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On March 27, 2025, Moov AI, Canada’s leading artificial intelligence and data solutions company, announced that it entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Publicis Groupe.
The combination of Moov AI’s best-in-class consulting, proprietary solutions and insights coupled with Publicis Groupe’s CoreAI offering will add a powerful AI-driven engine and set of capabilities for Publicis Groupe Canada to leverage in-market and with its clients.
Francis Dumoulin had the privilege of representing and advising Moov AI shareholders in the sale to Publicis Groupe, with Alexandre Hébert’s support and Siddhartha Borissov-Beausoleil’s contribution in closing the transaction.
About Lavery
Lavery is the leading independent law firm in Québec. Its more than 200 professionals, based in Montréal, Québec City, Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivières, work every day to offer a full range of legal services to organizations doing business in Québec. Recognized by the most prestigious legal directories, Lavery professionals are at the heart of what is happening in the business world and are actively involved in their communities. The firm's expertise is frequently sought after by numerous national and international partners to provide support in cases under Québec jurisdiction.
Growth is nothing new at Airudi. This rising AI star has consistently doubled or even tripled its sales every year since its launch in 2019.
“We’re HR specialists. Growth is in our DNA,” says Amanda Arciero, Co-founder and VP Operations at Airudi.
Airudi’s algorithm automates HR decision-making processes, helping companies make strategic decisions faster. Its AI-powered solution is designed by and for people and is rapidly gaining in popularity. “It’s like a virtual HR manager,” says Pape Wade, CEO and Co-founder of Airudi.
Pape was once HR director of a large company with 3,000 employees, and Amanda was his senior advisor when they made the same observation: “HR was essentially a support function. Most professionals were consumed by repetitive tasks and time-consuming processes,” says Amanda. “Plus, we were seeing tons of data accumulate in filing cabinets and spreadsheets that we weren’t using at all.”
Amanda and Pape decide to leave their respective jobs to pursue an ambitious goal: to use the data accumulated by HR departments to automate administrative workflows and put people back at the heart of organizations. Thus Airudi was born.
The two entrepreneurs landed their first major contract worth $3 million in 2020. Year after year, they continued to gain new customers in Canada, Europe and, more recently, Africa.
Their growth has been organic but skyrocketing. In five years, Airudi has become a leader in the AI community and the HR sector. Thanks to strategic partnerships, over 5,000 companies worldwide now use their products.
From left to right: Amanda Arciero and Pape Wade.
Airudi’s added value
With some 50 employees in Quebec, Ontario and Senegal, Airudi currently offers three AI-powered solutions: workforce prediction and allocation, occupational health and safety, and enhanced recruitment.
“Our goal is to reach around $100 million in profit by 2028,” says Amanda.
The company’s name, Airudi, is pronounced like the word érudit (“erudite” in French). It’s a nod to Airudi’s multi-disciplinary team of artificial intelligence, data science, human resources and business intelligence experts.
The secret to their success? According to the two entrepreneurs, it’s a combination of several factors.
1. Putting people first
First of all, Airudi’s algorithm addresses a major concern for the HR sector.
We’re using digital intelligence to make HR teams more efficient and productive, allowing them to focus on what matters: creating human connections.
Amanda Arciero, Co-founder and VP Operations, Airudi
Amanda gives the example of the recruitment platform, which helps customers recruit better, faster and on a larger scale by automatically matching profiles to vacant positions and ensuring fast and efficient follow-up and interview scheduling.
“By reducing the time spent on recruitment, our customers can spend more time building relationships with candidates and successfully onboarding them into the company,” says Amanda. Two other strengths of the Airudi solution: quality and granularity. “The CFO of a company with 3,000 employees is not at all the same thing as the CFO of a company with 30 employees. Our algorithm captures this kind of nuance.”
80%: Reduction in recruitment time when using Airudi’s enhanced recruitment solution.
A people-centric approach guides the company’s own business strategy, not just its product development. The first team that Airudi hired—even before building a technology team and thinking about fundraising—was an advisory board made up of experienced businesspeople including Robert Dutton, ex-CEO of Rona, Frantz Saintellemy, President and CEO of LeddarTech, and Julie Plouffe, Partner, SVP Finance and Chief Accounting Officer at Sagard.
