Lexpert Roundup on the Business of Law
Lexpert identifies and reports on emerging business issues and practice areas in the business of law. Whether online, in our magazine or in the DealsWire e-newsletter, we chronicle deals and lawsuits of interest, and cover issues of broad concern to the legal profession and those who purchase legal services. We hope you enjoy this sampling of our latest content.
From the DealsWire: Certainty restored by court in M&A ruling, EU clears Microsoft's buy of LinkedIn, Trump could spur pharma M&A
The Lexpert DealsWire (subscribe here) documents facts, figures and key legal players behind recent deals.
This week, in our closed deals section, we look at the legal teams for Yintai and Eldorado Gold Corp., which completed the sale of its respective interest in the White Mountain and Tanjianshan mines and the Eastern Dragon development project in China to Yintai, and at the lawyers for McKeil Marine and TorQuest Partners, who finalized TorQuest's investment in McKeil.
We also look at the players behind GMP acquisition of FirstEnergy Capital Corp., an industry leader in the global energy sector.
Finally, we give you the teams who completed the sale of Laborie Medical Technologies, a provider of medical devices for urological, pelvic health and gastrointestinal applications, to Patricia Industries, a subsidiary of Investor AB. The deal was led by Audax Private Equity.
Certainty restored by Alberta appeal court in M&A decision
A unanimous ruling overturned a controversial decision of the Court of Queen's Bench that gave shareholders of Alberta Oilsands Inc. (AOI) the right to vote on AOI's proposed acquisition of Marquee Energy Ltd. Historically, Canadian courts have only required a shareholder vote from the target company.
Real Estate: Rearranging the Area
Urban scarcity and the resulting condo boom has radically altered how commercial real estate lawyers ply their trade. It used to be that working on a downtown transaction meant helping a client acquire an income-producing property through a purchase-and-sale agreement. What's happening today is that developers are tearing down single-purpose buildings or building them up to turn them into mixed-use towers. Lawyers have to know how to handle joint ventures, negotiate limited partnerships and co-ownership agreements, draft development-management and property-management agreements – all sorts of things not contemplated in the past, a combination of contract law, civil law and real estate law.
Protectionism in Reverse
Investor-state dispute-resolution mechanisms were originally intended to protect investors from developed countries against unfair treatment from developing countries, where democracy and the rule of law were not necessarily priorities. An arbitral claim by Egypt-based Global Telecom Holdings flips the script. It is the first bilateral investment treaty dispute in which Canada finds itself on the defensive, falling squarely within the realm of the cultural protectionism allegations that have long sullied Canada's reputation as a free-trade advocate.
Litigation Special in ROB Magazine
Lexpert recently published its special edition on Litigation in the Globe and Mail's Report on Business magazine. Click here to view the digital edition. The special edition profiles Lexpert-ranked lawyers in several areas of business-related litigation. Also included are feature articles on the latest developments in commercial and securities litigation, arbitration and alternative dispute resolution:
The Dominant Alternative Arbitration has evolved into the preferred method for efficient dispute resolution. There is risk, however, in bypassing the courtroom.
Behind the Crimes Canada's outdated financial regulation is incapable of dealing with today's cyber-crime. Lawyers in the field are calling for an overhaul.
Swifter Regulation Lawyers applying to tribunals will find themselves at the mercy of onerous procedural demands. There's an effort, however, to streamline things.
Keeping it Affordable Tips from the pros on how to manage litigation costs, before they get out of hand.
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