The 2018 The Best Lawyers in Canada recognize 42 lawyers of Lavery

August 25, 2017

Lavery is pleased to announce that 42 of the firm’s lawyers have been recognized as leading lawyers in Canada in their respective practice areas in the 2018 edition of The Best Lawyers in Canada.

"The ranking of our partners among the most influential lawyers in their fields confirms our leadership role as the largest independent law firm in Quebec. The fact that they put their clients and partners at the heart of their practice gives them the necessary agility and audacity to excel in our market. Congratulations to all!", stated Anik Trudel, Chief Executive Officer.

Five lawyers among the Lavery lawyers recommended in this edition have been honoured for the first time: Josianne Beaudry, Norman A. Dionne, Nadine Landry, François Renaud and Yanick Vlasak.

Below is a complete list of Lavery lawyers and their field(s) of expertise. Note that the practice areas reflect those in Best Lawyers.

Pierre-L. Baribeau : Labour and Employment Law
Josianne Beaudry : Mining Law
René Branchaud : Mining Law / Natural Resources Law / Securities Law
Jules Brière, Ad. E.. : Administrative and Public Law / Health Care Law
Richard Burgos : Corporate Law
Marie-Claude Cantin : Construction Law / Insurance Law
Louis Charette : Aviation Law / Product Liability Law / Transportation Law
Eugène Czolij : Corporate and Commercial Litigation / Insolvency and Financial Restructuring Law
Pierre Denis : Equipment Finance Law
Norman A. Dionne : Entertainment Law
Raymond Doray, Ad. E. : Administrative and Public Law
Louis-Martin Dubé : Real Estate Law
Nicolas Gagnon : Construction Law
Michel Gélinas : Labour and Employment Law
Caroline Harnois : Family Law
Jean Hébert : Insurance Law
Richard A. Hinse : Corporate and Commercial Litigation
Pierre Marc Johnson, Ad. E, G.O.Q., MSRC : International Arbitration
Bernard Larocque : Class Action Litigation / Insurance Law
Nadine Landry : Immigration Law
Guy Lavoie, CIRC : Labour and Employment Law / Workers’ Compensation Law
Jean Legault : Banking and Finance Law / Insolvency and Financial Restructuring Law
Guy Lemay, CIRC : Class Action Litigation / Labour and Employment Law
Jean Martel, Ad. E. : Corporate Governance Practice / Private Funds Law
Patrick A. Molinari, Ad.E., MSRC : Health Care Law
Philip Nolan : Tax Law
François Parent : Employee Benefits Law
Luc Pariseau : Tax Law
Jacques Paul-Hus : Mergers & Acquisitions Law
Louis Payette, Ad. E. : Banking and Finance Law
Élisabeth Pinard : Family Law
Sylvain Poirier : Health Care Law
François Renaud : Banking and Finance Law
Marc Rochefort : Securities Law
Ian Rose : Director and Officer Liability Practice / Insurance Law
Raphaël H. Schachter , c.r., Ad. E. : Criminal Defence
Jean-Yves Simard : Corporate and Commercial Litigation / Insolvency and Financial Restructuring Law
Gerald Stotland : Family Law
Philippe Tremblay : Construction Law
Jean-Philippe Turgeon : Franchise Law
André Vautour : Corporate Law / Information Technology Law / Intellectual Property Law / Private Funds Law / Technology Law
Yanick Vlasak : Corporate and Commercial Litigation

For more information, please consult the Best Lawyers website.

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November 20, 2024

Laurence Bich-Carrière, a rising star in the Canadian legal profession

Lavery is proud to announce that on November 19, Laurence Bich-Carrière received the Rising Stars Leading Lawyers Under 40 award from Lexpert. This prestigious award honours lawyers under the age of 40 in Canada who distinguish themselves in the legal profession. The winners are selected by a jury of law firm managing partners and recognized corporate counsels, based on rigorously studied criteria like leadership, outstanding professional achievement and service to clients. As a litigation partner and a member of the Barreau du Québec and of the Law Society of Ontario, Laurence is an accomplished lawyer. Specializing in complex litigation, her expertise is especially valued in class actions and appeals. Her clients appreciate her efficiency, her stringent analyses and her ability to propose a range of solutions, often by thinking outside the box, to further her cases. Laurence is committed to her clients and her colleagues, and she is also a very active member of the legal community, proving her professional versatility. She is also involved with other legal institutions—she is a member of the civil procedure committee of the Barreau du Québec, a member of the executive committees of the Canadian Bar Association, Quebec Branch, including the Research and Knowledge Management section and the International section—and community organizations, such as the board of directors of the Fondation Claude Masse for the dissemination of consumer law knowledge. In addition to her solid practical experience, Laurence is also interested in research and training the next generation of lawyers. She is a sought-after speaker, the author of some forty publications, including several in scientific journals, she occasionally lectures and participates in the deliberation of various university research groups. Congratulations to Laurence on this well-earned recognition of her talent and expertise. For more information, read the article : 2024 Winners | Lexpert Rising Stars About Lavery Lavery is the leading independent law firm in Québec. Its more than 200 professionals, based in Montréal, Québec City, Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivières, work every day to offer a full range of legal services to organizations doing business in Québec. Recognized by the most prestigious legal directories, Lavery professionals are at the heart of what is happening in the business world and are actively involved in their communities. The firm’s expertise is frequently sought after by numerous national and international partners to provide support in cases under Québec jurisdiction.

