Apotex Pharmaceutical Holdings Inc.
Acted as lead transaction and tax counsel to Apotex Pharmaceutical Holdings Inc., a global pharmaceutical company that produces high-quality affordable medicine, in its sale to SK Capital Partners.
Partner
Partner
An agile and business-minded lawyer, Steve works on a broad range of corporate and securities matters.
Steve’s practice particularly focuses on securities offerings, as well as mergers and acquisitions. He acts for issuers on their securities and corporate law obligations. Public and private clients of all sizes – including companies in the resource sector – value Steve for his responsiveness and his results-oriented approach to their challenges.
Partner
An agile and business-minded lawyer, Steve works on a broad range of corporate and securities matters.
Steve’s practice particularly focuses on securities offerings, as well as mergers and acquisitions. He acts for issuers on their securities and corporate law obligations. Public and private clients of all sizes – including companies in the resource sector – value Steve for his responsiveness and his results-oriented approach to their challenges.
Apotex Pharmaceutical Holdings Inc.
Acted as lead transaction and tax counsel to Apotex Pharmaceutical Holdings Inc., a global pharmaceutical company that produces high-quality affordable medicine, in its sale to SK Capital Partners.
Lithium Royalty Corp
Acted for Lithium Royalty Corp. in its C$150-million initial public offering of common shares underwritten by a syndicate co-led by Canaccord Genuity Corp and Citigroup Global Markets Canada Inc.
BELLUS Health Inc.
Acting for BELLUS Health Inc. in its US$2-billion sale to GSK plc, a British-based pharmaceutical company.
Kroll, LLC
Acted for Kroll, the independent financial advisor to Hut 8, in connection with its merger with U.S. Data Mining Group, Inc. doing business as US Bitcoin Corp, to establish “New Hut”, a large scale, publicly traded Bitcoin miner.
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
Acted as Canadian counsel to J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, financial adviser to Semtech Corporation, in Semtech’s acquisition of Sierra Wireless, Inc., a company valued at approximately US$1.2 billion.
Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs
Acted as Canadian counsel to the underwriters, led by Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, in the US$700-million cross-border initial public offering of Bausch + Lomb Corporation, a leading global eye health business.
J.P. Morgan Securities Canada Inc. and TD Securities Inc.
Acted for J.P. Morgan Securities Canada Inc. and TD Securities Inc., the financial advisors to the special committee and board of directors of Inter Pipeline Ltd., Canada's fourth-largest pipeline company, in connection with the unsolicited bid, and subsequent acquisition, by Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP, including with respect to their inadequacy opinions.
Syndicate of Underwriters
Acted for a syndicate of underwriters, led by BofA Securities, Credit Suisse and Scotiabank, on the US$250-million initial public offering of Triple Flag Precious Metals Corp, a gold-focused streaming and royalty company offering bespoke financing solutions to the metals and mining industry and backed by Elliott Management. This 2021 offering is Canada's largest mining-related IPO in nine years.
TD Securities Inc. and Credit Suisse Securities (Canada), Inc.
Acted for the underwriting syndicate led by TD Securities Inc. and Credit Suisse Securities (Canada), Inc. in MindBeacon Holdings Inc.'s $65-million initial public offering of common shares.
Google LLC
Acted for Google LLC in its acquisition of North Inc., a pioneer in human computer interfaces and smart glasses.
BMO Capital Markets
Acted as Canadian and U.S. counsel to BMO Capital Markets in an at-the-market equity offering by cannabis company Organigram Holdings Inc. in Canada and the United States under the multijurisdictional disclosure system.
Syndicate of Underwriters
Acted for a syndicate of underwriters led by J.P. Morgan, BMO Capital Markets, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, RBC Capital Markets and Scotiabank on the US$2.2-billion cross-border initial public offering of subordinate voting shares and tangible equity units of GFL Environmental Inc., the fourth largest diversified environmental services company in North America. The offering is one of the largest IPOs in Canadian history.
Lead Investor
Acted for the lead investor in a US$30-million private placement of special warrants issued by Acreage Holdings, Inc., one of the largest vertically integrated cannabis operators in the United States.
Apotex Inc.
Acted as lead transaction and tax counsel to Apotex Inc. and ApoPharma USA Inc. on the sale of the ApoPharma business, including the global rights to Deferiprone, an iron chelator used to treat iron overload conditions resulting from blood transfusions, to Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A.
