News & Publications Archive

Senior Mining Partners, Karen MacMillan and Khaled Abdel-Barr have written the Canadian chapter of this year's International Comparative Legal Guide: Mining Law. Read the full chapter about their projections of the industry for 2018.

Lawson Lundell LLP is honoured to be once again shortlisted by Chambers & Partners in the category of Regional Law Firm of the Year for the 2017 Chambers Canada Awards. Our firm was named Regional Law Firm of the Year in 2015 and was shortlisted in 2016. 

These awards are based on the research for the 2018 edition of Chambers Canada: Canada’s Leading Lawyers for Business. These awards reflect a law firm’s pre-eminence in key practice areas. They also reflect notable achievements over the past 12 months including outstanding work, impressive strategic growth and excellence in client service. 

Award winners will be honoured at this year’s Chambers Canada Guide Launch and Awards Ceremony being held on September 27th at the Renaissance Toronto Downtown Hotel.

Rita Andreone, QC has written an article entitled, “Pondering Career Development” in the Fall 2017 Edition of Business in Vancouver: Women in Business. The article discusses some pieces of advice to consider throughout your career. 

We are pleased to announce that 46 of Lawson Lundell LLP’s lawyers have been recognized in the 12th Edition of The Best Lawyers in Canada® across 30 practice areas. Each year, The Best Lawyers in Canada compiles lists of outstanding lawyers by conducting peer-review surveys whereby leading lawyers confidentially evaluate their professional peers.

On July 25th, 2017 Jeffrey Read was quoted in a Lexpert article, “OSC criticizes TSX for casual proxy tactic approval”. This article discusses the Ontario Securities Commission recent Eco Oro decision in reprimanding the Toronto Stock Exchange for approving a private placement that uses questionable tactics meant to block a proxy challenge.

Craig Ferris, QC and Lisa Peters, QC co-authored a chapter on "International Arbitration" for the 2017 Chambers Global Practice Guides. The chapter discusses key topics in Canadian arbitration law. 

Vancouver’s new Empty Homes Tax became effective January 1, 2017.

Targeting the approximately 10,000 year-round empty and 10,000 under-occupied homes in Vancouver, homes which are unoccupied for six full months of the year or more, will be subject to the new 1%  Empty Homes Tax (the “EHT”) imposed by Vancouver’s new Vacancy Tax By-law No. 11674 (the “By-law”).  Homes that are determined or deemed to be vacant will be subject to an EHT equal to 1% of the property’s taxable assessed value in addition to the existing property tax.  The EHT will be applied annually, with the first taxation year beginning January 1, 2017.  The tax for 2017 would be payable by April 2018.

Click the above pdf to read more.

Nicholas Shon and Andrew Mildenhall's article, "Reducing vacate clauses in B.C. residential tenancy agreements" was recently published in the Lawyer's Daily. The article examined potential changes to  Bill 16, the Tenancy Statutes Amendment Act, 2017. Should Bill-16 become law, it will significantly impact residential landlords and developers.

Heather Ferris was profiled in the April 2017 edition of the Global Restructuring Review. This issue features women in restructuring and insolvency and examines their experiences working in the field.

On April 26, 2017, Sandra MacKenzie was quoted in the Yellowknifer's article, "Unpaid 911 cash goes to Stanton charity". Sandra was quoted as Chair of the Stanton Territorial Hospital Foundation.

In a judgment delivered March 30, 2017, the Federal Court of Appeal ("FCA") in Minister of National Revenue v. BP Canada Energy Company, 2017 FCA 61, unanimously upheld an appeal by BP (in dismissing the federal court judge's compliance order requiring BP to disclose its uncertain tax positions and underlying analysis contained in its tax accrual working papers ("TAWPs") pursuant to the Minister’s inspection powers in subsection 231.1(1) of the Income Tax Act (the "ITA"). This decision has had the effect of substantially overturning the judgment and statements of law made by the Federal Court of Canada ("FCC") where the judge ruled that the Minister has the statutory authority to request analysis and lists of tax risks and underlying analysis prepared in the course of an audit without justification - but it does not necessarily mean that TAWPs are always off limits from the Minister's investigatory powers.

Valerie Mann discusses the importance of human dynamics in mergers and acquisitions in her Business in Vancouver column “People, corporate culture are fundamental to an M&A’s success.”

On Monday, March 27th, Peter Roberts was quoted in the Business in Vancouver article, "Court approves first condominium sale under Bill 40." The article is the second in a two-part series examining the impact of Bill 40 on condominium owners. It focuses on the BC Supreme Court’s recent approval of the first sale of a condominium complex under the new provincial process.

