Foreign Investment

Blakes has a leading foreign investment practice advising international and Canadian clients on the application of Canada’s foreign investment review laws and regulations, including the Investment Canada Act (ICA). The ICA contains general review and notification requirements for a wide range of investments by non-Canadians in Canadian businesses, as well as a comprehensive and increasingly utilized national security review regime. Our lawyers are experts in navigating the complex maze of laws and regulations governing investments by non-Canadians in all of these areas, including the special rules that apply to state-owned enterprises, sovereign wealth funds, investors from certain countries and cultural businesses..

Recent Experience

Advent International Corporation on its US$6.3-billion acquisition of Nuvei Corporation, a Canadian fintech payment platform.
AstraZeneca AB on its US$2-billion acquisition of Fusion Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Fission Uranium Corp. on its C$1.14-billion acquisition by Paladin Energy.
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. on its acquisition of Stelco Holdings Inc., a transaction representing an enterprise value of approximately C$3.4-billion.
OMERS on its C$1.35-billion sale of LifeLabs to Quest Diagnostics Incorporated.
The Stars Group Inc. in connection with its announced US$15-billion enterprise value merger of equals with Flutter Entertainment Inc.
Cronos Group in connection with the C$2.4-billion strategic investment by Altria Group Inc.
The Washington Companies on their US$1.2-billion acquisition of Dominion Diamond Corporation.
Holcim Ltd. on its C$50-billion merger with Lafarge S.A.
GlaxoSmithKline on its multibillion-dollar three-part transaction with Novartis involving the companies’ Consumer Healthcare, Vaccines, and Oncology businesses.
Siemens on its acquisition of Dresser-Rand for a total consideration of US$7.6-billion.
Continental AG on its proposed acquisition of Veyance Technologies.
Nestlé S.A. on its €6.5-billion acquisition of Galderma Pharma S.A. and Galderma International S.A.S.
Procter & Gamble Co. on the C$2.9-billion acquisition of its Pet Food Business by Mars Inc.
Merck & Co. on the C$14.2-billion sale of its non-prescription medicine and consumer care business to Bayer Inc.
ExxonMobil Canada Ltd. on its acquisition of Celtic Exploration Ltd. for C$3.1-billion.
Nexen Inc. on its C$15.1-billion acquisition by CNOOC Limited.
Daylight Energy Ltd. on its C$2.2-billion acquisition by China Petrochemical Corporation, known as Sinopec Group.
Encana Corporation on its C$920-million disposition of Cutbank midstream assets, including the Hythe/Steeprock gas gathering and processing complex and the negotiation of attendant post-closing operational arrangements.
Quadra FNX Mining Ltd. on the C$3.5-billion acquisition of Quadra FNX by KGHM Polska.
BHP Billiton on its US$40-billion offer to acquire Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan.
Sinopec International Petroleum Exploration and Production Corporation on its C$4.65-billion purchase of ConocoPhillips' interest in the Syncrude joint venture.
Cliffs Natural Resources on its C$4.9-billion acquisition of Consolidated Thompson Iron Mines.
Ericsson in connection with various transactions involving Nortel, including the acquisition of parts of Nortel's Carrier Networks division relating to CDMA and LTE technology in North America, a US$1.13-billion transaction.
Enerplus Resources Fund on its C$7.6-billion strategic business combination with Focus Energy Trust.

Awards & Recognition

Blakes was named Regional Firm of the Year – Americas at the 2025 GCR Awards.

Members of our Competition, Antitrust & Foreign Investment group are consistently ranked as leading practitioners in the following publications, including in the most recent editions:

Lexology Index: Foreign Investment Control – Recognizes Cassandra Brown, Brian Facey, Navin Joneja and Julie Soloway as leading regulatory and transactional lawyers.
Chambers Canada Legal Guide (Competition/Antitrust) – Ranks Blakes in Band 1, its top tier, and recognizes Cassandra Brown, Brian Facey, Randall Hofley, Navin Joneja, Julie Soloway, Micah Wood and Kevin MacDonald as leading lawyers.
The Legal 500 Canada (Competition and Antitrust) – Ranks Blakes in its top tier for and recognizes Cassandra Brown, Brian Facey, Randall Hofley, Navin Joneja, Julie Soloway and Kevin MacDonald as leading lawyers.
Global Competition Review’s GCR 100 – Ranks the Blakes Competition, Antitrust & Foreign Investment group in the “Elite” category, the review’s highest designation.
Global Competition Review’s Women in Antitrust – Recognizes Julie Soloway and Cassandra Brown as global leaders in competition law.
The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory (Competition Law) – Ranks Blakes in its top tier and recognizes Cassandra Brown, Brian Facey, Randall Hofley, Navin Joneja, Julie Soloway and Micah Wood as leading lawyers.
Lexology Index: Competition – Recognizes Cassandra Brown, Brian Facey, Randall Hofley, Navin Joneja, Kevin MacDonald, Julie Soloway and Micah Wood as leading lawyers and Jonathan Bitran as a Future Leader.
Lexology Index: Thought Leaders – Competition – Recognizes Brian Facey, Navin Joneja and Julie Soloway.
Lexology Index: Canada (Competition) – Recognizes Cassandra Brown, Brian Facey, Randall Hofley, Navin Joneja, Kevin MacDonald, Julie Soloway and Micah Wood as leading lawyers across the country.
Lexpert's Leading 500 Cross-Border Lawyers: A Guide to Doing Business in Canada (Competition Law) – Recognizes Brian Facey and Navin Joneja as leading lawyers.
The Best Lawyers in Canada (Competition/Antitrust Law) – Names Brian Facey as Lawyer of the Year (2024) and recognizes Jonathan Bitran, Cassandra Brown, Randall Hofley, Navin Joneja and Julie Soloway.
Benchmark Canada: The Definitive Guide to Canada's Leading Litigation Firms and Attorneys (Competition/Antitrust) – Recognizes Catherine Beagan-Flood, Jeff Galway, Randall Hofley, Claude Marseille, Dalton McGrath and James Sullivan for their expertise in competition litigation.