This section keeps you up-to-date on the latest news and upcoming public appearances of Lavery professionals.
News
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Gerald Stotland, Partnet at Lavery, to Arbitrate Family Law Disputes in Ontario
Montreal, April 27, 2010 - Gerald Stotland, a partner at Lavery, has been accredited to arbitrate family law matters in the province of Ontario. He is one of the few bilingual lawyers who is member of both the Quebec Bar and the Law Society of Upper Canada to receive this certification.Arbitration in family law can be advantageous for certain parties who seek an alternative to Court. According to Mr. Stotland, “access to the courts can often result in long delays and consequently prove to be unduly expensive. In many instances, arbitration allows the parties to have immediate access to an expert well-versed in family law who will render a decision which will, once registered, have the same effect as a Court Order”.Benefits of arbitration are speed and expertise. Parties may still resort to courts should they decide to appeal the arbitrator’s decision. Parties should seek an arbitrator in family law that has in-depth knowledge and experience. Mr. Stotland brings with him years of legal experience as a recognized expert in the field.Mr. Stotland’s expertise has long been established throughout Canada. Fluent in English and French, he has been representing clients in Quebec and Ontario for over 35 years. He also counsels other lawyers as well as accountants, addressing family law aspects arising in the context of business and personal financial planning. Mr. Stotland is the former President of both the International Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (Canada) and the Canadian Bar Association Family Law Section for the Quebec region. He is recognized by his peers as a leading practitioner in Family Law in both The Canadian Legal LEXPERT® Directory and Best Lawyers in Canada.
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Lavery now has a tenth lawyer named Advocatus Emeritus (Ad. E.)
Montreal, April 27, 2010 – Lavery is pleased to announce that Jean Martel has been named Advocatus Emeritus (Ad.E.) by decision of the General Council of the Bar of Quebec. This title was created in 2007 to recognize the exceptional contribution of certain lawyers to the advancement of the profession or the work of the Bar. Mr Martel will therefore join the group of 158 lawyers currently holding this distinction among the 23 000 members of the Québec Bar. Jean Martel’s practice is focused both on a national and international level on securities, financial institutions, financial services and corporations. In these fields, he advises regulators and industry groups of the securities and financial services sectors, institutional investors and leading participants of the Canadian capital markets, and business corporations both private and public. As Assistant Deputy Minister of Finance for Québec and Deputy Minister responsible for the Financial Sector, from 1988 to 1994, he was in charge of the public policy and law-making process with regards to financial institutions, securities, financial services and labor-sponsored investment funds. From 1995 to 1999, he chaired the Commission des valeurs mobilières du Québec (CVMQ). He is notably a member of the Board of Directors of the TMX Group Inc., the public corporation that operates the Toronto Stock Exchange (the senior stock market of Canada), the Montreal Exchange (the Canadian market for standardized derivatives) and the TSX Ventures Exchange (the Canadian Market for small and medium size companies), and of the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC). The name of Jean Martel will now be added to the nine other Lavery lawyers who have previously received the same honour: Ann Bigué, Pierre Bourque, Jules Brière, Raymond Doray, J. Vincent O’Donnell, Odette Jobin-Laberge, Louis Payette, Jean Saint-Onge and Michel Yergeau.
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Lavery highlights Alexandre Despatie’s victories in Mexico
As sponsor of the Quebec athlete, Lavery wishes to salute Alexandre Despatie’s victories in the three-metre springboard event at the recent competitions in Veracruz, Mexico during the FINA Diving World Series. By winning a gold medal on April 16 and a silver medal on April 20, Alexandre has once again shown the talent and perseverance that make him a genuine champion. The last time that Alexandre climbed onto the first step of the podium was at the Pan American Games in 2007 in the international 3-metre springboard event.
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Lavery welcomes Spiridoula Vassilopoulos specializing in business and financial law
Montreal, April 14, 2010 – Lavery is pleased to welcome Ms. Spiridoula Vassilopoulos as a member of the Financing and Financial Services group at our offices in Montreal, where she represents both lenders and borrowers in the negotiation and preparation of their financing and security documentation. Admitted to the Ontario Bar in 2003 after receiving her law degree from the University of Ottawa, then to the Quebec Bar in 2005, Ms. Vassilopoulos also holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from McGill University. Before joining Lavery, she practiced with other law firms in Ontario and Quebec.
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Lavery highlights Alexandre Despatie’s return to competition
As sponsor of Quebec champion Alexandre Despatie, Lavery wishes to highlight the perseverance and courage shown by this young athlete who, after having recovered from a number of injuries over the last few seasons, was rewarded with a sixth place finish in the men’s three-metre springboard event during the first leg of the FINA Diving World Series held in Qingdao, China on March 27, 2010.
