Background

Robert Shouldice is a partner at our Vancouver office. Robert was admitted to the Alberta Bar in 1983 and the British Columbia Bar in 1988. He is a graduate of the University of Alberta with a Bachelor of Laws in 1982 and a Bachelor of Commerce in 1977.

Areas of Practice

• Robert practises corporate and commercial law in the areas of acquisitions, mergers and divestitures, energy and transportation transactions and infrastructure projects, corporate reorganizations, and corporate governance matters.

Rankings and Recognitions

• Selected by peers for inclusion in the 2010 edition of The Best Lawyers in Canada (Corporate Law/Energy Regulatory Law)
• Martindale-Hubbell BV Peer Review Rating
• Recognized in the 2008 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory (Corporate Mid-Market/Private Equity/Mergers & Acquisitions)

Professional Experience - Overview

• Extensive experience with a wide variety of mergers and acquisitions, corporate reorganizations, and joint ventures.
• Energy and transportation industry transactions and infrastructure projects and joint ventures (domestic and international).
• Privatizations and other commercial transactions involving government corporations/agencies.
• Advises boards of directors and executive officers on a variety of corporate governance issues, personal responsibilities and liability risks, and best practices.

Illustrative Examples of Experience

• Represented BC Rail in connection with its recent public/private transaction involving the sale of a marine terminal business and the long-term lease and concession agreement for the port terminal lands/buildings.
• Represented consortium of four major Korean companies in respect of a new mining venture in Canada.
• Represented BC Rail in connection with its recent public/private transaction involving the sale of a marine terminal business and the long-term lease and concession agreement for the port terminal lands/buildings.
• Recently represented a foreign bidder for multiple marine terminal operations in British Columbia.
• Recently represented a foreign bidder for a petrochemical storage and distribution business in Canada.
• Represented BC Rail and provincial government in the 2005 $1 Billion sale and partnership transaction with CN relating to the rail freight division of the BCR Group of Companies.
• Represented City of Ottawa in respect of its proposed $750 Million light rapid transit project.
• Represented international developer and financier of infrastructure projects in respect of proposed acquisitions of a number of Canadian PPP (health facility and transportation) projects
• Representing BCR Group of Companies in a number of disposition and/or public-private partnership type transactions of $100 Million plus involving marine terminal and/or shortline rail operations.
• Represents BC Hydro in respect of its $1.5 Billion outsourcing and partnership transaction with Accenture and related ongoing matters.

Other Professional Experience

• Represented UMA Engineering in respect of its merger and court approved cross border acquisition transaction and corporate arrangement with AECOM.
• Represents EPCOR Utilities in respect of independent power projects and municipal water utility acquisitions in British Columbia.
• Represents Finning International in many acquisitions, divestitures and joint ventures, and outsourcings both domestic and international (U.K., Europe and South America).
• Represented the shareholders of Simons International in their sale of the Simons Group of Companies to AMEC/AGRA International - a publicly traded company based in Canada and U.K.
• Represents BC Hydro in respect of a number of energy related projects, joint ventures, venture capital investments, dispositions and outsourcings of non-core assets and key services, and acquisitions of power generation plants and transmission facilities.
• Represented National Energy Systems in respect of gas fired power generation projects and an international transmission line.
• Represented a Canadian based pipeline company in its proposed acquisition of an international oil pipeline.
• Represented shareholder/vendor groups in GPC Communications and Palmer Jarvis Advertising in respect of the sales of those companies to Omnicom, a U.S. based publicly traded company.
• Represented Tolko Industries Inc. in its acquisitions of Repap Manitoba and the High Level forestry operations of Daishowa-Marubeni.
• Represented U.S. based public company U.S. Office Products in its acquisition of Data Business Forms Limited, a private Canadian company.
• Represented Methanex in its acquisition of its joint venture partner's interest in a methanol plant located in Louisiana, including the negotiation of amended commercial facility agreements.
• Represents Methanex from time to time in respect of other planned acquisitions and joint ventures.
• Represented CRA Mining of Australia in its proposed acquisition and joint venture of diamond mining venture in NWT.
• Represented governments of British Columbia and Northwest Territories in privatizations and related public/private transactions.
• Represented BC Rail Group in its sale of Westel Telecommunications; and its purchase of Canadian Stevedoring and Vancouver Wharves Ltd..
• Canadian counsel to Daimler Aerospace in its acquisition and joint venturing of the aircraft engine repair/maintenance operations of Canadian Airlines.
• Represented Belkorp Industries (ie. Balaclava) in the completion of its take-over of BC Sugar and its subsequent corporate reorganization and income trust public refinancing.
• Represented the executive management group of Tree Island Industries in a leveraged buy-out of the Tree Island Group of Companies (based in Canada and the U.S.) from its U.S. owner - Georgetown Industries.

Professional and Community Activities

• Former director/officer of a number of Canadian corporations; founding director of Leadership Vancouver; former adjunct professor of Corporate Law at University of British Columbia Law School; former Chairman: Business Law Section, Canadian Bar Association, B.C. Branch; former Chair - Editorial Board: 'The National' magazine (Canadian Bar Publication).
• President: U of A Law School Alumni Association – Vancouver / BC Branch.
• Former Director: Canadian Petroleum Law Foundation.
• Former Chief Editor: Carswell Corporations Law Guide.
• Former Director: Independent Power Producers Association of BC.
• Member: Canadian Institute of Energy, Canadian Petroleum Law Foundation, Rocky Mountain Mineral Institute, Vancouver Board of Trade.
• Speaker at numerous industry and legal profession conferences.
• Member of Solicitors Legal Opinion Committee (Law Society / CBA committee of leading Vancouver solicitors).