Jennifer Nyland and Laura Duke's article, "Court clarifies threshold requirement to trigger BC environmental assessment" was published in the February-March issue of Canadian Mining Journal. The article examines a recent decision by the B.C. Court of Appeal clarifying the threshold requirement to trigger a BC environmental assessment.

Rita Andreone, QC and Michael Lee prepared a Q&A guide to "Corporate Governance and Directors' Duties in Canada."

The Q&A gives a high level overview of board composition, the comply or explain approach, management rules and authority, directors’ duties and liabilities, transactions with directors and conflicts, company meetings, internal controls, accounts and audit, institutional investors and reform proposals.

This paper discusses contract law issues including decisions of relevance to commercial lawyers and business leaders giving a snapshot of particular principles of interest that arose in case law over the past 12 months. 

Deborah Cushing is quoted in The Vancouver Sun article, "The Americans are coming! The Americans are coming! But will we let them in?" published on November, 11 2016. This article discusses the impact of the American election results on immigration to Canada.

Lisa Chamzuk and Nicole Skuggedal’s article “CRTC Releases CASL Decision Clarifying the Limits of Implied Consent” discusses the first written reasons issued by Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) in an Anti-Spam case under Canada’s legislation (CASL). In particular, the CRTC decision provides guidance on the scope of the “conspicuous publication” exemption and on the penalties likely to be levied under CASL.

Peter Tolensky and Ed Wilson from Lawson Lundell’s Real Estate Group contributed to Chambers Canada’s Overview: REAL ESTATE: An Introduction to British Columbia. This overview examines British Columbia’s active real estate market in 2016, with a particular focus on the Metro Vancouver area. 

Laura Bevan is quoted in the Canadian Business Franchise article, "Franchise locations must be known prior to disclosure document", published on October, 17 2016. This article examines how franchisee Raibex Canada in Mississauga, Ont., was entitled to rescind its franchise agreement with All Star Wings and Ribs (ASWR) because the franchise location and the head lease were not established before the disclosure document was provided.

Lawson Lundell Partner Lewis Manning is mentioned in the Daily Oil Bulletin article, “Alberta Court of Appeal Reserves Decision in RedWater Energy Court Case." 

Sheila MacPherson and Sandra MacKenzie were quoted in Financial Post article, "Chambers Canada 2017: Legal practice in the Arctic requires special expertise" which acknowledges the differences of practising law in the North by launching a new category: General Business Law: Northern Canada and Arctic.

On October 3, 2016 Rob Sider was quoted in The Province article, "Stress leaves exploit a medical and legal grey area." This article discusses an increase of stress-related medical leaves in Canada which result in a medical and legal "grey area" one that employers have limited ability to manage.

Jim Middlemiss from the National Post, "Stock prices fuel Canadian acquisitions" quotes Stuart Breen on the condition of the markets and its effect on M&A transactions. 

Karen MacMillan, Khaled Abdel-Barr, and Amaan Gangji’s article, "Wearables in the Mining Sector: Balancing Potential Benefits and Privacy Considerations" was recently published in the Lexpert Special Edition on Leading Canadian Lawyers in Global Mining. This article discusses a few of the potential benefits of implementing "wearables" in the workplace of mining companies, and considers data and privacy issues that need to be managed. 

Senior Mining Partners, Karen MacMillan and Khaled Abdel-Barr have written the Canadian chapter of this year's International Comparative Legal Guide: Mining Law. Read the full chapter about their projections of the industry for 2017.

Congratulations to Lisa A. Peters, who was elected Chair of The British Columbia Law Institute during its AGM on Wednesday, August 31st.

For the full press release please visit: http://www.bcli.org/bcli-holds-agm-elects-new-officers

Lewis Manning and Bernadita Tamura-O'Connor provide a Q&A guide to "Oil and gas regulation in Canada: overview"

The Q&A gives a high level overview of the domestic oil and gas sector, rights to oil and gas, health safety and the environment, sale and trade in oil and gas, tax and enforcement of regulation. It covers transfer of rights; transportation by pipeline; environmental impact assessments; decommissioning; waste regulations and proposals for reform.

This article appeared in the 2016 edition of The International Comparative Legal Guide to: Mining Law; published by Global Legal Group Ltd, London

Our Managing Partner, Clifford Proudfoot has penned an article in Lexpert about the need for independent regional law firms in a world of globalization that is seeing Canadian firms merge across borders to become international. Read Cliff's discussionhere.