“We learned together and built Airudi together,” says Pape. “Our advisory board continues to give us invaluable insight.”
Next, the two entrepreneurs established strategic partnerships with researchers working in Quebec’s top AI network.
With highly skilled employees ranging from masters-holders to post-docs, Airudi has developed an SaaS (Software as a Service) business model that guarantees financial stability through recurring revenues.
2. Building strategic partnerships
Strategic partnerships were also important to the company’s growth. “We operate mainly through redistribution partnerships or marketing agreements,” says Amanda. “We talk more about partners than customers at Airudi.”
One of Airudi’s most promising partnerships is with the Maritime Employers Association (MEA), the organization that manages the workforce at the Port of Montreal.
Since ship arrivals and departures don’t follow a regular daily schedule, the MEA had to ask terminal operators to determine their labour requirements for the next day. Port employees’ schedules were generated daily at 6 p.m.
Taking into account port traffic, weather conditions, and the quantity and type of cargo, Airudi developed an algorithm that optimizes workforce allocation while respecting collective agreements, the availability of port workers and the skills required.
“Our solution accurately predicts ship arrival times up to 21 days in advance, ensuring smooth operations in the port and reducing workforce allocation errors from 30% to 15%, generating significant savings in labour costs,” says Amanda.
The partnership with the Port of Montreal has opened doors in Europe. The Quebec-based company subsequently developed a strategic partnership with SOGET, a French company specializing in streamlining logistics flows, covering 40 logistics sites in 8 countries.
More recently, Airudi has adapted its predictive solution to provide Urgences-santé with a similar paramedical staff planning tool.
3. You’re never too small to go international
International expansion is another successful strategy that has put wind in the company’s sails. “Innovation is experienced differently in North America, Europe and Africa,” says Pape. “We’re an innovative company. It’s important to have these different perspectives.”
Many companies say to themselves: We’re going to make our name on the Quebec market, then go international. I think this is a mistake. We had five employees and were already developing the international market.”
Pape Wade, CEO and Co-founder of Airudi
Airudi has already had customers in Europe for two years and has just opened offices in Pape’s native Senegal. The growth and innovation potential of the African market is still underestimated. “Our Cameroonian-born scientific director, Foutse Khomh, ranks as the world’s fourth most prolific researcher in terms of publications in AI, and he ranks first in Canada. There’s a lot of talent and growth potential on the African continent,” says Amanda.
Currently, 80% of Airudi’s sales are generated in Canada, 12% in Europe and 8% in Africa.
As it expands its international footprint, the SME remains firmly rooted in the Quebec technology community. “When it comes to innovation, we’re very strong in Quebec, with access to the best talent and researchers,” says Pape, who also sits on the board of Mila – Quebec AI Institut.
Growth, but not at any price
AI is a powerful tool, but one that raises a number of ethical issues.
“We’re making the same mistake we made with the environment. If we don’t put the responsible side of AI first, we’ll soon hit a wall.”
Pape Wade, CEO and Co-founder, Airudi
Each year, Pape and Amanda participate in a strategic planning exercise to ensure that Airudi’s business objectives and technological advancement are aligned with its values.
Are we creating a positive impact for the benefit of society, employees and customers? Do we create people-centric products? Are we making good use of technology?
“We put a lot of thought into all our decisions. If there’s growth potential, but it’s not aligned with our values, we won’t consider it.”
Amanda Arciero, Co-founder and VP Operations, Airudi
Pape likes to use the analogy of agriculture when talking about Airudi’s growth strategy: “Seeds are carefully sown and tended until they flower successfully. You have to be patient.”
For example, the strategic partnership with SOGET came about after a year and a half of work and meetings. “A partnership that opens the door to 40 ports around the world certainly takes time,” says Pape.
Conclusion
Putting people back at the centre of organizations. Customers who become partners. Learning from other perspectives and approaches. Growth, but not at any price. In five years, Pape and Amanda have built a winning strategy. Today, Airudi is a solid company rooted in sustainable values.
What’s next? According to Amanda, the more we look to the future, the more technology will be part of our lives. It’s essential to shore up companies against current challenges, including labour shortages, the arrival of new generations on the job market and inflation.
Airudi is currently looking for ways to further democratize access to its solutions, so that all organizations can benefit from them—while still centring people, being responsible, and creating value for companies and workers.
