Ryan Morris, Toronto

About Ryan

Ryan's practice focuses on corporate, transactional, securities and broker/dealer litigation, regulatory proceedings, and class actions. He has significant experience defending securities class actions involving prospectus misrepresentation and secondary market disclosure. He also regularly acts on matters involving contested share sale transactions, oppression and fair value proceedings, applications with respect to shareholder rights plans and proxy contests, and statutory plan of arrangement proceedings.

Ryan advises investment dealers on matters of regulatory compliance and has represented clients in regulatory investigations and hearings conducted by the Ontario Securities Commission and other provincial securities commissions, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) and the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada (MFDA). He spent six months on secondment as legal counsel to one of Canada's largest securities broker/dealers.

Ryan has appeared as counsel in the Supreme Court of Canada, the Court of Appeal for Ontario, the Federal Court, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, the Ontario Securities Commission and other administrative tribunals, and in commercial arbitrations and mediations.

Select Experience

Successfully defending The Stars Group Inc. in an application to prevent the conversion of its convertible preferred shares to common shares
Counsel to Instacart in connection with its acquisition of Unata Inc., provider of digital solutions to grocers
Counsel to Washington Companies in connection with its C$1.5-billion acquisition of Dominion Diamond Corporation
Acting for an English coverholder and syndicate of Lloyd's underwriters in staying a Canadian action against them in favour of arbitration in London, England under LCIA Rules
Counsel to Celestica Inc. on its successful appeal before the Supreme Court of Canada to uphold the limitation period for bringing a statutory secondary market securities class action
Defending a syndicate of underwriters in a secondary market securities class action against Detour Gold Inc. and its former CEO
Counsel to the former CFO of Cash Store Inc. in defence of a primary and secondary market securities class action against Cash Store Inc. and its former officers and directors
Counsel to Suncor Energy Inc. on its C$6.6-billion acquisition of Canadian Oil Sands Inc.
Advising the Independent Trustees of CentralGold Trust in connection with the acquisition of CentralGold Trust by Sprott Asset Management
Counsel to BCE Inc. in connection with its C$670-million acquisition of Glentel Inc. and the sale of 50% of Glentel Inc. to Rogers Communications Inc.
Counsel to Agrium Inc. on its successful proxy contest with dissident shareholder JANA Partners LLC
Acting for an international bank's securities dealer in regulatory proceedings related to the asset-backed commercial paper market freeze
Counsel to BHP Billiton on its US$40-billion offer to acquire Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan
Representation of investment dealers and investment advisers in the defence of broker/dealer liability claims

Awards & Recognition

Ryan is recognized as a leading practitioner in the following publications:

The Best Lawyers in Canada – 2021–2025 (Class Action Litigation, Corporate and Commercial Litigation, Securities Law)
The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory – 2021–2025 (Litigation – Securities)
Benchmark Canada: The Definitive Guide to Canada's Leading Litigation Firms and Attorneys – 2023–2024 (Litigation Star – Securities)
Chambers Canada Legal Guide – 2022–2024 (Litigation: Securities)
Lexpert Special Edition: Litigation 2024
The Legal 500 Canada 2023 (Dispute Resolution)
Thomson Reuters Stand-out Lawyers 2021 – Independently Rated Lawyers (As nominated by senior in-house counsel)
Lexpert’s Rising Stars 2017: Leading Lawyers 40 and Under