Willoughby wins counsel accolade
Another hero has emerged out of last year’s battle for Botox. Jim Willoughby, chief legal officer at the Canadian subsidiary of Botox manufacturer Allergan Inc., was named 2015 Canadian General Counsel of the Year at the awards gala in Toronto on Monday night.
As the in-house lawyer responsible for legal affairs in Canada, Willoughby played a critical role when Allergan became the subject of a US$53-billion hostile bid jointly launched by Quebec-based Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. and activist shareholder Bill Ackman. Allergan defended the bid, and eventually lined up a US$66-billion deal to sell itself to U.K.-based Actavis PLC.
“In life and business, there are very few moments where you can pause and give thanks,” Willoughby said. “This is one of those evenings.”
Willoughby’s acceptance speech had lighter moments. Recognizing his words might find their way into the Legal Post, he gave a special shoutout to his wife, two children — and parents. “I’d like to thank Mom and Dad for paying for me to go to law school, and also buying me a car.”
More than 500 people were at the Fairmont Royal York for the 11th annual Canadian General Counsel Awards, founded and presented by National Post and ZSA Legal Recruitment. Marie Henein of Henein Hutchison LLP was emcee. We’ll have full coverage of all the recipients and finalists in Friday’s paper and online. Meanwhile, here’s a rundown on Monday’s seven other recipients.
Shannon Rogers, president and general counsel with Global Relay Communications Inc., took home the award for business achievement. The company had just four employees when it was founded in Vancouver 12 years ago. It has more than 400 today.
Rogers went to law school at McGill University, and started her legal career with McCarthy Tétrault LLP in Toronto. She moved to Vancouver to take a job with Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, but then took the risk of joining Global Relay. The company made only $14,000 in revenue after the first two years.
“But we stuck at it,” she said. “I feel so lucky that I took my leap of faith.”
“I love that there’s a category that celebrates lawyers taking risks, so thank you.”
The deal making award went to Sofia Tsakos, general counsel with Yamana Gold Inc. She was honoured for her work on Yamana’s move to team up with Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. in a joint $3.9-billion bid for Osisko Mining Corp.
She told the crowd the battle for Osisko was a thriller, at least for deal junkies. Goldcorp Inc. kicked things off with a hostile bid, then a white knight entered the fray, then a second white knight enhanced the deal, then the hostile bidder upped the ante, and then finally the white knights prevailed with a revised offer that sealed the deal. “I know this doesn’t sound like a Hitchcock thriller, but I did say it was for the deal junkies.”
Fernando Garcia, general counsel for Nissan Canada and Infiniti Canada, received the tomorrow’s leader award, which recognizes an in-house corporate lawyer with fewer than 10 years’ experience at the bar.
Garcia came to Canada with his parents when he was nine years old. He had problems learning English and he struggled in school. He persevered, especially with the help of mentors. He earned a law degree and an MBA and is one of the few Hispanic general counsels in Canada.
“As an immigrant to Canada, growing up in the Jane and Finch area of Toronto, I overcame many obstacles and challenges to get where I am today. I was more likely to fail than to succeed,” he said. “I ask you today to help remove the challenges for other people through mentoring new lawyers, supporting programs for the younger people in your community. We can all play a role in helping future stars to shine.”
Gail Harding, general counsel with Canadian Western Bank, received the mid-market excellence award.
She was the bank’s first general counsel, and she helped assemble the bank’s in-house team.
“In-house, you bring tremendous value to your company,” Harding said. It’s not just that in-house counsel are cheaper than outside lawyers, she explained. It’s also that in-house lawyers understand the company’s strategic direction, then bring in the law that achieves it. “That is just so rewarding to everyone in-house.”
Adrian Lang, associate general counsel at BMO Financial Group, received the litigation management award. She recently joined the bank after developing expertise as a corporate class action defence lawyer with Stikeman Elliott LLP in Toronto.
At BMO, she manages a team of lawyers, paralegals and administrative staff that look after all litigation involving the personal and commercial banking group, including credit cards. She credited several people within the bank for her success, among them BMO’s general counsel — and 2013 GC of the Year award recipient — Simon Fish.
Fish regularly tells the bank’s legal staff that if there is a way to do something better, go ahead and do it, even if that means pushing something else out of the way. “Simon backs us up every day,” Lang said.
Telus received the social responsibility award in recognition of several initiatives, among them providing legal and governance support to a network of 11 community and three international boards that provide funding to local groups where the company operates. Since 2005, Telus Community Boards have contributed more than $47 million to 3,700 projects. The company was also recognized for its sustainability efforts.
“I’m very honoured to accept this award on behalf of the Telus legal team,” said Andrea Wood, senior vice president, legal services at Telus. “We feel we have a responsibility to current and future generations to integrate sustainability into what we do.”
As previously announced, James Turner received the lifetime achievement award. Turner recently retired as a vicechair of the Ontario Securities Commission. That job involved serving on public hearing panels that issued precedent-setting rulings, and advising the commission behind the scenes on policy.
He spent most of his career as a partner with Torys LLP in Toronto, but took a two-year sabbatical from private practice in the 1980s to serve as the OSC’s first general counsel.
“Frankly, I never expected anybody was going to go back, look at what I had done, and try to assess it,” he told the crowd.
“This really was a wonderful surprise.”