BMO Capital Markets
Acted as Canadian and U.S. counsel to BMO Capital Markets in an at-the-market equity offering by cannabis company Organigram Holdings Inc. in Canada and the United States under the multijurisdictional disclosure system.
Barrick Gold Corporation
Acted for Barrick Gold Corporation in its US$428-million acquisition of all of the outstanding shares of Acacia Mining plc (Acacia) not already owned by Barrick by way of a court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement under Part 26 of the Companies Act 2006 (United Kingdom).
Shaw Communications Inc.
Acted for Shaw Communications Inc. in a $548-million secondary bought deal offering of 80,630,383 Class B non-voting participating shares of Corus Entertainment Inc.
CIBC Capital Markets and Eight Capital
Acted for CIBC Capital Markets and Eight Capital as joint bookrunners, in the public offering of approximately $55 million of subordinated voting shares of Canopy Rivers Inc., an investment and operating platform structured to pursue investment opportunities in the emerging global cannabis sector, and the concurrent private placement, on an agency basis, of $30 million of subordinated voting shares of Canopy Rivers to Canopy Growth Corporation.
Barrick Gold Corporation
Acted for Barrick Gold Corporation in its recommended US$18.3-billion share-for-share merger with Randgold Resources Limited. This complex and multijurisdictional transaction created an industry-leading gold company with the greatest concentration of tier one gold assets in the industry and a diversified asset portfolio positioned for growth.
Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board
Acting for Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board in the $170-million sale of its shares in Hudson's Bay Company to an affiliated entity controlled by its chairman.
Fulcrum Capital Partners
Acted for Fulcrum Capital Partners in its equity investment in and related financing of Accucam Machining, a Canada-based supplier of steel parts to heavy original equipment manufacturers in material handling, agricultural and construction industries around the world.
Real estate investment manager
Acted for the vendor in the $32-million acquisition by Fiera Capital Corporation of the 45% interest in Fiera Properties Limited it did not already own. The purchase price consisted of $31.5 million in cash and $500,000 in Fiera Capital shares.
Toromont Industries Ltd.
Acted for Toromont Industries Ltd. in its acquisition of Hewitt Equipment in a $1-billion transaction that expands Toromont's Caterpillar dealership into Québec, Western Labrador and the Maritimes, and strengthens its expertise in the mining, construction, power systems and forestry sectors.
Barrick Gold Corporation
Acted for Barrick Gold Corporation in connection with a transaction with Shandong Gold that included the sale of a 50% interest in the Veladero gold mine for US$960 million; the negotiation of a 50/50 joint venture arrangement in respect of the Veladero gold mine; the negotiation of a strategic cooperation agreement to explore the joint development of the Pascua-Lama deposit located along the Chilean-Argentinean border; and the evaluation of additional investment opportunities on the highly prospective El Indio Gold Belt on the border of Argentina and Chile.
Pershing Square Capital Management
Acted as Canadian counsel to Pershing Square Capital Management in connection with its concurrent cross-border secondary offering of US$1.4 billion of Canadian Pacific Railway common shares. The transaction was effected as a U.S.-style bought deal, and the shares were sold to the public at variable prices.
BMO Capital Markets, Credit Suisse Securities Canada and Scotiabank
Acted for a syndicate of underwriters BMO Capital Markets, Credit Suisse Securities Canada and Scotiabank in connection with Centerra Gold Inc.'s $195-million public offering of subscription receipts. The proceeds of the offering were used to partially finance Centerra's $1.1 billion purchase of Thompson Creek Metals Company Inc.
J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.
Acted for J.P. Morgan Securities Inc., financial advisor and soliciting dealer to Suncor Energy Inc., in connection with its $6.6 billion take-over bid for Canadian Oil Sands Limited.
Independent Electricity System Operator
Acted for the Independent Electricity System Operator in connection with its amended agreement with Bruce Power for the refurbishment of six nuclear units at the Tiverton-based nuclear generation station, the world's largest operating nuclear facility. The amended agreement secures 6,300 megawatts of baseload generating capacity for the province of Ontario and will result in an investment by Bruce Power of approximately $13 billion.
At-the-Market Distributions Arrive in Canada
June 08, 2020 - Reporting issuers will soon be able to implement at-the-market (ATM) distributions without obtaining regulatory relief.1 Starting August 31, 2020, ATM distributions in Canada will no longer be subject to prescribed liquidity requirements or prescribed limits on aggregate distribution...