“Our philosophy is not to make money. Our philosophy is to create innovative, caring, people-centred technology that creates a positive impact. Usually, when you focus on good business, success and growth naturally follow,” says Amanda.
Lavery is pleased to have supported Oliva Capital in its recent acquisition of a majority stake in VoIP.ms, and in the addition of Fondaction to the shareholder base of this innovative IP telephony company. This major transaction had the financial support of Desjardins and BDC Capital and was an important milestone for VoIP.ms; this first institutional partnership is a strategic step towards fast-tracking the company’s growth and expanding its services.
Lavery played a key role in the deal, providing legal and strategic expertise on several fronts. In collaboration with KPMG, Lavery helped Oliva Capital set up a pre-closing tax reorganization to optimize the deal’s structure. Our team also led the drafting and negotiation of the main agreements and set up the credit facilities.
The Lavery team was spearheaded by our Business Law partner, Étienne Brassard, with support from Bernard Trang, Julie Aubin-Perron, Francis Sabourin and Jen Deruchie.
About Oliva Capital
Oliva Capital is a private investment firm composed of an ecosystem of diversified companies. Through its financial expertise, as well as its strategic and operational guidance, Oliva elevates promising businesses to sustainable growth. The firm takes a collaborative and proactive approach to investment and aims to have a positive impact on the communities where it operates.
About Lavery
Lavery is the leading independent law firm in Québec. Its more than 200 professionals, based in Montréal, Québec City, Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivières, work every day to offer a full range of legal services to organizations doing business in Québec. Recognized by the most prestigious legal directories, Lavery professionals are at the heart of what is happening in the business world and are actively involved in their communities. The firm's expertise is frequently sought after by numerous national and international partners to provide support in cases under Québec jurisdiction.
This March 25th, 2025, the Superior Court of Quebec approved the sale of "Mikros Animation", the cartoon animation division of Technicolor Canada, Inc., a Canadian subsidiary of the Technicolor Group.
Lavery had the privilege of advising Technicolor Canada on this transaction, which was part of the court-ordered reorganization of the corporations that make up the Technicolor Group.
Simultaneously with the acquisition of the assets of the "Mikros Animation" division in Quebec, the buyer, RodeoFx, will also acquire the assets of the "Mikros Animation" division in France. This would greatly facilitate the closing of the transaction, considering that the Technicolor group is an internationally integrated company.
Still due to the international component of the "Mikros Animation" division's operations, this simultaneous acquisition of it's assets in Quebec and France required the unprecedented collaboration of the Tribunal des Activités Économiques de Paris and the Quebec Superior Court.
Completion of the transaction will ensure the continued operation of the "Mikros Animation" division in both Quebec and France and preserve up to 207 jobs in Montreal in the specialized field of animation, in addition to the 80 jobs in the "Mikros Animation" division in France.
The Lavery team led by Sébastien Vézina and Jean Legault also included Martin Pichette, Marc Ouellet, Jessica Parent, Ouassim Tadlaoui, David Tournier, David Choinière, Jean-Paul Timothée and Yasmine Belrachid.
About Lavery
Lavery is the leading independent law firm in Québec. Its more than 200 professionals, based in Montréal, Québec City, Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivières, work every day to offer a full range of legal services to organizations doing business in Québec. Recognized by the most prestigious legal directories, Lavery professionals are at the heart of what is happening in the business world and are actively involved in their communities. The firm's expertise is frequently sought after by numerous national and international partners to provide support in cases under Québec jurisdiction.
On March 17, 2025, TerraVest Industries Inc. announced the acquisition of EnTrans International, a North American manufacturer of tank trailers. To facilitate this major acquisition, TerraVest has amended its credit facility with a syndicate of lenders led by Desjardins Group. The new financing structure consists of a CAN$800 million revolving credit facility, a CAN$200 million term loan and two other CAN$100 million term loans.
Lavery played a key tole in advising TerraVest on the financing aspects of this transaction. The team at Lavery, headed by Brigitte Gauthier, including Bernard Trang, Francis Sabourin, Annie Groleau, Ana Cristina Nascimento, Jessy Ménard, Arielle Supino and Yanick Vlasak, worked closely with TerraVest to structure the amended credit facility. Lavery’s involvement allowed TerraVest to secure the funds needed to acquire EnTrans International, thereby reinforcing its position on the North American market.
