Michael Garellek > Baker McKenzie > Toronto, Canada > Lawyer Profile

Michael Garellek

+1 416 865 6958 [email protected]

Work Department

Corporate & Securities

Position

Michael serves as the head of the Financial Services Regulatory Practice for Canada and is a Transactional Partner in Baker McKenzie’s Toronto office. His practice focuses on Canadian financial regulation and compliance for fintechs, financial institutions and financial market participants, online marketplaces, blockchain and web3 devs. Michael has assisted many global companies establish and grow their businesses in Canada.

He is a co-author of Baker McKenzie’s Doing Business in Canada, the Annotated Bank Act (2025-2023 editions) and the Jurisclasseur en valeurs mobilieres, a long leading treatise on securities laws in Canada.

Career

Michael’s transactional and advisory work covers a variety of deal types both public and private, including financing and securitization. Michael provides regulatory guidance and best practice to financial industry firms and their representatives as well as, to online marketplace and web3 gaming platforms in Canada. Michael’s specialized practice areas cover legal issues, including those relating to insurance, banking, AML/FT, privacy, securities and OTC swaps and derivatives, among others. This includes critical questions on entity formation, governance and structure. In the areas of payments, securities, banking and insurance, Michael will assist you to make the required applications to Canadian regulators.

Languages

English, French

Memberships

• Editorial board of the Banking and Finance Law Review
• Ordre des comptables professionnels agréés du Québec (Quebec CPA Order)

Education

• University of Montreal (LLB) (2008)
• McGill University (Diploma in Public Accountancy) (2000)
• McGill University (B.Comm. – Hons. Accounting and Economics) (1998)