Summary

With business becoming increasingly more global and complex, you need a partner that fully understands Canadian competition law and how it applies internationally. BLG’s Competition and Foreign Investment Review Group provides advice to clients on all aspects of the Competition Act and Investment Canada Act; from obtaining approval of major transactions to navigating complex criminal investigations and everything in between. The Group offers unique insight to clients as a result of having acted on a number of matters for the Attorney General of Canada and the Commissioner of Competition.

We can provide you with bilingual advice and representation for a range of situations, including:

  • Navigating the Bureau’s merger review process for complex M&A transactions.
  • Handling pre-notification merger filings and obtaining advance ruling certificates.
  • Providing advice on competition concerns triggered by a range of commercial arrangements such as joint ventures, distribution arrangements, exclusivity deals and vertical integration.
  • Appearing before all civil courts and governmental boards for issues under the Competition Act related to damages from unfair competition.
  • Navigating international anti-trust criminal investigations; defending corporations and individuals from criminal competition offences and related offences, including fraud, corruption, bribery, etc.
  • Dealing with unanticipated criminal procedures such as search warrants, section 11 inquiries, and “dawn raids.”
  • Providing advice with respect to advertising, promotional contests, pricing and marketing practices.

We have made submissions on competition law matters before various Canadian Parliamentary Committees, such as the Senate Standing Committee on Transport, as well as the Competition Commission in the United Kingdom. Members of the Group were also extensively involved in proposing, consulting and assisting in the implementation of the 2009 amendments to the Competition Act.

Publications

  • Russell & Hefler, “Private Antitrust Litigation,” Canada Global Competition Review, The Antitrust Review of the Americas, 2013.
  • Russell & Hefler, Competition Law Monograph for the Canadian Society of Association Executives, September 2011.
  • Hefler, Rothschild & Russell, Case Commentary on Nadeau – Refusal to Deal, June 2011.
  • Russell & Hefler, “Criminal Prosecution of Cartel Activity: How Canada Compares Internationally,” Competition 2010, Volume 1.
  • Russell & Hefler, Competition Law Monograph for the Canadian Society of Association Executives, June 2010.
  • Russell & Hefler, “Adverse Enough? Examining the New Competitive Effects Test for Civil Price Maintenance,” Corporate Litigation Journal, Federated Press, March 2010.

Rankings & Recognitions

The Competition and Foreign Investment Review Group or its members are recognized in:

  • The 2012 edition of Chambers Global – The World's Leading Lawyers for Business.
  • The 2013 edition of the Best Lawyers in Canada®.
  • The 2012 edition of PLC Which lawyer?
  • The 2012 edition of the Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory.
  • The 2013 BTI Client Service MVP.

Representative Work

  • As senior competition law counsel, has acted on both civil and criminal matters under the Canadian Competition Act and has appeared before the Canadian Competition Tribunal on numerous occasions, acting on behalf of the Canadian Competition Commissioner as well as private sector clients.
  • Acted for a number of private-sector clients in many of the most significant and complex mergers in Canada during the past two decades including: the $4-billion acquisition of Dome Petroleum by Amoco to form Canada's largest oil producer; the $2.2-billion acquisition of Provigo by Loblaws to create Canada's largest supermarket chain; and more recently the $40-billion acquisition of Compaq by Hewlett-Packard.
  • Acted as Agent of the Attorney-General of Canada and counsel to the Competition Commissioner in a number of matters including CP Containers/Cast North America, Abitibi-Consolidated/Donohue Inc. and Forzani.
  • Has been retained as a special advisor to the Canadian Commissioner of Competition concerning proposed amendments to the Competition Act.
  • Has frequently been invited to appear before a number of Canadian Parliamentary Committees and the Canadian Senate in respect of competition law reform.
  • Has appeared before the Competition Commission in the United Kingdom in respect of the merger of Air Canada and Canadian Airlines.
  • Advising and representing clients with respect to criminal matters under the Competition Act, such as conspiracy, bid-rigging, misleading advertising and price maintenance.