable real estate”. Fred Rubinoff is “exceptionally good”: he acts for GE on REIT matters and Toronto Transit Commission on the development of their head office. In Calgary, Kieth Mullback is experienced in commercial mortgage financing for local enterprises and land acquisitions.
McCarthy Tétrault has an “excellent” corporate practice. Its M&A experts include Patrick Boucher as well as “dean of M&A” Richard Balfour and “trusted adviser” Cameron Belsher in Vancouver, who both feature in the capital markets chapter. As do Graham Gow and Garth Girvan, who is “certainty at the top of his profession”. Gow and David Woollcome “are both very sophisticated on M&A advice plus getting difficult cross-border equity deals completed”. Also in the capital markets chapter is Rene Sorell, “a stand out securities lawyer” with an “excellent reputation in compliance”. He also advises boards on governance issues and due diligence, and features in the corporate governance chapter. Belsher also features in the mining chapter as a noted M&A transactions lawyer in natural resources deals.
In Toronto, commercial litigator Neil Finkelstein is a constitutional lawyer with a strong disputes practice. He also features in the competition chapter where he is “head and shoulders above others in the field” and the product liability defence chapter where he has “a good reputation”. Thomas Heintzman QC specialises in civil litigation and has acted for Capital Cities Communications, Bell Canada and HSBC Securities (Canada) Inc. Paul Morrison specialises in complex corporate and commercial litigation, and has represented clients such as Unilever, Toronto-Dominion Bank and Hollinger International. Paul Steep is a trial and appellate lawyer with a range of experience acting on banking and investments disputes, and Gérald Tremblay QC litigates in a broad range of areas, including environmental law, civil law, constitutional law and corporate matters.
Also in the competition chapter, Oliver Borger is “very good on mergers” and Donald Houston is “top notch” and “a very smart competition litigator”. In Québec, Yves Comtois is “one of the best” and Madeleine Renaud is a “definite” inclusion in this chapter and is considered a “leader” in her field.
In the tax chapter, Douglas Ewens QC is the former chair and governor of the Canadian Tax Foundation and has extensive experience assisting large energy corporates and financial institutions on foreign and domestic tax obligations. He is “an excellent practitioner”. In Toronto, Gabreille Richards is “outstanding” and Thomas Akin has more than 30 years experience in this area, with an emphasis on transfer pricing and tax disputes. Jerald Wortsman is a tax planner and M&A, restructurings and corporate finance make up the bulk of his practice while Douglas Cannon is involved advising on tax issues in private equity and M&A deals.
In the internet & e-Commerce chapter, Cheryl Slusarchuk is the leader of the national technology group and is a “respected” practitioner. She is known for her in-house experience and industry work on the British Colombia Innovation Council. George Takach is a “solid and trustworthy” lawyer. Barry Sookman is “the doyen of internet work” and a “legend” in the area. Wendy Gross is “right at the top” of her field. In Montreal, Charles Morgan leads the technology practice group, where he assists in M&As between technology companies and advises on licensing, e-commerce and data protection.
The firm has a notable presence in the insolvency and restructuring chapter. Patrick McCarthy QC is “one of the top guys in Calgary”. In Toronto, Kevin McElcheran is “a top player”. In Montréal, Sylvain Vauclair is co-head of the national bankruptcy and restructuring group and has acted for major companies such as Citibank and Uniboard Canada. He is joined by Philippe Bélanger, who acts as counsel for BCI.
McCarthy Tétrault’s lawyers are recognised in other chapters, including regulatory communications, project finance, banking, environment, business crime defence and many more.
