Mergers & Acquisitions

Overview
Who To Contact
Representative Matters
Recent Developments

The Aird & Berlis Mergers & Acquisitions Group provides sophisticated legal advice to Canadian and international companies, private equity and other types of funds, and their respective advisors, in all types of public and private M&A transactions that are focused on Canada or have a Canadian component. Our comprehensive knowledge of the Canadian M&A market has made us a go-to law firm for U.S. and international clients seeking Canadian legal counsel.

The Aird & Berlis M&A Group and individual members of our team have been recognized by leading global and domestic legal directories such as Chambers Global and Chambers Canada, Legal 500, Who’s Who Legal, Best Lawyers in Canada and The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory, and included in The Globe and Mail's list of Canada's Best Law Firms. This hard-earned recognition only partly explains why our clients choose us. To earn the business of our clients, we draw heavily on our expertise in structuring and negotiating complex M&A transactions. Clients choose the Aird & Berlis M&A Group for our results-focused approach to negotiations and our ability – even when we are working with a client for the first time – to quickly incorporate key business objectives and specific industry conditions into transaction documents.

Our recent representative matters include:

Represented Kuehne + Nagel as Canadian counsel with respect to their acquisition of Canadian customs broker, Farrow Group Inc.
Represented a U.S.-based commercial refrigeration and HVAC company in its acquisition of a Quebec-based engineering consulting firm that offers sustainable solutions to reduce carbon footprint and improve energy efficiency in food retail.
Represented Linamar Corporation in its acquisition of Bourgault Industries Ltd., a leading agricultural equipment manufacturer, for $640 million. In conjunction with the Bourgault transaction closing, Linamar also finalized a new $700-million term loan agreement.
Represented BZAM, a leading Canadian cannabis producer, in the acquisition of Final Bell Canada, an end-to-end supply chain system for cannabis brands, from Final Bell Holdings International.
Represented Small Pharma Inc. (TSXV: DMT) in the sale of all of its issued and outstanding securities to Cybin Inc. (NYSE American: CYBN) (NEO: CYBN).
Represented a U.S.-based provider of commercial vehicle solutions as Canadian counsel in its acquisition of a renowned manufacturer of heavy-duty truck parts and stainless steel accessories, and subsequent sale to a U.S.-based private equity firm.
Represented a leading global transportation industry manufacturer and supplier as Canadian counsel in its purchase of certain assets of a cross-border privately-owned commercial vehicle, bus and trailer manufacturing business.
Represented DataStealth Inc., a Toronto-based cybersecurity firm, in connection with its sale of control to Canadian tech entrepreneurs, Michael and Richard Hyatt.
Represented Phillips Foods Inc., a U.S.-based global processor and distributor of branded seafood products, in the acquisition of the assets of South Shore Seafoods Group of Companies, a Canadian seafood processor and distributor.

We apply our Canadian expertise to every M&A transaction in which our firm is engaged. Our deep understanding of the Canadian M&A market lets us advise our domestic and international clients and their advisors on the particularities of the Canadian market, including with respect to cross-border transactions.

International clients and their advisors choose Aird & Berlis for the ease with which we integrate into their deal team and our ability to seamlessly execute the Canadian components of their transaction. Cross-border clients also value the contribution of our industry-leading Tax Group. Innovative Canadian tax structuring often plays a central role in the negotiation and execution of a successful M&A transaction, and our tax lawyers are internationally recognized by leading legal and tax publications, such as Chambers Global, Chambers Canada and Chambers High Net Worth, Legal 500, Who’s Who Legal: Corporate Tax, Best Lawyers in Canada and The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory, for their creative M&A tax planning.

In addition to our tax lawyers, our full-service business law firm offers expertise in complementary domestically and globally recognized practice areas such as Financial Services (Banking & Finance and Insolvency & Restructuring), Capital Markets, Corporate/Commercial, Competition, Antitrust & Foreign Investment, Workplace Law, Real Estate and Environmental, as well as lawyers with deep experience in key Canadian industries. Our M&A lawyers are active members of the International Bar Association, and travel extensively to understand the needs of clients in the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union and worldwide.

We act for all participants in M&A transactions, including publicly-listed and privately-held buyers and sellers, private equity and other types of funds, debt and equity financiers, special committees of boards of directors, management-led buyout groups, activist stakeholders, merchant banks, investment bankers, and institutional and other investors. Our clients enjoy bespoke service at every stage of the transaction, including immediate access to our senior lawyers, all of whom are hands-on practitioners.

Our staffing model is unique for two reasons: first, our senior M&A lawyers are active participants and available to our clients in each transaction that involves them, which is not the case at all our peer firms; and second, our junior partners and associates are immersed in every transaction they work on, providing real value to our clients from the earliest stages of their careers.

Our M&A Group advises clients with respect to all types of public and private mergers and acquisitions, including:

stock and asset purchases, including auctions and privately-negotiated transactions;
mergers, amalgamations and plans of arrangement;
going private transactions;
special committee mandates;
transactions with distressed companies or assets;
takeovers (friendly and hostile) and activism matters;
reverse takeovers; and
leveraged buyouts and management buyouts.

The Aird & Berlis M&A Group’s extensive involvement in the Canadian market, along with the many strong relationships we have established with regulators, advisors and other key stakeholders, allows us to provide leading advice on M&A matters of all sizes and complexity.