About Lavery
Lavery is the leading independent law firm in Québec. Its more than 200 professionals, based in Montréal, Québec City, Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivières, work every day to offer a full range of legal services to organizations doing business in Québec. Recognized by the most prestigious legal directories, Lavery professionals are at the heart of what is happening in the business world and are actively involved in their communities. The firm's expertise is frequently sought after by numerous national and international partners to provide support in cases under Québec jurisdiction.
Marcel Landry founded Medifice in 1976 and had been running and growing the business for over four decades. In recent years, however, he began looking at succession planning. His company, which specializes in building and managing healthcare facilities, had experienced robust growth since its inception and was now recognized for its active role in developing advanced healthcare infrastructure across the province.
In the summer of 2017, Landry decided it was time to seize market opportunities and slow down a bit, so he started putting his plans in motion. That’s when he approached the three young candidates he had in mind to take over, and told them: “I think I’m ready to sell you my business.”
Although the three of them barely knew each other, they were drawn together by similar ambitions. “We weren’t friends teaming up to start a business. Our lives ran in parallel, but we all knew Marcel. That’s the one thing we had in common,” says Maxime Di Patria, one of the three buyers, currently Partner and CFO of Medifice.
Jean-Simon Masse came from the construction industry, where he had started out as a construction worker before moving to administration. He had been working with Landry for several years. Frédérick Gariépy had worked in real estate for over 10 years and brought both “boots on the ground” know-how and actual entrepreneurial experience to the table. Maxime Di Patria, who had previously worked for larger organizations, rounded out the trio, providing financial and investment expertise.
“The great thing about Marcel is that he’s always been there for young people, helping them grow and supporting them as they went into business. Everything he’s done in life has always revolved around that. He said to himself: Maxime will manage finance and operations, Jean-Simon will oversee the construction side of things, and Frédérick will handle development. Together, they will help Medifice grow, and I’ll be able to retire quietly when the time comes,” says Frédérick Gariépy, Partner and Vice-President, Development.
There was another challenge, however. All three potential buyers had to agree for the deal to go ahead. “We each wanted it to happen. The idea was to see if we were all on the same page. If there had been only two of us, the dynamic wouldn’t have been the same. We didn’t discuss details and percentages. Instead, we looked at things like: What do we want to do in life? What are our values? Do we want to make a profit and sell in five years, or do we want to own a business for the next 30 years?” says Jean-Simon Masse, Partner and Vice-President, Construction.
“We all had different goals, but we soon realized that we each wanted to work on meaningful projects that would change communities for the better. We each wanted to create buildings that would help provide better services to the public—buildings that we could show our children 10 years from now, saying: ‘I built that,’” adds Di Patria.
A few months later, the deal was done and Medifice welcomed three new partners: Jean-Simon Masse became Partner and Vice-President, Construction; Frédérick Gariépy, Partner and Vice-President, Development; and Maxime Di Patria, Partner and Chief Financial Officer. A new entity was created to oversee the construction, development and management of new projects. Landry stayed on as CEO and retained a 50% stake in the company, while the remaining 50% was distributed among the three new shareholders.
It was a winning formula that enabled Medifice to grow exponentially. Within seven years of the three new partners joining, the team had expanded to five times its original size, while sales revenue had increased tenfold.
“Today, we’re running Medifice together, and I’m proud to see how our partnership has strengthened our position in the market. The decision has enabled Medifice to expand considerably and do more to provide more services to Quebecers,” says Marcel Landry, founder of Medifice.
Each year, over 600,000 people walk through the doors of Medifice buildings to receive the services they need.
A visionary founder and a strong new leadership team
Medifice owes its success to its visionary founder and the structured approach taken by its carefully chosen, balanced leadership team.
With a rapidly aging population and a growing number of baby boomers looking to retire, businesses have been hitting the market at a steady clip.
In Quebec, 9% of SME owners are planning to sell or transfer their businesses, according to a study conducted in early 2024 by the Centre de transfert d’entreprise du Québec. Most entrepreneurs, however, have no succession plans or prospective buyers lined up, and that could jeopardize both the long-term viability of their businesses and economic growth in Quebec.
