Rory ffrench

Recent representative matters include advising on:

M&A and Investments

• Pacific Equity Partners on its C$165-million divestiture of AST Investor Services Inc. (Canada) and AST Trust Company (Canada) to the TMX Group Limited

• L Catterton on its minority equity investment in FYidoctors

• Canoe Financial LP on its acquisition of the investment fund management contracts for nine Fiera Capital mutual funds from Fiera Capital Corporation

• Charlesbank Capital Partners on its acquisition of News America Marketing business from News Corp

• A consolidator in the Canadian health-care industry on its acquisitions, equity offerings and corporate governance matters

• Roynat Capital, among a group of institutional investors, on their investment in Legado Capital

• Canadian counsel to Dell Technologies Inc. on its US$2.075-billion sale of RSA Security LLC to a consortium of investors led by Symphony Technology Group and including Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board and AlpInvest Partners

• WorldStrides on its acquisition of the North American educational travel businesses of Travelopia

• The Maillis Group, a portfolio company of HIG Capital, on its sale of Wulftec International to Duravant, a portfolio company of Warburg-Pincus

• Arjun Infrastructure Partners and Fengate Asset Management in connection with the acquisition of the ONroute Service Centres

• Bartek Ingredients on its sale to TorQuest Partners

• Digital Colony Partners and EQT Infrastructure IV Fund as Canadian counsel in connection with their consortium’s US$14.3-billion agreement to acquire, recapitalize and take private Zayo Group Holdings, Inc.

• GMS Inc. on its C$800-million acquisition of WSB Titan from TorQuest Partners

• CI Financial on its C$780-million purchase of Sentry Investments, as well as its acquisitions of Virtual Brokers and WealthBar Financial Services

• Linamar Corporation on its C$1.2-billion acquisition of the MacDon Group of Companies

• Westlake Chemical Corporation on its US$3.8-billion acquisition of Axiall Corporation

• Baring Private Equity Asia on its acquisition of a 35 per cent stake in TELUS International

• Aecon Group Inc. and Airport Development Corporation on the sale of their majority interest in the Quito, Ecuador International Airport to Grupo Odinsa and CCR

• Holcim in connection with its C$50-billion merger with Lafarge

• Georgian Partners on investments in Medgate Inc. and technology startup Influitive

• The sale of ESC Corporate Services Ltd. to Information Services Corp.

• Canadian Western Bank on the sale of Canadian Direct Insurance to Intact Financial Corporation for C$197-million

• Element Financial Corporation on its US$8.6-billion acquisition of the U.S., Mexico, Australia and New Zealand fleet businesses of GE Capital Fleet Services, a division of GE Capital Corporation

• Agrium Inc. on its acquisition of Viterra's wholesale and retail Agri-products division from Glencore International plc and a related third party sale and divesture transaction

• Element Financial Corporation on its acquisitions of TLS Fleet Management and CoActiv Capital Partners

• BCE and Rogers on their C$1.1-billion acquisition of 75 per cent in Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment

Strategic Transactions and Reorganizations

• Acted for Power Financial Corporation on its C$1.65-billion repurchase and cancellation of common shares pursuant to a substantial issuer bid and its tendering into Great-West Lifeco Inc.’s C$2-billion substantial issuer bid, and Power Corporation of Canada on its C$1.35-billion repurchase and cancellation of subordinate voting shares pursuant to a substantial issuer bid and its tendering of common shares into Power Financial Corporation’s substantial issuer bid

• A major automotive OEM in a global reorganization

• CBS Corporation on its worldwide reorganization of its Outdoor Advertising Business

• Granite REIT on its conversion from Granite Real Estate Inc.

Rory is actively involved in mentoring and serves as a member of the Blakes Student Committee.

Rory is committed to participating in and furthering legal education.  He was a member of the Adjunct Faculty of Osgoode Hall Law School from 2016 to 2020, where he taught an upper-year seminar on contractual remedies.  He also regularly leads seminars and lectures to both internal and external audiences on several facets of business law, including M&A, private equity, corporate governance and negotiation.

Rory is a member of the Membership Committee of the Toronto Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth and a member of the Canadian Bar Association, the Ontario Bar Association, CPA Canada, CPA Ontario and CPA Manitoba.

• Co-author: Private plans of arrangement - exploring the intersection of private and public M&A strategies
  Lexpert Magazine, April 22, 2021.
• Author: Private M&A: An Updated Take on What Lies Ahead for 2020
  Blakes Bulletin on Mergers & Acquisitions, May 25, 2020.
• Co-author: 2018 Legal Trends: Private Equity
  Blakes Bulletin on Private Equity, October 18, 2018.
• Co-author: Inaugural Canadian Private Equity Deal Study
  Blakes Transaction Study, May 30, 2018.

• Speaker: M&A and COVID-19: A Strategic Update
  Episode 6, The Blakes Continuity Podcast, May 22, 2020.
• Co-speaker: Managing Sales to Private Equity / Financial Sponsors
  Buying or Selling a Business 2019, Law Society of Ontario, March 20, 2019.

• Interviewed: Cross-Border Legal Report: The boom in representations and warranties insurance
  Interviewed by Anita Balakrishnan, Canadian Lawyer, April 7, 2020.

Admitted to the Ontario Bar - 2012
J.D. (Silver Medallist), University of Toronto - 2011
CPA, CA (2007 UFE National Honour Roll) - 2009
B.Comm (Hon., Finance Program Gold Medallist), University of Manitoba - 2006