Michael Amm > Torys > Toronto, Canada > Lawyer Profile

The Toronto-led mining team at Torys draws on the strength of a network of offices in Montreal, Halifax, Calgary and New York, to advise large, mid-cap and junior mining companies, issuers, underwriters and selling security holders on high-value, multi-jurisdictional M&A, project finance, joint ventures, commodity transactions, mining arbitration, restructuring, permitting matters and negotiations with Indigenous groups. Michael Pickersgill  leads the team, bringing expertise to M&A, corporate finance, earn-in agreements, and royalty, streaming and offtake arrangements. Other key figures include Michael Amm, who handles complex strategic investments, joint ventures, corporate financings, royalty and streaming transactions; Braden Jebson, who was promoted to partner in January 2023; Don Bell, who draws on experience advising on mining projects in North and South America, Asia and Africa; and John Terry and Kevin Morris, who both specialize in capital markets transactions, board governance advice and shareholder activist issues.

The corporate and M&A practice at Torys marshals the combined experience of teams in Toronto, Montreal, Halifax, Calgary and New York, to advise major corporates and financial institutions (including Scotiabank and BNP Paribas) involved in cross-border transactions at the domestic and international levels. The group’s client roster spans such sectors as telecoms, financial services, cannabis, utilities and energy. The group is jointly led in Toronto by John Emanoilidis, Karrin Powys-Lybbe and Michael Amm, all of whom bring expertise to complex M&A, securities, private equity and corporate governance matters. Other key figures include Adrienne DiPaolo in Toronto, who, in addition to public and private M&A, acts for bidders and targets in both negotiated and contested transactions; Janan Paskaran in Calgary, a specialist in securities compliance matters and corporate finance; and Jennifer Baugh (also in Calgary) who was promoted to partner in January 2023. Another key figure is senior associate Daniel Masliyah in Toronto.

A key part of Torys‘ international work is underpinned by its longstanding relationships with major institutional investors, including private equity funds, pension funds and other financial services clients. Additionally, its dominant energy, projects and life sciences practices also translate into a significant volume of cross-border mandates. The firm maintains a sizeable New York platform, which has been led by corporate and securities partner David Chaikof since 2019. Other key names in New York include PPP specialist Tara Mackay and Jared Fontaine, whose practice has an emphasis on institutional investing for clients such as pension and sovereign wealth funds, private equity funds and global corporations. In Toronto, M&A specialists John Emanoilidis, Michael Amm and former New York office managing partner Karrin Powys-Lybbe are noted for their experience in high-profile, cross-border transactions.