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Pension Funds

Domestic and International Investments

Blakes also has one of the leading pension fund practices in Canada. Our full-service Pension Fund team consists of multidisciplinary specialists who provide market knowledge and experience to Canada’s leading pension funds as well as other domestic and international investors, managers and financial institutions that interact with pension funds. This diverse range of experience is a key advantage when advising on the laws, strategic considerations, potential risks, regulatory framework and other issues that may arise with Canadian and international investments.

Our pension fund and institutional investor clients rely on us to advise, negotiate and assist at every phase of the investment process and in post-transaction monitoring. We combine our domestic and cross-border knowledge and expertise with an ability to think creatively and strategically when working with our clients to evaluate and pursue each opportunity.

Our broad transaction experience (third-party funds, co-investments and direct investments) includes advising many of Canada’s large and mid-size pension funds such as: 

  • British Columbia Investment Management Corporation
  • Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
  • Canada Pension Plan Investment Board
  • Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan
  • Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers’ Pension Plan
  • Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System
  • Ontario Pension Board
  • Ontario Power Generation Inc.
  • Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan
  • PSP Investments
  • Saskatchewan Healthcare Employees’ Pension Plan

We also advise many other public- and private-sector pension funds, investors, managers and financial institutions, both in Canada and internationally.

Core Elements of Our Services:

  • Private equity investments
  • Private debt investments (including fixed income, mezzanine, mortgage and other similar funds)
  • Corporate finance (including securities lending, securities borrowing and complex derivative arrangements)
  • Capital markets regulatory compliance
  • Existing and new commercial agreements and arrangements
  • Domestic and cross-border tax
  • Industry-sector regulations
  • Employment and labour
  • Real estate and land acquisitions and divestitures
  • Infrastructure, construction and procurement
  • Environmental compliance
  • Insurance
  • Dispute resolution and international arbitration

Structuring, Administration and Regulation

The Blakes Pensions, Benefits & Executive Compensation group is known in Canada and internationally as among the very best in the business.

Our work with several large Canadian pension funds has given us broad practical experience advising on plan governance protocols that meet legislative and regulatory requirements; strategic review of board of directors and committee structures, including the drafting of bylaws; and submissions to governments and regulators regarding amendments to legislation governing plans in many key areas, including investment regulation, governance, funding requirements and plan design.

Our team can also assist in designing compensation arrangements in ways that balance business objectives with tax, trust and securities law compliance and other legislative disclosure requirements for private- and public-sector employers, including pension funds. We provide legal opinions on a wide range of issues, such as plan amendments, legislative compliance, plan mergers, governance issues and fiduciary responsibilities.

Core Elements of Our Services:

  • Corporate services
  • Board of directors and committee structures
  • Governance and fiduciary duties
  • Enterprise risk management
  • Information technology, security and privacy
  • Employment and labour
  • Ongoing legislative compliance
  • Dispute resolution

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