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ARTICLE · 06 NOVEMBER 2026

Denis Ferland On Trade War Fallout For Lexpert

Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP
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Canadian businesses face mounting challenges as trade war uncertainty compounds the impact of new tariffs, forcing companies to slow investment and delay transactions. With talks between countries breaking down and new tariff rounds imposed, experts examine how this volatility may reshape business operations, trigger relocations, and lead to sector consolidation.

CanadaInternational Law
Denis Ferland
Denis Ferland
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Why uncertainty may lead to more financial distress for businesses

Denis Ferland was featured in a recent Lexpert article titled “How Ongoing Trade War Uncertainty Could Lead to More Financial Distress.” The article looks at how Canadian businesses, particularly those that export to the US, are being forced to adjust to new developments in a volatile trade war, which intensified when talks broke down in August and both countries imposed a new round of tariffs.

Denis argues that these tariffs only compound a bigger consequence of the trade war: ongoing uncertainty. As businesses cannot predict what is coming, they slow investment and delay transactions, and Denis notes that replacing that activity with new transactions and new sales “is easier said than done.” He also predicts business relocations and consolidation in some sectors, with fewer competitors left. However, Denis does not expect insolvency filings to rise right away, pointing out that many filings in 2025 and 2026 reflect

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