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The Lavery Conference on “La gestion de risques en matière immobilière” is a great success
On March 18, Lavery hosted a number of corporate lawyers at a seminar on “La gestion de risques en matière immobilière” at Fairmont’s The Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal.Following up on the success of its previous seminar, Lavery was pleased to repeat the performance on March 18, with 175 corporate lawyers attending this latest event.Here is a brief summary of the day’s activities:13 experienced speakers2 large group sessions, entitled: Some notions related to building ownership and real rights Purchase options and renewal options in commercial leasesA choice of 3 workshops on themes of great interest: Insurance and non-liability clauses in leasing contracts Hidden public law costs liable to affect buildings Legal constraints in carrying out construction work by owner/builders1 reliable source of information, recognized and free of cost*3 hours of training as per the Quebec Bar by-law respecting the professional training of advocates, for all participants registered for the whole seminar**1 excellent occasion for exchanging with one’s peersOur lawyers also write articles on a variety of subjects of great interest, which are regularly posted on our lavery.ca website.************************** Lavery seminars are recognized by the Quebec Bar as part of its mandatory continuing education program.** Since April 1, 2009, Quebec lawyers are obliged to undertake 30 hours of professional training in every 24-month period.
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Lavery represents the syndicate of underwriters in the $86.25 million bought deal financing of convertible unsecured subordinated debentures of Cominar Real Estate Investment Trust
Montreal, February 25, 2010 – On January 12, 2010, Cominar Real Estate Investment Trust closed a public offering of $86.25 million aggregate principal amount of Series E 5.75% Convertible Unsecured Subordinated Debentures.The Debentures were sold to a syndicate of underwriters led by National Bank Financial Inc. and BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc., including RBC Dominion Securities Inc., Desjardins Securities Inc., CIBC World Markets Inc., Scotia Capital Inc., Canaccord Financial Ltd., CI Capital Markets Inc. and Genuity Capital Markets G.P.The syndicate of underwriters was represented by a team from Lavery consisting of Marc Rochefort, Michel Servant and Guillaume Lavoie (corporate and securities), and Philip Nolan (tax).Cominar is the largest commercial property owner and manager in the Province of Québec.
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Luc Thibaudeau will be a speaker at the Conférence sur le droit de la publicité et du marketing.
During this conference on advertising and marketing law, to be held in Montreal on March 25 and 26, 2010, Mr. Luc Thibaudeau, a partner with Lavery, will address the conference on the reform of the Consumer Protection Act. Among other issues, Mr. Thibaudeau will cover a number of specific clauses and go over the objectives of the Consumer Protection Act with respect to advertising.
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Jean Saint-Onge becomes a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America
Mr. Jean Saint-Onge, a partner at Lavery practicing in litigation, has been offered the prestigious title of Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America. The Litigation Counsel of America is an honorary society composed of less than one half of one percent of the lawyers in North America. Nominations of fellows are by invitation only and are highly selective, being based on accomplishment and excellence in litigation. Mr. Saint-Onge practices in the areas of commercial insurance, class actions, competition and antitrust, product liability as well as the distribution of financial products and services.
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Lavery announces the appointment of Richard Dolan as Chairman of the Board
Montreal, February 18, 2010 – Lavery is pleased to announce the appointment of Richard Dolan to the position of Chairman of the Board. After having led the firm during the last 10 years, he succeeds Michel Yergeau who was Chairman of the Board for more than 13 years. “I am highly honoured by the trust my partners have shown me and determined to provide every support for our new Managing Partner, Élise Poisson, in pursuing the development of Lavery and reinforcing our Business Law positioning in the years to come,” Mr. Dolan declared. As Chairman of the Board, Richard Dolan will continue his activities with the World Services Group, in addition to playing an active role in client development for the firm’s benefit. A specialist in corporate and commercial law, his practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions and commercial transactions. Mr. Dolan joined the firm's Business Law Group in 1979 and was a partner in the Business Law Group from 1986 to 1996, during which he represented numerous Canadian and foreign clients establishing, acquiring or selling businesses in Canada, the United States and South America. From 1996 to 2000, he served as Senior Vice-President, Law and General Counsel, with one of the firm's clients, a leading international engineering and construction firm. He was also a member of the Management Committee and the Operations Review Committee of that firm while continuing to practise in the areas of mergers and acquisitions and being involved in several major infrastructure privatizations, including the privatization of Highway 407 in Ontario.
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Bernard Larocque presents a review of the jurisprudence in insurance law in 2009 for the Canadian Insurance Claims Managers Association
On February 17, Bernard Larocque, a partner at Lavery, gave a speech to the Canadian Insurance Claims Managers Association. He took as his subject a review of the jurisprudence in insurance law in 2009.During this conference, among other things, Mr. Larocque discussed formation of the contract, remedial work and liability insurance warranty, as well as the wide variety of liability insurance.
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Michel Servant invited to preside the Prix Relève d’Excellence 2010 Committee of Réseau HEC Montreal
Michel Servant, a partner at Lavery, will be the President of the Prix Relève d’Excellence 2010 Committee of Réseau HEC Montréal. This competition recognizes the professional success of HEC graduates aged 35 and under, in four different classes: Large Enterprises, Small and Medium Enterprises (SME), Entrepreneur and Young Professional. Prizewinners are selected by a jury of experienced businesspeople.This event will take place at a Gala-Breakfast on Friday, May 14, 2010, at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Hotel. It is the 25th anniversary of the Prix Relève d’Excellence this year and Patrick Palerme, President and Chief Executive Officer of GE Capital Canada, will act as Honorary President.HEC Montreal is the first business school in Canada and arguably Canada’s leading business school with over one hundred years of history and three international accreditations.