Globalization presents businesses around the world with huge opportunities. But it also brings unique challenges of managing the risks of complying with complex national and international competition, trade and investment laws. Businesses with a global outlook require experienced counsel to advance their objectives, financial interests and reputation.
Our international business lawyers are well positioned to provide such counsel given the firm’s (a) ranking as a “highly regarded”, “leading firm” in corporate & commercial law in Chambers Canada, a peer-reviewed ranking service of the world’s best lawyers and (b) membership in the International Lawyers Network, an association of over 90 high-quality, full-service law firms with over 5,000 lawyers worldwide, in 67 countries on six continents.
The experience and services of our lawyers include advising on:
Competition
- merger notification and review
- distribution and pricing (including refusal to deal, price maintenance, exclusive dealing, tied selling and market restriction)
- abuse of dominance
- deceptive advertising and marketing practices
- conspiracies, cartels and bid rigging
- competitor collaborations and strategic alliances
- government/regulatory investigations
- searches and seizures
- Competition Bureau immunity and leniency programs
- corporate compliance programs
Trade
- trade remedies (including anti-dumping, anti-subsidy and safeguard proceedings before Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT) and in review proceedings before the Federal Court of Appeal and North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) panels)
- market access within Canada – i.e., freer inter-provincial/territorial trade via the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA)
- market access outside Canada – i.e., freer international trade via the various World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreements, NAFTA, Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and Canada’s numerous bilateral free trade agreements including those with Chile, Israel, Korea, Peru and the Ukraine
- export and import controls
- economic sanctions
- trade embargoes
- Canada’s Foreign Extraterritorial Measures Act (FEMA) and orders issued under FEMA – in particular, the notification and compliance obligations on Canadian companies respecting US legal measures that prohibit trade or commerce between Canada and Cuba
- customs and tariffs (including duty relief, recovery, refunds, drawbacks and deferrals, tariff classification, rules of origin, tariff treatment, country-of-origin marking, value for duty, and preferential tariff treatment)
- anti-corruption/bribery
- corporate social responsibility
- anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing
Procurement
Government procurement, including advising public and private sector clients on:
- the law of competitive bidding and contracting under CETA, CFTA, NAFTA, WTO, Ontario-Quebec Trade and Cooperation Agreement (OQTCA), New West Partnership Trade Agreement (NWPTA), and others;
- the effect of Canada’s trade agreements and domestic legislation, regulations and practices on government procurement, for example on the operations and governance of municipal projects involving public-private partnerships (P3);
- the bid protest procedures under established trade agreements (ie before the CITT) and the procedures being established under the new agreements (ie, CFTA, CETA) applicable to local governments;
- the procurement challenges before all level of courts re judicial reviews, injunctions, among other procedures;
- the preparation and drafting of proposal documents and developing proposal strategies, helping clients access the right individuals within the public sector – whether at the political, administrative or C-suite level – to unlock projects; make a bid-no bid decision; develop and refine proposals; tests value propositions; polish presentation skills; create negotiations strategies; and assist throughout contract negotiations; and
- the preparation and attendance on debriefing procedures and meetings.
Investment
- foreign investment reviews and undertakings under the Investment Canada Act with regards to proposed business transactions
- NAFTA’s Chapter 11 respecting investments by and protections for NAFTA investors
- Canada’s bilateral investment promotion and protection agreements including those with Argentina, Barbados, Cameroon, Costa Rica, Hong Kong, Kenya, Kuwait, Lebanon and Mongolia.