COVID-19: Canadian Public Disclosure Considerations During the Pandemic
Mar. 23, 2020 - Canadian public issuers grappling with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their businesses are rightly focusing on the health and safety of their workforce and customers, business continuity and risk management. However, while balancing these and the many other critical issues flowing from...
Keep It Between Us: Canadian Securities Regulators Adopt Confidential Prospectus Review Process
Mar. 06, 2020 - Canadian public issuers and those issuers contemplating a Canadian IPO may now file a prospectus for review by securities regulators’ staff on a confidential basis. Under this new process, an issuer may submit a near-final draft preliminary prospectus to its principal securities regulator without...
CSA to Pursue Six Initiatives to Cut “Red Tape” for Reporting Issuers
Mar. 28, 2018 - The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) will be initiating six policy projects aimed at reducing regulatory burdens for non-investment fund reporting issuers. The projects include: reviewing potential alternative prospectus models;, facilitating at-the-market (ATM) offerings;, revisiting the...
United States Joins Canada and European Union in Adopting Transparency Rules
June 29, 2016 - In line with a global trend for greater transparency of payments made by companies in extractive industries to governments of resource-rich countries, the United States has joined Canada and the European Union in adopting “publish what you pay” rules for such companies. These rules are aimed at...
Closing the Loop: Voluntary Meeting Vote Reconciliation Protocols Proposed for 2017 Proxy Season
May 02, 2016 - The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA), in aiming to improve the accuracy, reliability and accountability of the system by which votes are counted at shareholders’ meetings, has proposed and is seeking comment on a set of voluntary meeting vote reconciliation protocols. Four protocols are...
“Publish What You Pay” Guidance Finalized
Mar. 21, 2016 - Natural Resources Canada has finalized its implementation tools for the Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act (ESTMA), which was proclaimed into force in June 2015. Commonly known as the “publish what you pay” standards, ESTMA establishes mandatory...
IFLR1000: Guide to the World’s Leading Financial Law Firms—Mergers and Acquisitions
The Legal 500 Canada—Capital Markets (Next Generation Partner)
Lexpert Special Edition: Finance and M&A
The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory—Corporate Commercial Law; Corporate Finance and Securities; Mergers and Acquisitions
The Best Lawyers in Canada—Mergers and Acquisitions Law; Securities Law
Ontario, 2010
Osgoode Hall Law School, JD, 2009
University of Waterloo, MASc, 2007
University of Waterloo, BASc (Systems Design Engineering) (Honours), 2005
An agile and business-minded lawyer, Steve works on a broad range of corporate and securities matters.
Steve’s practice particularly focuses on securities offerings, as well as mergers and acquisitions. He acts for issuers on their securities and corporate law obligations. Public and private clients of all sizes – including companies in the resource sector – value Steve for his responsiveness and his results-oriented approach to their challenges.
Apotex Pharmaceutical Holdings Inc.
Acted as lead transaction and tax counsel to Apotex Pharmaceutical Holdings Inc., a global pharmaceutical company that produces high-quality affordable medicine, in its sale to SK Capital Partners.
Lithium Royalty Corp
Acted for Lithium Royalty Corp. in its C$150-million initial public offering of common shares underwritten by a syndicate co-led by Canaccord Genuity Corp and Citigroup Global Markets Canada Inc.
BELLUS Health Inc.
Acting for BELLUS Health Inc. in its US$2-billion sale to GSK plc, a British-based pharmaceutical company.
Kroll, LLC
Acted for Kroll, the independent financial advisor to Hut 8, in connection with its merger with U.S. Data Mining Group, Inc. doing business as US Bitcoin Corp, to establish “New Hut”, a large scale, publicly traded Bitcoin miner.
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
Acted as Canadian counsel to J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, financial adviser to Semtech Corporation, in Semtech’s acquisition of Sierra Wireless, Inc., a company valued at approximately US$1.2 billion.
Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs
Acted as Canadian counsel to the underwriters, led by Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, in the US$700-million cross-border initial public offering of Bausch + Lomb Corporation, a leading global eye health business.
J.P. Morgan Securities Canada Inc. and TD Securities Inc.
Acted for J.P. Morgan Securities Canada Inc. and TD Securities Inc., the financial advisors to the special committee and board of directors of Inter Pipeline Ltd., Canada's fourth-largest pipeline company, in connection with the unsolicited bid, and subsequent acquisition, by Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP, including with respect to their inadequacy opinions.