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November 4, 2024

La Presse’s Big Gamble Pays Off

Pierre-Elliott Levasseur will always remember a conversation he had in 2010 with Guy Crevier, Editor of La Presse, who was also its president at the time. “The first iPad had just come out. We were both looking at the tablet and, although we didn’t know exactly what to think, we knew we had to do something with this new tool,” says Pierre-Elliott Levasseur, who has been President of La Presse since 2016. The rest, as they say, is history. La Presse’s titanic digital transformation and overhaul of its business model became a case study that has been making headlines for almost 15 years. The last major milestone in this evolution was its change of business model in 2018, when La Presse decided to adopt a not-for-profit structure. This allowed it to diversify its revenue streams by obtaining donations and assistance from the federal and provincial governments, in addition to advertising revenue. Power Corporation would no longer own La Presse, abandoning the business model adopted by the media industry for the past century. This new model also enabled La Presse to become one of the first news media in the country to obtain Registered Journalism Organization (RJO) status. Thanks to this, La Presse can now issue tax receipts to its donors, thus diversifying its income and ensuring its long-term survival. All this was a big gamble in uncharted territory, but La Presse was no stranger to risk taking over the years. Why the change in structure? In a difficult economic climate for media companies, marked by declining ad revenues and fierce digital competition, La Presse has chosen to remain faithful to the principle of free access, which is deeply rooted in its mission. Quality information is a public good, and a public good must serve the entire population, for free. We had to find another business model to increase and diversify our revenue streams. If La Presse hadn’t transformed itself, it wouldn’t have survived. We had no choice but to take the risk. Pierre-Elliott LevasseurPrésident, La Presse Six years later, the gamble has paid off handsomely. Since the launch of the philanthropic model, over 75,000 people have donated to La Presse. La Presse is the largest independent French-language media in North America, with over 500 employees, including 220 in the newsroom. Every month, La Presse reaches 4 million readers, or 60% of Quebec’s adult population. “The quality of the product remained at the heart of all our decisions: we never compromised on that,” says Pierre-Elliott. Human challenges Getting there wasn’t easy. “The expression we used in 2018 when Power Corporation was no longer our owner was ‘we’re leaving the nest.’ We had to find a solution together, because otherwise we’d have gone bankrupt together.” The culture of change that La Presse had developed in previous years as part of its digital transformation was the first step towards success. “It wasn’t our first transformation. But it certainly required a lot of communication to reassure people and convince them that we were heading in the right direction.” Its excellent relationship with the unions was another success factor. “The unions supported us and always acted with us.” In addition to a $50 million contribution to fund the transition, Power Corporation retained responsibility for past retirement plan obligations, which cushioned the risk and reassured employees. Legal challenges On top of the human challenges, there were legal obstacles. In order to convert to a not-for-profit structure, La Presse had to obtain a legislative change from the elected members of the National Assembly. When Power Corporation acquired the newspaper in 1967, the Quebec government passed a law preventing the transfer of ownership to foreign interests. A unanimous vote was required to amend the law. “It was definitely a period of uncertainty. It was difficult to move forward operationally,” recalls Pierre-Elliott. In July 2018, the legislative change was approved, and La Presse became an independent, not-for-profit structure. A few months later, the philanthropic program was launched, and La Presse received its first donations from readers. At the end of 2020, the tax transformation was completed, with the Canada Revenue Agency granting La Presse its Registered Journalism Organization (RJO) status, enabling it to become a qualified donee and issue tax receipts for donations received. Committed donors In 2023, 56,000 donors contributed a total of $7.8 million to La Presse, an increase of 13% over 2022. “We started from zero and have now reached nearly $8 million in donations. This would not have been possible without our loyal donors,” says Pierre-Elliott. La Presse ended the 2023 fiscal year with a positive balance sheet and a $40 million reserve fund. “This fund is designed to ensure La Presse’s long-term future, allowing us to weather economic downturns or technological changes. The fund also allows us to reinvest in our mission and in journalism in Quebec.” Never stop innovating At the same time, La Presse has seen an increase in advertising revenue in a shrinking market. These results can be attributed, in part, to yearly innovations in its advertising product offerings. “Our advertising products are based on data and careful audience segmentation, in full compliance with the industry’s highest privacy standards. We listen to our customers and advertisers to understand their needs before making business decisions,” says Pierre-Elliott. In writing its content, La Presse works with tools used by the world’s leading media, including the BBC and The Guardian, to determine angles for its coverage based on readers’ main information needs: to be informed, but also to have context, to be guided in their lives, and to be inspired and entertained. La Presse’s journalistic mission is supported by a solid business team. For example, La Presse employs specialized technology and business intelligence teams. These two teams have nearly 100 employees working on innovative tools that help La Presse compete ethically and locally with some of the solutions offered by American digital giants. La Presse’s digital transformation and change in business model have been essential to its success. “Our commitment to digital transformation was total. We didn’t compromise.” Today, La Presse has a competitive and strategic advantage that’s hard to rival. This year marks La Presse’s 140th anniversary, while La Presse+ celebrates its 11th. Through many storms, independently and without commercial shareholders, La Presse continues to reinvent itself. Not only has its gamble paid off, but La Presse has also remained true to its mission of delivering quality journalism that’s free and accessible to everyone. And that’s something that will never change,” says Pierre-Elliott.