Peter Roberts was featured in the Vancouver Sun discussing how new legislation could make stratas disband as a result of lucrative offers by developers which would see an increased value per unit. 

Senior Real Estate lawyer, Ed Wilson was quoted in the Canadian Lawyer Magazine article, "B.C. restricts contract assignments", which discusses how Vancouver's escalating property values led some real estate representatives to flip properties, in the period between the signing of the agreement to purchase and closing by assigning the sale to another seller at a higher price.
For Ed's full comments, please click the above pdf.

The BC Government has passed a bill (Bill 27 – 2016: Human Rights Code Amendment Act, 2016) to add "gender identity and expression" as a prohibited ground of discrimination under the Human Rights Code. The amendment adds a prohibition against discrimination on the basis of "gender identity and expression" in addition to the existing grounds of “sex” and “sexual orientation”.

The provincial government announced earlier today, July 25, 2016, that foreign buyers of residential real estate in the Greater Vancouver Regional District (excluding Tsawwassen First Nation lands) will be subject to an additional property transfer tax (The “Additional PTT”) of 15% of the fair market value of a foreign entity's proportionate share of property. For a more detailed overview of this new tax, please refer to the Ministry of Finance Tax Information Sheet.

In summary, the Additional PTT:

1. Is effective on August 2, 2016, regardless of when the applicable contract of purchase and sale was entered into.

2. Is in addition to the general property transfer tax payable on applicable real estate transfers registered with the Land Title Office.

3. Applies to "residential property" which includes, but is not limited to, single family residences, duplexes, multifamily residences, apartments, condominiums and nursing homes.

4. Applies to "foreign entities", being:

a) foreign nationals who are not Canadian citizens or permanent residents; b) foreign corporations that were either not incorporated in Canada or incorporated in Canada but controlled in whole or in part by a foreign national or other foreign corporation (unless the shares of the corporation are listed on a Canadian stock exchange); and c) taxable trusts, being foreign national or foreign corporations or a beneficiary of a trust that is a foreign national or foreign corporation.

5. Applies to any applicable residential property transfer, even if the transaction would normally be exempt from property transfer tax, for example a transaction between related individuals or a transfer resulting from an amalgamation.

6. Does not apply to non-residential property.

7. Requires that foreign entities registering a transfer arrange to have an Additional Property Transfer Tax Return form filed at the time the property transfer is filed with the Land Title Office.

The Additional PTT is being introduced through Bill 28-2016 Miscellaneous Statutes (Housing Priority Initiatives) Amendment Act, 2016 [add link], which passed first reading at the provincial legislature today. This legislation is aimed at creating new measures to help make home ownership in the Lower Mainland more affordable. In addition to amendments to the Property Transfer Tax Act, Bill 28-2016 also includes proposed changes to the Real Estate Services Act to end self-regulation of the real estate industry and to the Vancouver Charter to grant the City of Vancouver the power to implement and administer a tax on vacant houses. 

We are pleased to announce that three lawyers and one alumnus from Lawson Lundell LLP have been recognized by the Continuing Legal Education Society for British Columbia (“CLEBC”) for their outstanding contributions. Partners Edward Wilson, David Allard, James Fraser and former partner Paul Bradley were recognized among CLEBC’s list of the most prolific volunteers from 1996-2016. According to CLEBC, this list “counts each time a volunteer has chaired or co-chaired a course, presented at a course, authored or updated a book chapter or course paper, reviewed a book as a member of an editorial board, or contributed to CLEBC in other specific ways, between 1996 and 2016.” The work that the volunteers have undertaken has included contributions to legal education and analysis as well as refining professional ethics and fostering diverse perspectives in the profession. CLEBC volunteers include lawyers, judges, academics, paralegals, legal support staff and other experts from across BC, Canada and the US. Please join us in congratulating Ed, David, Jim and Paul on this tremendous achievement.  

Partner and our Chief Inclusiveness Officer, Karen MacMillan, has written an article in Business in Vancouver on how to build a successful diversity and inclusiveness program in your organization. 

Paul Negenman was quoted in the CAPLA June 2016 issue article, "Lunch 'N Learn: 'Never Do A License Transfer Unless You Know The LLR' ", which addresses how buyers and sellers of oil and natural gas assets in Western Canada who want to ensure a successful licence transfer application (LTA) should never do a transaction where they do not know the asset specific Licensee Liability Rating (LLR) and its impact on them.

For the full article, please see the above pdf.