Medifice took a proactive and strategic approach to succession planning—unlike many companies that see it as a low priority and sometimes keep postponing it, potentially running into serious obstacles down the road. Landry’s decision to bring new partners on board was the result of careful consideration. By 2014, with Medifice gaining momentum and projects becoming increasingly complex, Landry realized he needed support.
Faced with the choice of selling his business to a Canadian-owned company or trying to build a new leadership team, Landry opted for the latter. He took the path that required more effort, but that choice would really pay off in the long run.
“I’ve always been deeply invested in the future of Medifice. That’s why I decided to bring in three young professionals I had connected with throughout my career. Selling my business was never an option. I’ve always believed in supporting up-and-coming talent, so I gave those young people the opportunity to lead and grow the business.”
Marcel LandryFounder, Medifice
“Marcel found us, recognized our strengths and saw how well we complemented one other, so he passed the company on to us under very favourable terms that no other offer could have matched. It’s his vision that brought us to where we are today,” says Di Patria.
“In the early days, we would handle every possible aspect of the business down to the smallest detail as best we could,” says Di Patria. “But we knew our role was to set up procedures, really making sure the business moved toward greater professionalism, with faster, more structured growth.”
In 2019, the new leadership team bought half of the remaining shares held by Landry, and the four became equal partners.
From left to right: Maxime Di Patria, Jean-Simon Masse, Frédérick Gariépy and Marcel Landry.
Managing emotions and finding the right people
As with any change of ownership process, the transition at Medifice came with its own set of challenges. The first challenge, following the 2017 deal, was to change the business structure and convert the sole proprietorship to a company with four shareholders.
For Landry, that meant relinquishing his role as the sole decision maker—a role he had held for over 40 years. For the three new partners, it meant finding their own ways of doing things and managing the company’s rapid growth, while acknowledging that the founder was letting go.
“In business, there’s a limit to how tough the work gets. The real challenge lies in managing the emotional dynamics among partners,” says Masse.
“Picture this: four different people, each with a different background. We didn’t think the same and didn’t talk the same. But we had to constantly make sure our personal and professional goals were aligned so the four of us could move forward together. That was one of our biggest challenges.”
Maxime Di Patria Partner and CFO, Medifice
The four partners enlisted industrial psychologists and consultants specializing in ownership transition to help them manage the human and emotional aspects of the process, organize themselves, and define a strong mission and vision for the future of Medifice.
So what is the team’s greatest strength? “We’ve always put the business before our personal needs, and we’ve managed to find a fair and respectful approach for everyone to help us get through the ups and downs,” says Di Patria. “We’ve all learned something different from Marcel. He rounds out our team. He’s our mentor and go-to person on many issues, not just business.”
Sharing the same values
With a portfolio of several dozen buildings, Medifice handles all aspects of a project, from financing and development (concept and design) to construction and building management. That strategy has enabled the company to maintain a broad perspective and exert greater control over quality and costs.
The fact that the founder and the three new shareholders share common values, such as making a difference, giving back and helping others, has also played a crucial role in the transition.
“At Medifice, we create buildings that meet real needs and make a real difference in people’s lives. Everything we do is designed to improve living conditions in our communities. And that’s not just a catchphrase—it’s really what the company is all about,” says Gariépy.
A promising future
After consolidating its position as a leader in assisted living facilities for seniors, the company expanded into new areas beyond its initial focus in health care. “We’re using our expertise to deliver customized real estate solutions. We build social infrastructure to meet the need for basic services in communities,” says Di Patria.
One of the latest projects completed by Medifice is Pôle santé Saint-Jérôme—a development of over $100 million, featuring a medical complex designed to serve over 150,000 patients per year, a 112-bed long-term care facility, an outpatient centre affiliated with the Saint-Jérôme hospital, and a specialized medical centre with seven operating rooms.
Another project, currently being developed, is the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières campus in Terrebonne, with completion scheduled for 2025.
Given the massive need for social infrastructure across the province, Medifice is positioning itself for sustained growth so it can continue to play its part in helping municipal, provincial and federal governments to better serve the population. The company’s vision is to become Canada’s largest developer and owner of positive-impact buildings by 2040.
“We’re a solid, close-knit team. We’re all working toward the same goal, and that’s key here. When the time comes, Marcel can retire with a clear conscience, knowing that we will continue the work he started and that the company’s mission—to improve living conditions in our communities—will remain at the core of everything we do,” says Di Patria.
