Corporate Governance 2022

Course Chair
Joseph A. Garcia — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver

About the Course Chair
Joseph's practice focuses on corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions. He advises public and private companies, investment dealers, venture capital and private equity funds and acts as independent counsel to boards of directors. Joseph has extensive experience advising on all types of merger and acquisition and corporate finance transactions including public and private equity and debt financings, take-over and issuer bids, share and asset acquisitions and divestitures, and regulatory and stock exchange compliance work. Prior to his career in law, Joseph worked in corporate finance with a national investment bank and in clinical research with a multinational pharmaceutical company.

Joseph has been featured as a leading lawyer in publications including: Chambers Canada: Canada's Leading Lawyers for Business 2019 (Life Sciences – Band 1), IFLR1000: The Guide to the World's Leading Financial and Corporate Law Firms – 202 Edition (M&A and Capital Markets), The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory 2019 (Biotechnology, Corporate Finance & Securities, Corporate Mid-Market, Private Equity, Corporate Commercial Law, Mergers & Acquisitions and Technology Transactions), The 2018 Lexpert Special Edition – Canada's Leading Corporate Lawyers, Who's Who Legal: Canada 2019 (Life Sciences), and The Best Lawyers in Canada 2020 (Biotechnology, Corporate, Corporate Governance Practice, Mergers & Acquisitions and Securities).

Joseph has lectured extensively on corporate governance and advanced securities law topics. He has chaired CLEBC's Corporate Governance course since 2011.

Planning Committee
Karim Amlani — Senior Director, Legal, Hootsuite, Vancouver
Teresa Budd — Governance Consultant and Lawyer, Watson Advisors Inc., Vancouver
Joan Chambers — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver
Lynne Charbonneau, ICD.D — Administrative Tribunal Judge, The World Bank; Director, Inuvialuit Development Corporation and BlueShore Financial; and Law Professor, University of Calgary, North Vancouver
Emma Costante — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver
Catherine (Cathie) Graham — Senior Director, Legal, Zymeworks Inc., Vancouver
Darren Kozol — SVP Legal and Corporate Secretary, Peoples Trust Company, Vancouver
Jonathan McCullough — Bennett Jones LLP, Vancouver

Faculty
Ravipal S. Bains — McMillan LLP, Vancouver
Teresa Budd — Governance Consultant and Lawyer, Watson Advisors Inc., Vancouver
Lynne Charbonneau, ICD.D — Administrative Tribunal Judge, The World Bank; Director, Inuvialuit Development Corporation and BlueShore Financial; and Law Professor, University of Calgary, North Vancouver
Ezekiel Chhoa — Chief Risk Officer, BlueShore Financial, North Vancouver
Emma Costante — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver
Radha Curpen — Bennett Jones LLP, Vancouver
Jessica Horwitz — Bennett Jones LLP, Toronto
Michael R. Howcroft — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver
Darren Kozol — SVP Legal and Corporate Secretary, Peoples Trust Company, Vancouver
Jennifer Ma — Senior Director, Privacy and Product Compliance, Hootsuite, Vancouver
Shannon McDougald — McDougald Law Group P.S., Mercer Island, WA
Ellice Schneider — Director of Human Resources, Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, Inuvik, NT

Click here for full faculty bios

Welcome and Land Acknowledgement (9:00 – 9:10)

Genevieve Chang — Program Lawyer, CLEBC, Vancouver
Joseph A. Garcia — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver

Directors Liability and Fiduciary Duties in Canada and US (9:10 – 10:00)

Emma Costante — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver
Shannon McDougald — McDougald Law Group P.S., Mercer Island, WA

BREAK (10:00 – 10:15)

Environmental, Social, and Governance Issues (10:15 – 11:05)

Ravipal S. Bains — McMillan LLP, Vancouver
Radha Curpen — Bennett Jones LLP, Vancouver

Navigating Trade Sanctions (11:05 – 11:55)

Jessica Horwitz — Bennett Jones LLP, Toronto

LUNCH (11:55 – 12:55)

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (12:55 – 1:45)

Teresa Budd — Governance Consultant and Lawyer, Watson Advisors Inc., Vancouver
Jennifer Ma — Senior Director, Privacy and Product Compliance, Hootsuite, Vancouver

BREAK (1:45 – 2:00)

Human Capital Issues (2:00 – 2:50)

Michael R. Howcroft — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver

Hot Topics in Enterprise Risk Management (2:50 – 3:55)

Lynne Charbonneau, ICD.D — Administrative Tribunal Judge, The World Bank; Director, Inuvialuit Development Corporation and BlueShore Financial; and Law Professor, University of Calgary, North Vancouver
Ezekiel Chhoa — Chief Risk Officer, BlueShore Financial, North Vancouver
Darren Kozol — SVP Legal and Corporate Secretary, Peoples Trust Company, Vancouver
Ellice Schneider — Director of Human Resources, Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, Inuvik, NT

Closing Comments (3:55 – 4:00)

Joseph A. Garcia — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, Vancouver