26 LEXPERT
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2017
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WWW.LEXPERT.CA
Lewis, Gregory D. Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP
(604) 641-4923 greg.lewis@nortonrosefulbright.com
Mr. Lewis, who is the leader of the firm's Canadian infrastructure practice,
focuses on commercial transactions and financings in energy, infrastructure and
other sectors. His experience includes hydro, co-generation and LNG projects
and public-private partnerships.
Leduc, Dan J. Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP
(613) 780-1536 dan.leduc@nortonrosefulbright.com
Mr. Leduc practises primarily construction law and dispute resolution. He is
frequently called upon to advise and represent owners, subcontractors, suppliers
and builders in such front-end services as contract review, tender issues and
general construction matters, as well as in litigation and arbitration.
Langlois, Martin R. Stikeman Elliott LLP
(416) 869-5672 mlanglois@stikeman.com
Mr. Langlois is a partner practising corporate and securities law, and a former
Co-Head of the M&A and Private Equity Groups. He focuses on domestic and
cross-border M&A, securities and corporate finance transactions, corporate
governance and other commercial matters. He has experience in a range
of industries including technology, fintech, life sciences, financial services,
mining and renewable energy.
Labeau, Pierre-Christian Norton Rose
Fulbright Canada LLP (418) 640-5008
pierre-christian.labeau@nortonrosefulbright.com
Mr. Labeau has vast experience in the areas of native, constitutional and
administrative law, having spent almost 20 years in the service of the
Government of Quebec. Mr. Labeau also advises clients across Canada
concerning legal and strategic issues related to mining, forestry and energy
development, including the negotiation of numerous IBAs and the duty to consult.
Kufeldt, Kent D. Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
(604) 640-4195 kkufeldt@blg.com
Mr. Kufeldt's corporate and securities practice covers equity and debt financings,
reorganizations and M&A transactions in oil & gas (for exploration and
production companies as well as oilfield services companies), mining, renewable
power and other sectors. Clients include companies, partnerships
and underwriting syndicates as well as foreign investors.
Kroft, Jason Stikeman Elliott LLP
(416) 869-5534 jkroft@stikeman.com
Mr. Kroft is a corporate/commercial law partner practising a broad range of
advisory and transactional matters in the corporate commercial law area with
a focus on finance (including project finance), energy, commodity and mining
products. He is a member of the firm's Structured Products and Financial
Services, Energy, Mining, Emissions Trading and Climate Change,
and Banking Groups.
LEXPERT-RANKED LAWYERS
His conclusion for what's behind the exodus of com-
panies such as Apache and ConocoPhillips? Where
once there was significant international interest in in-
vesting in and developing Canada's fossil fuel reserves
from about 2002 to 2010, says Jenkins, "that has cooled
quite dramatically. ere's a whole range of reasons for
that. e most important, obviously, is the internation-
al price of oil." Compound that with "eye-catching"
levels of capital expenditures that must be locked in on
a long-term basis, where you need certainty about so-
cial and government consensus, and, Jenkins adds, "I
do think the whole regulatory regime has contributed
significantly to the loss in appetite for oil sands projects
by non-Canadian companies."
But could the Canadian oil and gas industry even-
tually recover despite, or perhaps because of, our more
rigorous environmental regulations matrix governing
energy production? While Miles Pittman, a partner
in Borden Ladner Gervais LLP's energy law practice
group in Calgary, says there is evidence the Trump ad-
ministration is more business-friendly to oil and gas,
Canada just "needs to get out of its own way a bit" to
compete. Canada needs "a process where timelines are
more identifiable and the results are predictable. In the
circumstances where there is uncertainty about such
things, it is difficult for investors to look at this environ-
ment and say, yes, I will make an investment."
To that end, the Supreme Court of Canada's latest
landmark rulings on the Crown's duty to consult In-
digenous communities on energy resource projects —
the aforementioned Clyde River along with Chippewas
of the ames First Nation v. Enbridge Pipelines, 2017
SCC 41 — have been helpful, says Pittman. On July
26, the SCC blocked seismic testing for off-shore oil
and gas in Baffin Bay near Clyde River, Nunavut, ruling
that the local Inuit community had not been properly
consulted when the National Energy Board approved
the testing by a Norwegian consortium. At the same
time, however, the court outlined why it found that
Enbridge had properly consulted with the Chippewa of
the ames reserve near London, Ontario, when it ap-
plied to reverse the flow of crude in its Line 9 pipeline.
"My view," says Pittman "is that the Supreme Court
of Canada decisions are very helpful to project develop-
ers." He says if the Crown's duty to consult is performed
in a "robust way before approval" then the chances of
project success are increased as a result of the court's
decisions. "I think that's welcome certainty. e cases
provide a road map on how to satisfy the duty."
Another factor that might eventually favour Cana-
dian oil and gas production and competitiveness over
the United States, suggests Lisa DeMarco, could be
the vacuum created by President Trump's lack policy
around climate change. When he announced on June
1 that the US would pull out of the Paris climate agree-
ment, there was an international backlash — some of
that even coming from American oil companies (159
countries of the 197 that signed the accord in 2016 have
so far ratified it).