Syndicate of Underwriters
Acted for a syndicate of underwriters, led by BofA Securities, Credit Suisse and Scotiabank, on the US$250-million initial public offering of Triple Flag Precious Metals Corp, a gold-focused streaming and royalty company offering bespoke financing solutions to the metals and mining industry and backed by Elliott Management. This 2021 offering is Canada's largest mining-related IPO in nine years.
TD Securities Inc. and Credit Suisse Securities (Canada), Inc.
Acted for the underwriting syndicate led by TD Securities Inc. and Credit Suisse Securities (Canada), Inc. in MindBeacon Holdings Inc.'s $65-million initial public offering of common shares.
Google LLC
Acted for Google LLC in its acquisition of North Inc., a pioneer in human computer interfaces and smart glasses.
BMO Capital Markets
Acted as Canadian and U.S. counsel to BMO Capital Markets in an at-the-market equity offering by cannabis company Organigram Holdings Inc. in Canada and the United States under the multijurisdictional disclosure system.
Syndicate of Underwriters
Acted for a syndicate of underwriters led by J.P. Morgan, BMO Capital Markets, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, RBC Capital Markets and Scotiabank on the US$2.2-billion cross-border initial public offering of subordinate voting shares and tangible equity units of GFL Environmental Inc., the fourth largest diversified environmental services company in North America. The offering is one of the largest IPOs in Canadian history.
Lead Investor
Acted for the lead investor in a US$30-million private placement of special warrants issued by Acreage Holdings, Inc., one of the largest vertically integrated cannabis operators in the United States.
Apotex Inc.
Acted as lead transaction and tax counsel to Apotex Inc. and ApoPharma USA Inc. on the sale of the ApoPharma business, including the global rights to Deferiprone, an iron chelator used to treat iron overload conditions resulting from blood transfusions, to Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A.
BMO Capital Markets
Acted as Canadian and U.S. counsel to BMO Capital Markets in an at-the-market equity offering by cannabis company Organigram Holdings Inc. in Canada and the United States under the multijurisdictional disclosure system.
Barrick Gold Corporation
Acted for Barrick Gold Corporation in its US$428-million acquisition of all of the outstanding shares of Acacia Mining plc (Acacia) not already owned by Barrick by way of a court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement under Part 26 of the Companies Act 2006 (United Kingdom).
Shaw Communications Inc.
Acted for Shaw Communications Inc. in a $548-million secondary bought deal offering of 80,630,383 Class B non-voting participating shares of Corus Entertainment Inc.
CIBC Capital Markets and Eight Capital
Acted for CIBC Capital Markets and Eight Capital as joint bookrunners, in the public offering of approximately $55 million of subordinated voting shares of Canopy Rivers Inc., an investment and operating platform structured to pursue investment opportunities in the emerging global cannabis sector, and the concurrent private placement, on an agency basis, of $30 million of subordinated voting shares of Canopy Rivers to Canopy Growth Corporation.
Barrick Gold Corporation
Acted for Barrick Gold Corporation in its recommended US$18.3-billion share-for-share merger with Randgold Resources Limited. This complex and multijurisdictional transaction created an industry-leading gold company with the greatest concentration of tier one gold assets in the industry and a diversified asset portfolio positioned for growth.
Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board
Acting for Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board in the $170-million sale of its shares in Hudson's Bay Company to an affiliated entity controlled by its chairman.
Fulcrum Capital Partners
Acted for Fulcrum Capital Partners in its equity investment in and related financing of Accucam Machining, a Canada-based supplier of steel parts to heavy original equipment manufacturers in material handling, agricultural and construction industries around the world.
Real estate investment manager
Acted for the vendor in the $32-million acquisition by Fiera Capital Corporation of the 45% interest in Fiera Properties Limited it did not already own. The purchase price consisted of $31.5 million in cash and $500,000 in Fiera Capital shares.
Toromont Industries Ltd.
Acted for Toromont Industries Ltd. in its acquisition of Hewitt Equipment in a $1-billion transaction that expands Toromont's Caterpillar dealership into Québec, Western Labrador and the Maritimes, and strengthens its expertise in the mining, construction, power systems and forestry sectors.
Barrick Gold Corporation
Acted for Barrick Gold Corporation in connection with a transaction with Shandong Gold that included the sale of a 50% interest in the Veladero gold mine for US$960 million; the negotiation of a 50/50 joint venture arrangement in respect of the Veladero gold mine; the negotiation of a strategic cooperation agreement to explore the joint development of the Pascua-Lama deposit located along the Chilean-Argentinean border; and the evaluation of additional investment opportunities on the highly prospective El Indio Gold Belt on the border of Argentina and Chile.