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October 31, 2024

Lavery recognized in Best Lawyer's new directory of Canada's best law firms for 2025

We are pleased to announce that Lavery has been recognized as one of the top law firms in the new edition of Best Law Firms - Canada published by Best Lawyers for 2025. Our firm was ranked in 16 practice areas nationally and 50 practice areas regionally. These recognitions are further demonstration of the expertise and quality of legal services that characterize Lavery's professionals. Firms on the 2025 Best Lawyers - Canada list are recognized for their professional excellence through evaluations by their clients and peers. Areas of expertise in which Lavery is recognized: Tier 1 Administrative and Public Law (National / Regional) Banking and Finance Law (Regional) Class Action Litigation (Regional) Commercial Leasing Law (Regional) Construction Law (Regional) Corporate and Commercial Litigation (Regional) Corporate Law (Regional) Family Law (National / Regional) Information Technology Law (Regional) Insolvency and Financial Restructuring Law (Regional) Insurance Law (National / Regional) Intellectual Property Law (Regional) Labour and Employment Law (Regional) Mergers and Acquisitions Law (Regional) Mining Law (Regional) Natural Resources Law (Regional) Product Liability Law (Regional) Securities Law (Regional) Trusts and Estates (Regional) Workers' Compensation Law (Regional) Tier 2 Administrative and Public Law (Regional) Advertising and Marketing Law (Regional) Alternative Dispute Resolution (Regional) Biotechnology and Life Sciences Practice (Regional) Class Action Litigation (National) Corporate Governance Practice (Regional) Corporate Law (National / Regional) Director and Officer Liability Practice (Regional) Energy Law (Regional) Environmental Law (Regional) Family Law (Regional) Health Care Law (Regional) Insurance Law (Regional) Intellectual Property Law (National) Labour and Employment Law (National) Professional Malpractice Law (Regional) Real Estate Law (Regional) Tax Law (Regional) Trusts and Estates (National) Tier 3 Aboriginal Law / Indigenous Practice (Regional) Alternative Dispute Resolution (Regional) Banking and Finance Law (National) Construction Law (National) Corporate and Commercial Litigation (National) Defamation and Media Law (Regional) Employee Benefits Law (Regional) Equipment Finance Law (Regional) Family Law Mediation (Regional) Health Care Law (Regional) Insolvency and Financial Restructuring Law (National) Mergers and Acquisitions Law (National) Mining Law (National) Privacy and Data Security Law (Regional) Private Funds Law (Regional) Professional Malpractice Law (Regional) Project Finance Law (Regional) Securities Law (National) Workers' Compensation Law (National) About Lavery Lavery is the leading independent law firm in Quebec. Its more than 200 professionals, based in Montréal, Quebec, Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivières, work every day to offer a full range of legal services to organizations doing business in Quebec. Recognized by the most prestigious legal directories, Lavery professionals are at the heart of what is happening in the business world and are actively involved in their communities. The firm’s expertise is frequently sought after by numerous national and international partners to provide support in cases under Quebec jurisdiction. About Best Lawyers Best Lawyers is the oldest and most respected lawyer ranking service in the world. For almost 40 years, Best Lawyers has assisted those in need of legal services to identify the lawyers best qualified to represent them in distant jurisdictions or specialized areas. Best Lawyers lists are published in leading local, regional, and national publications across the globe.

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October 28, 2024

Two new members join Lavery’s ranks

Lavery is pleased to announce that two recently sworn-in lawyers are joining Lavery following the completion of their articling within the firm. Éloïse Fortin Éloïse joins our Family, Personal and Estate Law group. She focuses her practice on family law, handling divorce, separation, division of property, parenting time, and child and spousal support cases. “What inspires me about Lavery is their ongoing commitment to excellence and innovation. The firm’s vision combines legal know-how with a deep understanding of client needs to create the perfect environment for collaboration and growth. I feel privileged to be part of this exceptional team. It motivates me to provide high-quality services with a human touch.” El Hadji Alioune Seck Alioune joins our Litigation and Dispute Resolution group. Since joining the firm as a student, Alioune has been involved in major civil, constitutional and administrative cases before various jurisdictions, including the Federal Court and the Court of Appeal of Quebec. “When you join the Lavery team, it doesn’t take long to realize that you are part of an incredible talent incubator where you can develop your full potential. Your colleagues will give you a leg up right from the start and won’t hesitate for a second to entrust you with major responsibilities once you’ve proven yourself. As a lawyer, you couldn’t ask for a better environment to grow your practice and steadily build your professional reputation.”

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