Lavery is pleased to advise Newmont Corporation in one of Canada's largest mining transactions, valued at US$795 million. Completion of this transaction is scheduled for the first quarter of 2025.
Our mining law team is acting as Quebec Legal counsel to Newmont Corporation in connection with the sale of the Éléonore gold mine, located in the Eeyou Istchee Baie-James territory region of northern Quebec, to a private mining company based in the United Kingdom.
This sale is part of Newmont Corporation's strategy to refocus its portfolio of mining assets.As part of the transaction, our team reviewed and analyzed all assets associated with the Éléonore gold mine. This included mining titles such as mining leases, as well as the transfer and evaluation of government and environmental permits, to ensure compliance with mining laws and regulations.
The Lavery team was led by our Business Law partner, Sébastien Vézina, with support from Valérie Belle-Isle, Carole Gélinas, Éric Gélinas, Jean-Paul Timothée, William Bolduc, Joseph Gualdieri, Radia Amina Djouhaer, Charlotte Dangoisse, Salim Ben Abdessalem, Annie Groleau, Joëlle Montpetit and Nadine Giguère.
About NewmontNewmont is the world's leading gold company and a producer of copper, zinc, lead, and silver. The corporation's world-class portfolio of assets, prospects and talent is anchored in favorable mining jurisdictions in Africa, Australia, Latin America & Caribbean, North America, and Papua New Guinea. Newmont is the only gold producer listed in the S&P 500 Index and is widely recognized for its principled environmental, social, and governance practices. Newmont is an industry leader in value creation, supported by robust safety standards, superior execution, and technical expertise. Founded in 1921, the Company has been publicly traded since 1925.
About LaveryLavery is the leading independent law firm in Québec. Its more than 200 professionals, based in Montréal, Québec City, Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivières, work every day to offer a full range of legal services to organizations doing business in Québec. Recognized by the most prestigious legal directories, Lavery professionals are at the heart of what is happening in the business world and are actively involved in their communities. The firm's expertise is frequently sought after by numerous national and international partners to provide support in cases under Québec jurisdiction.
Pierre-Elliott Levasseur will always remember a conversation he had in 2010 with Guy Crevier, Editor of La Presse, who was also its president at the time. “The first iPad had just come out. We were both looking at the tablet and, although we didn’t know exactly what to think, we knew we had to do something with this new tool,” says Pierre-Elliott Levasseur, who has been President of La Presse since 2016.
The rest, as they say, is history.
La Presse’s titanic digital transformation and overhaul of its business model became a case study that has been making headlines for almost 15 years.
The last major milestone in this evolution was its change of business model in 2018, when La Presse decided to adopt a not-for-profit structure. This allowed it to diversify its revenue streams by obtaining donations and assistance from the federal and provincial governments, in addition to advertising revenue. Power Corporation would no longer own La Presse, abandoning the business model adopted by the media industry for the past century.
This new model also enabled La Presse to become one of the first news media in the country to obtain Registered Journalism Organization (RJO) status. Thanks to this, La Presse can now issue tax receipts to its donors, thus diversifying its income and ensuring its long-term survival.
All this was a big gamble in uncharted territory, but La Presse was no stranger to risk taking over the years.
Why the change in structure?
In a difficult economic climate for media companies, marked by declining ad revenues and fierce digital competition, La Presse has chosen to remain faithful to the principle of free access, which is deeply rooted in its mission.
Quality information is a public good, and a public good must serve the entire population, for free. We had to find another business model to increase and diversify our revenue streams. If La Presse hadn’t transformed itself, it wouldn’t have survived. We had no choice but to take the risk.
Pierre-Elliott LevasseurPrésident, La Presse
Six years later, the gamble has paid off handsomely. Since the launch of the philanthropic model, over 75,000 people have donated to La Presse.
La Presse is the largest independent French-language media in North America, with over 500 employees, including 220 in the newsroom.
Every month, La Presse reaches 4 million readers, or 60% of Quebec’s adult population. “The quality of the product remained at the heart of all our decisions: we never compromised on that,” says Pierre-Elliott.
Human challenges
Getting there wasn’t easy. “The expression we used in 2018 when Power Corporation was no longer our owner was ‘we’re leaving the nest.’ We had to find a solution together, because otherwise we’d have gone bankrupt together.”
