Luke Hills, Toronto | Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP

About Luke

Luke’s practice focuses on domestic, international and cross-border mergers and acquisition and a variety of capital markets transactions and securities regulatory matters, including private equity, public and private offerings, initial public offerings, and other business transactions. He has acted as counsel to Canadian and foreign purchasers and target companies in public company acquisitions, and purchasers and vendors in private mergers and acquisition transactions. His experience includes acting for Canadian and international private equity sponsors on a broad range of merger and acquisition matters, as well as pension fund and institutional and strategic investors on private equity investments.

Luke also provides ongoing advice to public issuers and private corporations on securities regulatory compliance, stock exchange matters, disclosure obligations and general corporate law matters, including the drafting of various commercial agreements. He acts on transactions involving a wide range of industry sectors, including private equity, automotive, manufacturing, gaming, life sciences, cannabis, mining, technology, retail and consumer products, and real estate.

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Recent representative transactions include acting for:

Mergers & Acquisitions, Private Equity and Venture Capital

ABC Technologies Holdings Inc. in connection with its US$165-million acquisition of WMG Technologies from the Bierer family; its US$255-million acquisition of dlhBOWLES, Inc. from MPE Partners; and its US$95-million acquisition of a majority interest in Karl Etzel GmbH from the Schürrle family
TAAL Distributed Information Technologies Inc., in connection with its going-private transaction with and acquisition by its controlling shareholder
The Hawthorne Collective, Inc., a cannabis-focused subsidiary of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, on its purchase of US$175-million aggregate principal amount unsecured convertible debentures of RIV Capital Inc. over two tranches
Playtech plc on its strategic investment in NorthStar Gaming Holdings Inc.
Cerberus Capital Management, L.P. in connection with ABC Group Canada LP's, an entity indirectly controlled, through one or more intermediate entities, by Cerberus, sale of its 100% ownership interest in ABC Technologies Holdings Inc. pursuant to a C$110-million secondary offering, a C$266-million sale of its 51% majority interest in ABC Technologies to an entity managed by certain funds and affiliates of Apollo Global Management, Inc., and a C$124-million sale of its remaining minority interest in ABC Technologies to certain funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P.
Washington Companies in connection with its C$1.5-billion acquisition of Dominion Diamond Corporation and related debt financings
ESSA Pharma Inc. in connection with its acquisition of Realm Therapeutics plc
D-Wave Systems Inc. in connection with multiple venture capital private placements for aggregate gross proceeds of C$90-million
Chemistree Technology Inc. in connection with its investment in ImmunoFlex Therapeutics Inc.

Capital Markets and Private Financings

The dealers, led by Merrill Lynch Canada and RBC Dominion Securities, on Électricité de France’s inaugural C$500-million maple bond offering
Primaris Real Estate Investment Trust on its inaugural private placement offering of C$350-million aggregate principal amount of senior unsecured debentures, consisting of C$150-million aggregate principal amount of Series A Debentures and C$200-million aggregate principal amount Series B Debentures
ABC Technologies Holdings Inc. in connection with its initial public offering and listing on the TSX, pursuant to the secondary offering of its common shares by ABC Group Canada LP, an entity indirectly controlled, through one or more intermediate entities, by Cerberus Capital Management L.P., for total gross proceeds to ABC Group Canada LP of C$110-million
ABC Technologies Holdings Inc. in connection with its one-for-one offering of rights to purchase common shares in ABC to all of the holders of its common shares and private placement offering of common shares to certain insiders of the company, for aggregate gross proceeds of approximately C$367.5-million
The agents in connection with the establishment of BSR Real Estate Investment Trust's US$150-million "at-the-market" offering of trust units
dentalcorp Holdings Ltd. in connection with its C$250-million concurrent private placement to its C$700-million initial public offering of subordinate voting shares
Granite Real Estate Investment Trust and Granite REIT Inc. in connection with Granite's C$316-million public offering of stapled units, the renewal of Granite's C$1.5-billion base shelf prospectus, and the establishment of Granite's C$250-million "at-the-market" offering of stapled units
Granite Real Estate Investment Trust in connection with Granite REIT Holdings Limited Partnership's green bond offering of C$500-million aggregate principal amount of Series 6 unsecured debentures, and the renewal of Granite REIT Holdings Limited Partnership's C$1.75-billion base shelf prospectus
Tectonic Metals Inc. in connection with its C$6-million private placement offering of special warrants and subsequent non-offering long form prospectus filing and direct initial listing on the TSX Venture Exchange
The underwriters on multiple secondary offerings of Subordinate Voting Shares of Aritzia Inc. for aggregate gross proceeds of approximately C$400-million
ESSA Pharma Inc. in connection with multiple public and private placement offerings of common shares and/or common shares and pre-funded warrants for aggregate gross proceeds of approximately US$146-million