As we go to press on this issue closing off 2014, here are the headlines, delivered online:
> Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz “signals ‘broadening' recovery” (The Globe and Mail)
> “Oil price drop will lead to tough times for Alberta,” Premier Jim Prentice says (CBC)
> Big Law Firms Bring Back Hefty Bonuses for Associates (The New York Times DealBook)
> Canadian firms in China worry about economy, copyright law (The Globe and Mail)
In conclusion, there is no conclusion; economic indicators are all over the map for Canadian businesses and the law firms that serve them. And the same is true behind the headlines, in online and in-person conversations.
As we gathered our Top Ten Deals of 2014, there were some lawyers who told us there were not ten significant deals in Canada in 2014, “if you take out the tax inversion deals, which are not Canadian.” Yet we had 45 deals on our long list, did not remove the tax inversion deals, and we ask you our readers, should they be on our Canadian-centred list? After all, the vendors are Canadian, the products certainly are in origin, and many of you are working on these deals, in-house and externally. On the other hand, at least one of you said, “Canadian stakeholder interests aren't as protected” in the future that has these acquisitions in it.
We also know there were many, many deals beyond our list of 45. Stephen Halperin, Goodmans LLP, concluded that all in all, “it's been a very good year in the legal market. There was a good pace of activity in private equity and private M&A.” Let's stop there for now, and resume on that positive note in January.
> Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz “signals ‘broadening' recovery” (The Globe and Mail)
> “Oil price drop will lead to tough times for Alberta,” Premier Jim Prentice says (CBC)
> Big Law Firms Bring Back Hefty Bonuses for Associates (The New York Times DealBook)
> Canadian firms in China worry about economy, copyright law (The Globe and Mail)
In conclusion, there is no conclusion; economic indicators are all over the map for Canadian businesses and the law firms that serve them. And the same is true behind the headlines, in online and in-person conversations.
As we gathered our Top Ten Deals of 2014, there were some lawyers who told us there were not ten significant deals in Canada in 2014, “if you take out the tax inversion deals, which are not Canadian.” Yet we had 45 deals on our long list, did not remove the tax inversion deals, and we ask you our readers, should they be on our Canadian-centred list? After all, the vendors are Canadian, the products certainly are in origin, and many of you are working on these deals, in-house and externally. On the other hand, at least one of you said, “Canadian stakeholder interests aren't as protected” in the future that has these acquisitions in it.
We also know there were many, many deals beyond our list of 45. Stephen Halperin, Goodmans LLP, concluded that all in all, “it's been a very good year in the legal market. There was a good pace of activity in private equity and private M&A.” Let's stop there for now, and resume on that positive note in January.