The culture of change that La Presse had developed in previous years as part of its digital transformation was the first step towards success. “It wasn’t our first transformation. But it certainly required a lot of communication to reassure people and convince them that we were heading in the right direction.”
Its excellent relationship with the unions was another success factor. “The unions supported us and always acted with us.”
In addition to a $50 million contribution to fund the transition, Power Corporation retained responsibility for past retirement plan obligations, which cushioned the risk and reassured employees.
Legal challenges
On top of the human challenges, there were legal obstacles. In order to convert to a not-for-profit structure, La Presse had to obtain a legislative change from the elected members of the National Assembly. When Power Corporation acquired the newspaper in 1967, the Quebec government passed a law preventing the transfer of ownership to foreign interests. A unanimous vote was required to amend the law.
“It was definitely a period of uncertainty. It was difficult to move forward operationally,” recalls Pierre-Elliott.
In July 2018, the legislative change was approved, and La Presse became an independent, not-for-profit structure.
A few months later, the philanthropic program was launched, and La Presse received its first donations from readers.
At the end of 2020, the tax transformation was completed, with the Canada Revenue Agency granting La Presse its Registered Journalism Organization (RJO) status, enabling it to become a qualified donee and issue tax receipts for donations received.
Committed donors
In 2023, 56,000 donors contributed a total of $7.8 million to La Presse, an increase of 13% over 2022. “We started from zero and have now reached nearly $8 million in donations. This would not have been possible without our loyal donors,” says Pierre-Elliott.
La Presse ended the 2023 fiscal year with a positive balance sheet and a $40 million reserve fund. “This fund is designed to ensure La Presse’s long-term future, allowing us to weather economic downturns or technological changes. The fund also allows us to reinvest in our mission and in journalism in Quebec.”
Never stop innovating
At the same time, La Presse has seen an increase in advertising revenue in a shrinking market. These results can be attributed, in part, to yearly innovations in its advertising product offerings.
“Our advertising products are based on data and careful audience segmentation, in full compliance with the industry’s highest privacy standards. We listen to our customers and advertisers to understand their needs before making business decisions,” says Pierre-Elliott.
In writing its content, La Presse works with tools used by the world’s leading media, including the BBC and The Guardian, to determine angles for its coverage based on readers’ main information needs: to be informed, but also to have context, to be guided in their lives, and to be inspired and entertained.
La Presse’s journalistic mission is supported by a solid business team. For example, La Presse employs specialized technology and business intelligence teams. These two teams have nearly 100 employees working on innovative tools that help La Presse compete ethically and locally with some of the solutions offered by American digital giants.
La Presse’s digital transformation and change in business model have been essential to its success. “Our commitment to digital transformation was total. We didn’t compromise.”
Today, La Presse has a competitive and strategic advantage that’s hard to rival.
This year marks La Presse’s 140th anniversary, while La Presse+ celebrates its 11th. Through many storms, independently and without commercial shareholders, La Presse continues to reinvent itself. Not only has its gamble paid off, but La Presse has also remained true to its mission of delivering quality journalism that’s free and accessible to everyone. And that’s something that will never change,” says Pierre-Elliott.
In December 2020, Montreal-based La Presse became one of the first media outlets in Canada to obtain registered journalism organization (RJO) status.
The special status, introduced by the federal government and granted by the Canada Revenue Agency, is intended to provide alternative funding options for news organizations hit hard by declining revenues, enabling them to fund themselves through donations.
Lavery had the privilege of helping La Presse reorganize its corporate structure, so it could meet all the criteria for the designation and enjoy advantages such as tax-exempt status and the ability to issue donation receipts.We also represented La Presse in talks with the Canada Revenue Agency, emphasizing the distinct nature of a mass media outlet like La Presse and the highly competitive environment in which the organization operates. As a result of our representations, La Presse was able to secure RJO status.
La Presse subsequently sought our guidance on establishing new governance rules to meet its obligations as an RJO and on creating a second social utility trust.
The Lavery team was led by Luc Pariseau and Audrey Pelletier.
Following a qualification process, the Ministère des Transports et de la Mobilité durable du Québec (MTMD) issued a call for tenders in 2022 for the construction of the new Île-aux-Tourtes bridge pursuant to the project delivery method known as design-build-finance (DBF). Since this was a DBF, the financing of this project had to be included in the proposals made by the selected candidates.
