This section keeps you up-to-date on the latest news and upcoming public appearances of Lavery professionals.
News
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Death of the Honourable Anthime Bergeron
On June 11, we were sorry to learn of the death of the Honourable Anthime Bergeron, retired Justice of the Superior Court of Québec and former member of Lavery. He was the comrade-in-arms of Louis-Philippe de Grandpré, Vincent O'Donnell, and Claude Lavery.Me Bergeron had an impressive legal career. Called to the Barreau du Québec in 1948, he was recruited by Jean de Grandpré in 1955, when he joined the firm of Tansey, de Grandpré & de Grandpré. A few years later, this firm become Lavery, Johnston, Chauvin, O'Donnell, Clark, Carrière, Mason & Associates and, in 1979, it merged with another Montréal law firm to become Lavery, O' Brien. Me Bergeron practiced at this firm until he was appointed to the bench of the Superior Court of Québec in 1973, a seat he held until his retirement in 1999.During his practice, Me Bergeron built a strong reputation in insurance law and argued on several occasions before the Supreme Court. As partner, he was also responsible for recruiting lawyers. Me Bergeron always believed that the recruiting and training of lawyers was a top priority, and his avant-garde approach ensured that the firm recruited the best talent. This attitude, which still guides us today, has helped build the firm’s reputation for integrity, respect, commitment, and excellence.On behalf of the entire Lavery team, we offer our sincere condolences to Me Bergeron’s friends and family.
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Philippe d'Etcheverry, of Lavery, named board member of the Canadian Construction Association
Philippe d'Etcheverry, commercial litigation lawyer at Lavery, was recently appointed to the board of directors of the Canadian Construction Association (CCA) as representative of the Québec region.The CCA is the national voice of Canada’s non-residential construction sector. As such, it represents more than 20,000 member firms belonging to some seventy local and provincial construction associations.
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Loïc Berdnikoff, of Lavery, on-line guest speaker at the Canadian Bar Association (CBA)
Loïc Berdnikoff, partner in administrative law at Lavery, was an on-line guest speaker at an event sponsored by the CBA’s National Privacy and Access Law Section. The subject of his talk was “Questions related to the protection of privacy and post-secondary institutions: practical advice on ‘private’ things.” Me Berdnikoff’s speech focused on the protection of privacy, access to information, and the handling of requests for information at institutions of higher education. The other guest speakers were Me Mandy Woodland, Mandy Woodland Law, and Me Lorne I. Randa, of Brownlee, LLP.
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Marie Cossette, of Lavery, guest speaker at the Canadian Institute on disciplinary law
On June 11, Ms. Marie Cossette, litigation partner at Lavery, lead a day-long conference on disciplinary law as part of an advanced training session on administrative law organized by the Canadian Institute. During this event, participants updated their knowledge of administrative law through a review of the new rules and the consequences of decisions made in this area by the various courts.On this occasion, Ms. Cossette delivered a talk on the recent case law developments in disciplinary law and the role of the Tribunal des professions and the Superior Court in this field.
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Lavery welcomes Me Awatif Lakhdar, lawyer
Lavery is pleased to announce that Ms. Awatif Lakhdar recently joined the firm’s Montreal offices as an associate. Ms. Lakhdar is specialized in Family Law, Personal Law and Private International Law. Called to the Bar in 2002, she also is a mediator certified by the Quebec Bar since 2006.Educated in Law at the Université du Québec à Montréal, she has appeared before the Court of Québec, the Court of Appeal of Québec, the Federal Court of Canada and administrative tribunals.Prior to joining Lavery, Ms. Lakhdar founded the firm of Lakhdar & associés, specialized in Family Law and Private International Law.
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Audrey-Julie Dallaire joins Lavery as an associate
Lavery is pleased to announce that Ms. Audrey-Julie Dallaire recently joined our Sherbrooke office as an associate. Called to the Barreau du Québec in 2005, Ms. Dallaire practices in our Litigation group.Ms. Dallaire works primarily in the fields of civil and administrative litigation, municipal law, and labour law. The author of numerous articles, she has lead many training sessions and given many presentations, primarily on the role of elected municipal officers. Before joining Lavery, she practiced with a Montréal law firm.
