Course Chairs
Fred R. Pletcher — Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, Vancouver
Leo Raffin — McMillan LLP, Vancouver
About the Course Chairs
Fred Pletcher is chair of the Mining Group and a partner in the Securities and Capital Markets Group at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. Fred advises public companies and underwriters in connection with a broad range of transactions and issues, including mergers & acquisitions, corporate finance, corporate governance, continuous disclosure, and general commercial matters. He has a particular focus on companies in the mining industry, both domestically and internationally. He also has considerable experience in the field of shareholder activism.
Fred is recognized as a leading lawyer in Chambers Global, Chambers Canada, The Best Lawyers in Canada, IFLR 1000 - The Guide to the World's Leading Financial Law Firms, The Legal 500 Canada, The Lexpert®/American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada, and Acritas Stars. He has degrees from Columbia University (LLM), University of Toronto (LLB), and Harvard University (AB) and was called to the BC bar in 1993. He is a member of the TSX Listings Advisory Committee and is a director of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.
Leo Raffin is a partner in McMillan LLP's Vancouver office and is co-chair of the firm's national Capital Markets Group as well as co-chair of the Public M&A Group (BC). His primary practice areas are securities and corporate law—acting for technology, industrial, and natural resource issuers. His experience includes public and private offerings, mergers, acquisitions and take-over bids, proxy contests, corporate reorganizations, business alliances, licensing transactions, and corporate governance matters.
Leo was listed in The Legal 500 Canada 2015 as a leader in Corporate and M&A and in Best Lawyers in Canada 2015 as a leading lawyer in the areas of Securities Law and Technology Law. He was recognized as a leading lawyer in Global Mining in the 2014/15 Lexpert Special Edition and received a "BV" Peer Review Ranking from Martindale-Hubbell. Leo was called to the BC bar in 1987.
Planning Committee
James Beeby — Bennett Jones LLP, Vancouver
Charlotte Bell — Senior Policy Counsel, TMX Group, Vancouver
Julie Bogle — Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, Vancouver
M. Joanna Cameron — Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, Vancouver
Tamara Howarth — Vice President, Legal, Wheaton Precious Metals Corp., Vancouver
Kathleen Keilty — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver
Sven O. Milelli — McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Vancouver
James R. Munro — McMillan LLP, Vancouver
Susan Toews — General Counsel, Equinox Gold Corp., Vancouver
Teresa Tomchak — Farris LLP, Vancouver
Faculty
Ravipal S. Bains — McMillan LLP, Vancouver
Tamara Howarth — Vice President, Legal, Wheaton Precious Metals Corp., Vancouver
David Salmon — President, Laurel Hill Advisory Group LLP, Vancouver
Teresa Tomchak — Farris LLP, Vancouver