Pershing Square Capital Management
Acted as Canadian counsel to Pershing Square Capital Management in connection with its concurrent cross-border secondary offering of US$1.4 billion of Canadian Pacific Railway common shares. The transaction was effected as a U.S.-style bought deal, and the shares were sold to the public at variable prices.
BMO Capital Markets, Credit Suisse Securities Canada and Scotiabank
Acted for a syndicate of underwriters BMO Capital Markets, Credit Suisse Securities Canada and Scotiabank in connection with Centerra Gold Inc.'s $195-million public offering of subscription receipts. The proceeds of the offering were used to partially finance Centerra's $1.1 billion purchase of Thompson Creek Metals Company Inc.
J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.
Acted for J.P. Morgan Securities Inc., financial advisor and soliciting dealer to Suncor Energy Inc., in connection with its $6.6 billion take-over bid for Canadian Oil Sands Limited.
Independent Electricity System Operator
Acted for the Independent Electricity System Operator in connection with its amended agreement with Bruce Power for the refurbishment of six nuclear units at the Tiverton-based nuclear generation station, the world's largest operating nuclear facility. The amended agreement secures 6,300 megawatts of baseload generating capacity for the province of Ontario and will result in an investment by Bruce Power of approximately $13 billion.
At-the-Market Distributions Arrive in Canada
June 08, 2020 - Reporting issuers will soon be able to implement at-the-market (ATM) distributions without obtaining regulatory relief.1 Starting August 31, 2020, ATM distributions in Canada will no longer be subject to prescribed liquidity requirements or prescribed limits on aggregate distribution...
COVID-19: Canadian Public Disclosure Considerations During the Pandemic
Mar. 23, 2020 - Canadian public issuers grappling with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their businesses are rightly focusing on the health and safety of their workforce and customers, business continuity and risk management. However, while balancing these and the many other critical issues flowing from...
Keep It Between Us: Canadian Securities Regulators Adopt Confidential Prospectus Review Process
Mar. 06, 2020 - Canadian public issuers and those issuers contemplating a Canadian IPO may now file a prospectus for review by securities regulators’ staff on a confidential basis. Under this new process, an issuer may submit a near-final draft preliminary prospectus to its principal securities regulator without...
CSA to Pursue Six Initiatives to Cut “Red Tape” for Reporting Issuers
Mar. 28, 2018 - The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) will be initiating six policy projects aimed at reducing regulatory burdens for non-investment fund reporting issuers. The projects include: reviewing potential alternative prospectus models;, facilitating at-the-market (ATM) offerings;, revisiting the...
United States Joins Canada and European Union in Adopting Transparency Rules
June 29, 2016 - In line with a global trend for greater transparency of payments made by companies in extractive industries to governments of resource-rich countries, the United States has joined Canada and the European Union in adopting “publish what you pay” rules for such companies. These rules are aimed at...
Closing the Loop: Voluntary Meeting Vote Reconciliation Protocols Proposed for 2017 Proxy Season
May 02, 2016 - The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA), in aiming to improve the accuracy, reliability and accountability of the system by which votes are counted at shareholders’ meetings, has proposed and is seeking comment on a set of voluntary meeting vote reconciliation protocols. Four protocols are...
“Publish What You Pay” Guidance Finalized
Mar. 21, 2016 - Natural Resources Canada has finalized its implementation tools for the Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act (ESTMA), which was proclaimed into force in June 2015. Commonly known as the “publish what you pay” standards, ESTMA establishes mandatory...
IFLR1000: Guide to the World’s Leading Financial Law Firms—Mergers and Acquisitions
The Legal 500 Canada—Capital Markets (Next Generation Partner)
Lexpert Special Edition: Finance and M&A
The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory—Corporate Commercial Law; Corporate Finance and Securities; Mergers and Acquisitions
The Best Lawyers in Canada—Mergers and Acquisitions Law; Securities Law
Ontario, 2010
Osgoode Hall Law School, JD, 2009
University of Waterloo, MASc, 2007
University of Waterloo, BASc (Systems Design Engineering) (Honours), 2005
155 Wellington Street West
Toronto, ON, M5V 3J7
Reception: 40th Floor
416.863.0900
1501 McGill College Avenue
Montréal, QC, H3A 3N9
Reception: 8th Floor
514.841.6400
900 Third Avenue
New York, NY 10022
Reception: 24th Floor
212.588.5500
For general inquiries, contact info@dwpv.com.
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