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Laurence Bich-Carrière, of Lavery, author of an article in the Asper Review of International Business and Trade Law
Ms. Laurence Bich-Carrière, litigation lawyer at Lavery, is the author of an article entitled “Homère, Gutenberg, Helen Keller et Stevie Wonder: Commentaire sur le traité de l'OMPI pour l'accès des aveugles à l'imprimé,” recently published in the Asper Review of International Business and Trade Law.On June 27, 2013, after many years of negotiation, the World Intellectual Property Organization adopted the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access To Published Works by Visually Impaired Persons and Persons with Print Disabilities. In this commentary, Ms. Bich-Carrière explores the negotiation background and the evolution of the proposed instrument before turning to an analysis of how the international copyright community sought to modulate the rules regarding reproduction of copyright-protected works and their cross-border distribution to increase access to accessible format works. Impact on Canadian copyright law is also discussed.To read the article, (in French) click here.To read the Treaty and related official documents, click here.
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Guillaume Lavoie, of Lavery, appointed as director and corporate secretary of Jeunesses Musicales du Canada (JMC)
Mr. Guillaume Lavoie, corporate lawyer at Lavery, was recently appointed as director and corporate secretary of Jeunesses Musicales du Canada (JMC) following a meeting of its board of directors.A non-profit organization, JMC has a dual mandate: to promote the performance of classical music and to support the career development of young instrumentalists, singers, and composers on both the national and international scenes.
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Michel Blouin and René Branchaud of Lavery, recognized for their expertise in corporate law
The June 2014 issue of the Globe and Mail’s Report on Business includes an insert entitled 2014 Lexpert/Report on Business Special Edition – Corporate (ROB Corporate) in which Michel Blouin and René Branchaud, both Business Law partners at Lavery, are recognized as leading practitioners in Canada. More precisely, this publication recognizes the scope of Mr Blouin and Mr. Branchaud’s mining law practice.To read this insert, please click here.
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Lavery, proud partner of Rendez-vous Relève Inc. TM
Québec is in danger of losing thousands of companies. This will be a growing problem in coming years, since 30% of business owners are planning to retire within the next decade, and half of them have no plans to sell or transfer ownership of their business.For this reason, the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal and the Fonds de solidarité FTQ have unveiled an important study and, from June 3 to 5, held a series of activities in three Quebec regions to raise awareness of, promote, and facilitate the transfer of businesses.Lavery, a proud partner of Rendez-vous relève Inc.TM, has dealt with the legal issues surrounding the various types of business transfer. In its June 5 edition, La Presse published a special feature on the subject. Click here to learn more about business succession.
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Loïc Berdnikoff, of Lavery, guest speaker at the 43rd Conference of the Association des archivistes du Québec (AAQ)
Loïc Berdnikoff, partner in administrative law at Lavery, was a guest speaker at the 43rd conference of the Association des archivistes du Québec. On May 29, he gave a conference entitled “Access to information and the protection of personal information: Ups and downs,” addressing the major obligations and constraints under the laws applicable to the public and private sectors. Mr. Berdnikoff also offered some practical advice when it comes to responding to access to information requests.In recent years, Mr. Berdnikoff has regularly advised and represented public agencies and private companies in cases related to the confidential nature of documents, professional privilege, and privacy, particularly within the context of proceedings before the Commission d’accès à l’information du Québec.
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Marie Cossette, of Lavery, guest speaker on business integrity at the Barreau de Québec
On May 29, Marie Cossette, litigation partner at Lavery and head of the firm’s Corporate and business integrity team, was guest speaker at an event organized by the Barreau de Québec. Some 80 people came to hear her take stock of the aftermath of the December 2012 passing of Bill 1 (the Integrity Act) aiming to introduce anti-corruption measures governing contracting by public bodies.After discussing the goal and scope of these measures, Ms. Cossette addressed the process of applying for authorization from the AMF and the challenges and issues legal advisors must deal with when guiding clients through this process. She also presented the penal provisions and amendments to the Act since its passage. She concluded her presentation with a summary of the impact of this new system on the fight against corruption and the pursuit of integrity.