Lavery represented the successful consortium made up of Dragados Canada Inc., Roxboro Excavation Inc. and Construction Demathieu & Bard Inc. Our role required expertise in the following areas:
(a) Governance and corporate law
(b) Project financing (banking and securities)
(c) Public procurement
(d) Construction law
(e) Commercial agreements
(f) Taxation
Lavery represented the consortium from the call for proposals to the financial close, including the drafting phase leading up to the awarding of the contract to the consortium.
The financing was the most complex part of this transaction. Under the hybrid approach retained for that project, a major credit facility to be granted by a bank syndicate had to be set up, as well the private placement of two tranches of bonds. This involved adjusting the rights and obligations of creditors on both sides within a sophisticated intercreditor agreement.
The financing also required parent company guarantees, including from French and Spanish corporations, which required us to find common ground to accommodate the typical requirements of a North American financing and the specific corporate and commercial features applicable in France and Spain.
To meet this challenge, we put together a multidisciplinary team, divided up the work in accordance with our professionals’ diverse expertises, and dedicated a team member exclusively to interactions with the MTMD, its lawyers and the issuers of performance bonds typical for this kind of projects. Sound project management practices were essential to the success of this team effort.
It is a privilege for Lavery to have participated in this essential project allowing the people of Quebec to obtain a new bridge linking the regions of Montérégie and Montréal.
The Lavery team was led by Josianne Beaudry, Nicolas Gagnon, Édith Jacques, David Tournier and André Vautour, and included Véronik Bonneville-Pesant, Katerina Kostopoulos, Jean-François Maurice, Joseph Gualdieri, Siddhartha Borissov-Beausoleil, Alexandre Turcotte, Luc Pariseau, Charles Hugo Gagné, Mickaël Pageau, Jean-Vincent Prévost-Bérubé and Yohann Lévy.
On July 4, 2023, Cultures Gen V, one of Quebec’s leading greenhouse growers, announced the acquisition of Serres Royales. The acquisition furthers Cultures Gen V’s business strategy, which aims to improve Quebec’s food self-sufficiency by expanding sustainable greenhouse growing and offering consumers a wider variety of superior quality products.
This transaction makes Cultures Gen V the largest diversified greenhouse grower in Quebec, adding 9 hectares of tomatoes to its current acreage, for a total of 36 hectares.
Lavery was privileged to represent Cultures Gen V in the transaction. Not only did the firm implement the group’s pre-transaction refinancing, it also negotiated and closed the transaction.
The Lavery team was led by Étienne Brassard with the assistance of Gabrielle Ahélo and France Camille De Mers and the collaboration of Béatrice Bull, Pamela Cifola, Éric Gélinas, Jessica Parent, Chantal Desjardins, James Duffy, Valérie Belle-Isle, Sonia Guérin, Joseph Lauzon-Potts, Arielle Supino, Bernard Trang, Katerina Kostopoulos, Charlotte Dangoisse, David Tournier, Ana Cristina Nascimento, Joëlle Montpetit and Nadine Giguère.
On March 13, 2023, Fancamp Exploration Ltd. (Fancamp) officially announced that it had entered into a joint venture agreement with Platinex Inc. (Platinex) to further explore and promote certain gold mining properties located in Ontario and owned by the two entities.
The transaction involved Fancamp transferring its Heenan Mallard and Dorothy mining properties to South Timmins Mining Inc. (Goldco), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Platinex, in exchange for shares representing 25% of Goldco's issued and outstanding shares and a 1% royalty on the properties to Platinex.
The transaction also included a shareholder agreement providing for the governance of Goldco's activities. Fancamp subscribed for a number of shares representing 9.5% of Platinex's issued and outstanding shares.
Lavery was privileged to represent Fancamp in this important mandate led by Jean-Paul Timothée and Alexandre Turcotte.
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Fancamp is a growing Canadian mineral exploration corporation dedicated to its value-added strategy of advancing its priority mineral properties through exploration and innovative development. The corporation owns numerous mineral resource properties in Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick, where it mines chromium sector, strategic rare-earth metals, gold, zinc, titanium and other resources.
To learn more about Fancamp, go to: https://www.fancamp.ca
